The Sports Officiating Challenge
July 30, 2013
Last Saturday, the MHSAA hosted the largest gathering of sports officials ever assembled in this state at one time and place: 1,248 under the same roof.
The occasion was “Officiate Michigan Day” that preceded the 31st Sports Officiating Summit conducted by the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO) in Grand Rapids. The summit began Sunday and concludes this evening in Grand Rapids.
On Sunday afternoon, nearly 300 of Michigan’s officiating leaders – local association officials and trainers and registered assignors – went through three hours of training which the MHSAA requires face to face every other year.
All this comes at a challenging time for our officiating program which is most dramatically demonstrated by this fact: the number of MHSAA registered officials has declined by 1,895 - 17.5 percent – over the past four years!
We know of course that our registration totals were temporarily inflated by two outside factors after 2007. First, after the court-ordered change in sports seasons for girls basketball and volleyball, the MHSAA allowed officials to add those sports to their registration free of charge in 2007-08 through 2010-11. And second, as is always the case, the recession pushed many new people into officiating; but again, just temporarily – we’ve lost many of them as the economy has slowly improved.
I do believe the MHSAA and its member schools and the local officials associations that serve school sports are up to the challenge we face. The same community that just rallied to provide record attendance in Grand Rapids has the ability to reverse the trend that could weaken school-based sports: fewer officials.
We will get there with three E’s: (1) encouraging officials; (2) equipping officials; and, most of all, (3) providing officials an environment in which to thrive – that’s one that is safe, sane and sportsmanlike.
I’ll have more to say on all three E’s over the course of the next few months. In the meantime, I invite you to learn more about officiating in Michigan here at MHSAA.com.
Officate Michigan Day Recap: Photo Gallery | Story
The Official View: Multiplying Legacies
By
Brent Rice
MHSAA Assistant Director
September 17, 2018
By Brent Rice
MHSAA Assistant Director
In this week’s edition, check out the latest news on the MHSAA’s Officials Review Committee and Officials Guidebook, rules scenarios to consider in football and swimming and a quick story of multiple generations learning through the Legacy Program.
It’s Official!
Officials Review Committee Meeting: The Officials Review Committee will meet next week, and the agenda will include a number of important topics such as officials’ tournament fees, registration options and benefits, and the current system of selecting tournament officials.
The Officials Guidebook will be released in the upcoming week. Whether you’re an official, assigner, or association leader, please take some time to review its policies, requirements, and restrictions. It should have much of the information you need regarding the administrative duties of MHSAA officiating.
Rule of the Week
FOOTBALL Late in a tight contest, A1 receives the snap and attempts to throw a bubble screen to a stacked receiver behind A1’s position. As A1’s arm motion begins forward in his attempt to make the backward pass, it is contacted by rushing B1 and is knocked loose. Team B falls on top of the ball.
Ruling: This is a turnover and Team B’s ball. Even though the arm motion is coming forward, this is not a legal forward pass because it is not in the direction of the line of scrimmage. As a result, this is a fumble and live ball until it is recovered by Team B.
It’s Your Call
SWIMMING This week’s clip involves determining the legality of a turn in swim. The swimmer is participating in a 100-yard backstroke race. This clip begins at the point where he is beginning his turn. Is this a legal turn in this backstroke event? Why or why not? Check back next week for the correct ruling. (Video courtesy of USA Swimming.)
Official View
In 1996, Dana Fuller (far left in top photo) was a Legacy official under the tutelage of mentor official Jerry Sosnowski (far right). Things came full circle at a recent volleyball contest while working with his new Legacy mentee, Olivia Kostiz, when all three generations of the Legacy program were able to work together.