Be the Referee: Cheer Safety
February 11, 2015
This week, MHSAA assistant director Mark Uyl explains how a safe environment is created for Michigan's competitive cheerleaders.
Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.
Below is this week's segment - Cheer Safety - Listen
Cheerleaders – usually at the college level - get in the sports headlines whenever an accident occurs causing a serious injury. In Michigan, the sport of Competitive Cheer doesn’t make the news in that regard.
Why? Because this sport, created by Michigan schools, has built-in safety guidelines for competition, including the proper matting, rules which prohibit dangerous stunts, and safety judges observing the routines, whose responsibility is to detect, record and report safety violations when they occur, and to penalize those who commit them.
This format is exclusive to Michigan and just another way that high school sports take the extra step to make the games our children play as safe as they can possibly be.
Past editions
Feb. 2 - Basketball PA Announcers - Listen
Jan. 26 - Wrestling Health Concerns - Listen
Jan. 19 - Basketball Physical Contact - Listen
Jan. 12 - Video Review Part 2 - Listen
Dec. 29 - Video Review Part 1 - Listen
Dec. 17 - Registration Part 2 - Listen
Dec. 10 - Registration Part 1 - Listen
Dec. 3 - Legacy Program - Listen
Nov. 26 - Sideline Management - Listen
Nov. 19 - 7-Person Mechanics - Listen
Nov. 12 - Blocking Below the Waist - Listen
Nov. 5 - Tournament Selection - Listen
Oct. 29 - Uncatchable Pass - Listen
Oct. 22 - Preparation for Officials - Listen
Oct. 15 - Automatic First Downs - Listen
Oct. 8 - Officials & Injuries - Listen
Oct. 1 - Overtime - Listen
Sept. 25 - Field Goals - Listen
Sept. 18 - Tackle Box - Listen
Sept. 11 - Pass Interference - Listen
Aug. 25 - Targeting - Listen
MHSAA Officials Awards & Alumni Banquet: Photos, Video & OMD 2026.
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
April 30, 2026
More than 80 MHSAA-registered game officials were honored Saturday during the annual Officials Awards & Alumni Banquet at Kellogg Center in East Lansing.
Our MHSAA communications director emeritus John Johnson was on site, camera in hand, to capture photos of our award winners and several more attendees and honorees. Check those out by clicking here – MHSAA Officials Banquet photos – to see not only photos from this past weekend but also from 2003-19, 2024-25, and the 2013 and 2018 Officiate Michigan Day events.
Among this year’s honorees was Grand Ledge senior Owen Rottier, who received the Randy Paulson Legacy Award and scholarship. Owen has officiated both cross country and track & field as part of the Legacy Program and will study next at Lansing Community College. He’s pictured above with (from left) MHSAA executive director Mark Uyl, Mary Paulson, Rottier and MHSAA director of officiating Sam Davis.
Receiving the 36th Vern L. Norris Leadership in Officiating Award was Metro Detroit’s Robert Czech, who is in his 44th year as a registered official and also has assigned officials for more than 35 years, including currently for four Detroit-area leagues.
Referee Magazine also created a commemorative cover celebrating Czech and in advance of this summer’s Officiate Michigan Day.
OMD 2026 will be July 25 at DeVos Place in Grand Rapids, followed by the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO) Summit from July 26-28.
For information on registration and details on both events, check out the Officiate Michigan Day page.