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See the Whole Play

August 19, 2014

“What I Learned from That Play” was the name given to a session at the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO) Summit in Albuquerque last month. Several prominent officials talked about tough calls they made. One official was telling us of an error made, the other of a correct call; but the message was the same from both: “See the whole play.”

One official described an apparent touchdown reception where the focus of the officials was intent upon whether or not the receiver had a foot inbounds and maintained possession of the ball. Both occurred, but all the officials missed the fact that the receiver’s foot had brushed the pylon at the goal line, which made the pass incomplete regardless of what followed. “In focusing so intently on two key aspects of the play, we missed a detail that overruled the other two.”

“To make the right call we have to avoid narrow focus and be aware of all details,” this college official opined.

The other official described a play in which the quarterback rolled to his left to throw a pass while linemen provided protection. There was a near chop block by the left guard and running back, near hold by the right tackle, and a center/guard double team that had to be observed closely. But there were no penalties called, correctly according to the video the audience was shown.

The play ended with the quarterback heaving a forward pass just as he was being tackled. The referee called him down by contact, before the pass; and the video showed that call to also be correct.

The referee said: “If the officials had fixated on the double team, or the potential hold or the possible chop block, the crew may have missed that the quarterback was down by contact for a seven-yard loss.”

Each official was speaking of the importance of seeing the whole play – all of the key factors. Staying open to all the details.

Game officials must do this over the span of a few seconds or less, but countless times over the course of a contest. Administrators have the luxury of minutes, days, weeks or longer to get it right.

Here are a few more pearls of wisdom from the nation’s leading gathering of sports officials, these from Barry Mano, NASO president:

  • “Incorrect no-calls are easier to explain than incorrect calls.”
  • “Officials are to enforce, not appease.”
  • “In spite of their criticisms, there is no sensible parent who would want their child to participate without officials.”

Northern MI Officials Honor 'Pioneer'

December 30, 2016

By Mike Spencer
Special for Second Half

TRAVERSE CITY – Barb Beckett was in a familiar spot – center circle at the Traverse City St. Francis gymnasium – for a boys varsity basketball game. 

The longtime Michigan High School Athletic Association referee was not tossing up another ball to start the Dec. 17 contest with visiting Cadillac, but she was nonetheless the center of attention.

The Northern Sports Officials Association, and St. Francis athletic officials, honored Beckett for her decades of officiating service at halftime. A 34-year official and longtime president of the NSOA, she received plaudits, a trophy and a bouquet of flowers. 

“To be recognized by your peers is probably the greatest thrill that one could hope for,” Beckett said. “It was a totally unexpected and humbling experience.

“I could never give back as much as the NSOA has given to me. And looking up and seeing a sea of officials and generations that I had officiated in my career was amazing.”

"Barb has been instrumental in mentoring, developing, and coaching officials to be the best they can be,” said Bill Parker, who succeeded Beckett as the association’s president earlier this year. "She has always had a great passion for high school sports and her way to stay involved has been officiating and as a leader in NSOA."

Parker said honoring Beckett was a great way to show her that the NSOA appreciated her efforts.

“When someone devotes so much time to an association, it is great to acknowledge their contributions,” Parker said.

Beckett is well known in statewide officiating circles. The first woman to officiate an MHSAA Boys Basketball Final (1995) was awarded the MHSAA’s Vern Norris Award in 2000 and Women In Sports Leadership Award in 2013.

“Barb has been a true pioneer in what she, along with the other leaders of the Northern Sports Officials Association, has been able to accomplish in areas of recruiting, training and retaining sports officials,” said MHSAA assistant director Mark Uyl, the association's director of officiating. “At her core, Barb is a people person. The relationships that she has built with fellow officials, school administrators, coaches and student-athletes have been exemplary.”

Uyl said he was not surprised to see Beckett honored by her fellow officials.

“It’s a true testament of the kind of person Barb is,” Uyl said. “She has blazed an incredible trail as a leader in high school officiating. We need more people like Barb that are true advocates and supporters of those that are officiating games in school sports.”

Although Beckett turned in her whistle more than a decade ago, she is still involved in the NSOA as an assignor, advisor to the board and mentor.

“I knew many years ago that I was here to serve,” said Beckett, who also has been the program director for the Grand Traverse Bay YMCA. “I have been able to fulfill that life expectation of myself.”

Beckett, who officiated numerous high-level basketball and softball tournament games, said getting the association to assign games through a web-based system and getting officials better trained are two major accomplishments from her presidency.

“The assigning system has completely changed the way in which we operate and so has the training,” she said. “We emphasize the importance of educating and we wanted our officials to have the best and most comprehensive rules, mechanics and game-situation knowledge of anyone in the state.”

Beckett said she got into officiating just like a lot of others because she thought she could make a difference and do better than those that she had watched.

Beckett said working her first MHSAA Softball Final and the Class C Boys Basketball Final were among her officiating highlights.

“The boys Final was the best experience ever,” Beckett said. “I didn’t get any sleep the night before the game and I was never comfortable with all the attention of being the first female to work a boys Final.

“I saw myself as being just another official, not a female official.”

Beckett said she’s always had the “greatest partners ever,” and “they made me look way better than I actually was.” Among the greats were Joe Lemieux, Tom Post, Kenny Allen, Scott Jones, Clint Kerr and “many more, too,” she added.

As far as accolades, Beckett said she’s not a fan of self-recognition nights. But she’ll remember the cold, snowy winter night of Dec. 17, 2016.

“I like casual and homey nights like that,” she said. “My NSOA family was there with me so it was extra special.

“It’s a bond that we have as officials. We are all brothers and sisters.”

PHOTOS: (Top) Barb Beckett stands along the sidelines with her trophy and bouquet of flowers after the ceremony in her honor Dec. 17 during halftime of the Traverse City St. Francis boys basketball game against Cadillac. (Middle) Northern Sports Officials Association members, from left: president Bill Parker, assignor and mentor Barb Beckett and secretary Mark Stewart. (Photos by Mike Spencer.)