Referee shortage nears crisis in Iowa

  • After Iowa State won the Big 12, a Cyclone made a wonderful offer to We Will that now increases our match. Now all gifts up to $400,000 between now and the Final 4 will be matched. Please consider giving at We Will Collective.
    This notice can be dismissed using the upper right corner X button.

cyhiphopp

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 9, 2009
33,267
14,536
113
Ankeny
It's not a job for most people. You get 100 people who complain to the one who says "I really thought you did a nice job" (and that guy is normally the host AD hoping you will come back because officials are hard to find).

People have this ridiculous belief that the official is out to screw their kid/team/etc. Most officials are out there because they legitimately enjoy the sport and are trying to give back and make a little money at the same time. There's a limit of **** most people are willing to take.

The number of stupid comments from parent thinking I care about who wins the game are laughable.

I don't care if Timmy strikes out. I don't have a grudge against your team.

I've only tossed one guy and that's because he wouldn't shut the hell up. Thought my dad did toss a guy for me when he was on the plate and a guy was arguing with me at first base. The coach assumed that because I was a young looking 18, that I must not know what I was doing and he could intimidate me. Coaches didn't mess with my dad much though.
 

LivntheCyLife

Well-Known Member
Nov 25, 2006
1,890
860
113
St. Louis, MO
I think every youth sport should shake hands with the refs after a game in addition to the other team. We need to emphasize that good sportsmanship includes how you interact with referees. Refs need to act professional and not be overly friendly or confrontational with players during a game, but we've created a culture that acts like referees aren't human beings.
 

CycloneErik

Well-Known Member
Jan 31, 2008
105,625
49,419
113
Jamerica
rememberingdoria.wordpress.com
It's not a job for most people. You get 100 people who complain to the one who says "I really thought you did a nice job" (and that guy is normally the host AD hoping you will come back because officials are hard to find).

People have this ridiculous belief that the official is out to screw their kid/team/etc. Most officials are out there because they legitimately enjoy the sport and are trying to give back and make a little money at the same time. There's a limit of **** most people are willing to take.

You're trying to screw all of us by standing up for referees.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Goofyguy1

harimad

Well-Known Member
Jul 28, 2016
7,381
11,776
113
50
Illinois
In my 10 yo daughter's softball league the teams have to provide umps. I was umping 1st one game and had parents questioning my calls. As they get older is has to become a bigger nightmare for refs and umps. The other thing is parents like to ***** about the calls or even the coaching but when you ask them to step up and do it or help out they are no where to be found.

10u parents are the worst. 12u parents are only slightly better. It isn't until 14u that parents have figured out its about the kids (and not the parents.) Basically... it gets better?
 

NorthCyd

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Aug 22, 2011
17,178
26,784
113
Football/ Basketball Official here.

Fans need to be better educated on the game.

Yeah, cause lack of knowledge of the sport has everything to do with fans and coaches being critical of officials.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Goofyguy1

CyHans

Well-Known Member
Apr 28, 2010
829
801
93
I think the same can be said for coaching. You gotta just love the game and the kids to put up with the parental crap. That said, there are some bad coaches out there but I would bet a lot of good coaches have been driven out by bad parents.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: Cyclone27inQC

IcSyU

Well-Known Member
Nov 27, 2007
27,738
5,925
113
Rochester, MN
I think every youth sport should shake hands with the refs after a game in addition to the other team. We need to emphasize that good sportsmanship includes how you interact with referees. Refs need to act professional and not be overly friendly or confrontational with players during a game, but we've created a culture that acts like referees aren't human beings.
Some of that is on officials. If you act approachable coaches handle it better than being the guy who appears disinterested in having any human contact. The best thing you can do (especially with kids) IS interact with them. I'd even argue that's how it should be up until freshman/JV. You're more or less a coach on the floor. Yes the kid has been in the lane for 8 seconds but don't whistle it....ask them to clear. Yes it's a hold away from the ball but just tell the kid to let go of the jersey. No one wants games with constant whistles so help where you can.

If you blow a call and a coach is pissed at the next TO let them know that, "hey, I missed that. My bad." And they're much more likely not to fly off the handle at the next 50/50 call.

And when a kid is being a prick because dad has a big mouth in the 4th row? Foul his ass out!
 
Last edited:

Clonefan32

Well-Known Member
Nov 19, 2008
21,702
22,566
113
Incessant-berating-of-official-guy has always intrigued me. How do they get through their day to day? How to do they react to important **** going wrong? Do they go home and feel embarassed?
 

Schfinkter

Well-Known Member
Dec 3, 2008
2,178
172
63
Dandy's House
I reffed wrestling for awhile. I got out of it mainly because of the pay. Nothing like giving up your entire night, being away from your family, having to travel often an hour or more to a place to ref, only to make a small amount. It just started to become not worth it. Yeah when I was in college and the first couple of years afterwards it was great because I could use the extra cash to buy beer, but now with kids at home and such it is just not worth it.

The interview only touched on basketball refs, but I think the real crisis for the IAHSAA is wrestling refs. I know its a challenge to just get enough to handle the entire state tournament and some of those guys are not getting any younger.
 

IcSyU

Well-Known Member
Nov 27, 2007
27,738
5,925
113
Rochester, MN
Yeah, cause lack of knowledge of the sport has everything to do with fans and coaches being critical of officials.
If this is truly how you feel you're part of the problem. Most of the people who run their mouths are uneducated morons (and it happens at every sporting event). The smart people keep their mouths shut because they know nothing good comes of ********. The idiots keep running their mouths because its not their kid's fault the official is out to get them.
 

NoCreativity

Well-Known Member
Nov 12, 2015
10,674
9,710
113
Des Moines
Football/ Basketball Official here.

Fans need to be better educated on the game.

Serious question. Why do basketball officials pick and chose what to call? I see it in every game across every level, guy gets mugged while ref stands there, no foul, guy gets too close to another player 20 feet away from the ball, its clearly a foul.

Basketball has to be the toughest for officials but at the same time the quality is really awful compared to other sports.
 

CYphyllis

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2010
5,391
4,789
113
I do high school softball and it always amazes me that the parent sitting down the first or third base line past the dugout always seems to think they can call balls and strikes better than I can behind the plate. I've gotten to the point where I've cut my schedule way back and am now not afraid to have ADs/Principals remove parents. I thought by cutting the number of high school games and doing more youth tournaments that it would get better, but it's actually worse. Younger parents are worse and there's no 'authority figure' to tell people to calm down.

I started doing some slow pitch last year and drunk uber competitive guy is much easier to deal with than high school parents.

I started reffing at the age of twelve and by fifteen I was doing adults. One thing I learned very quickly is that you have to be that authority figure yourself because there is no white knight coming to bail you out. The only way to deal with problems be it players, coaches or parents/fans is to nip that **** in the bud. I had no problem stopping games and addressing the problem (95% of the time it's parents/fans) face to face. Partly to show that I was not going to be walked all over and I was in no way intimidated by that person, but mostly to embarrass the hell out of them - which not only works great when it comes to shutting someone up, but is also deserved.

I was a ref for a little under fifteen years and I can say without question it's definitely not a side job for those with thin skin or have any mild issues with confrontation.
 

cyhiphopp

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 9, 2009
33,267
14,536
113
Ankeny
Disagree, there has always been the human element involved. But now with social media a call is so overly scrutinized people want to blame the refs more then ever for their teams failures. Ignoring the fact that if they made a lay up 2 minutes into the game may have prevented the out come of a game to fall on the official.

Its a crap job, and if people get to the point where the confront a high school ref in the parking lot maybe the parents should just be banned from attending games.

Heck the kids might appreciate not having their helicopter parents around too..

If people want to keep from having to pay a ton more for their kids leagues, they need to realize that officials are humans and are doing their best. You'll maybe get 1 in 100 officials that are actually dicks and are doing a poor job on purpose.

Keep hounding officials and they're going to have to pay them more to come back or deal with new guys who actually don't know what they're doing.

I work at a handful of little leagues regularly and most of them are very appreciative. The ones that have coaches and fans who freak out over every call aren't worth it.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: khardbored

mb7299

Well-Known Member
Mar 15, 2013
1,313
582
113
Iowa Falls
Sportsmanship is going down the drain pretty quickly and it has most to do with parents/coaches. I've definitely learned Im to thin skinned to officiate anymore but at what point because you disagree with someone over anything would it be ok to scream at the top of your lungs to try to embarrass or intimidate someone else be ok, yet grown up after grown up thinks its ok at a sporting event where the game doesn't mean anything, heck the kids won't recall the game at all but they will remember the parent's acting like fools and embarrassing them.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: Cyclone27inQC

CYphyllis

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2010
5,391
4,789
113
Yeah, cause lack of knowledge of the sport has everything to do with fans and coaches being critical of officials.

Pretty much, yeah. It's a general lack of knowledge when it comes to athletics as a whole. Having someone in the room ******** about officiating on a constant basis is the big red flag that said person is the one that has no idea what they are talking about.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: Cyclone27inQC

jbindm

Well-Known Member
Dec 2, 2010
13,073
7,604
113
Des Moines
It's a thankless job, and I hope that once my kids are of age to participate in activities that require refs I'll have the restraint to keep my mouth shut when I happen to disagree with a call they make. Verbally abusing someone who's working a ****** job for not much or no pay sets a lousy example for kids.

If a parent has a problem with an official, there has to be a better way to voice the complaint. Acting like a belligerent ******* rarely solves anything.
 

cyhiphopp

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 9, 2009
33,267
14,536
113
Ankeny
Some of that is on officials. If you act approachable coaches handle it better than being the guy who appears disinterested in having any human contact. The best thing you can do (especially with kids) IS interact with them. I'd even argue that's how it should be up until freshman/JV. You're more or less a coach on the floor. Yes the kid has been in the lane for 8 seconds but don't whistle it....ask them to clear. Yes it's a hold away from the ball but just tell the kid to let go of the jersey. No one wants games with constant whistles so help where you can.

If you blow a call and a coach is pissed at the next TO let them know that, "hey, I missed that. My bad." And they're much more likely not to fly off the handle at the next 50/50 call.

And when a kid is being a prick because dad has a big mouth in the 4th row? Foul his ass out!

There's a balance to it. If you're too nice, coaches think they can walk all over you. But you can't be a jerk either.

I talk to the younger kids a lot. Let them know why a call was made. Let the catchers know where the pitch ended up. I will talk to coaches about the rule involved and why I made the call I did sometimes, but usually only if they ask. You have to gauge the attitude of the coach. Some guys will never understand why a call was made. They just want to argue.

One thing I won't do is say, "I missed that one." Even if I know I missed a call, it's over. If you admit you missed a call you'll have some coaches complaining to the umpire in chief trying to get you off their games. Or the next time you have their team they will complain about every close call thinking I missed it too.

Call em like you see em, and forget about it afterwards. That's all you can do.
 

FarminCy

Well-Known Member
Nov 14, 2009
4,413
2,407
113
Nowhere and Everywhere
Sportsmanship is going down the drain pretty quickly and it has most to do with parents/coaches. I've definitely learned Im to thin skinned to officiate anymore but at what point because you disagree with someone over anything would it be ok to scream at the top of your lungs to try to embarrass or intimidate someone else be ok, yet grown up after grown up thinks its ok at a sporting event where the game doesn't mean anything, heck the kids won't recall the game at all but they will remember the parent's acting like fools and embarrassing them.

It's amazing how many people these exact points are lost on.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: Prone2Clone

CYphyllis

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2010
5,391
4,789
113
It's a thankless job, and I hope that once my kids are of age to participate in activities that require refs I'll have the restraint to keep my mouth shut when I happen to disagree with a call they make. Verbally abusing someone who's working a ****** job for not much or no pay sets a lousy example for kids.

If a parent has a problem with an official, there has to be a better way to voice the complaint. Acting like a belligerent ******* rarely solves anything.

That kind of depends on where you are at in your life financially and where you are physically located. When I was twelve through about nineteen I'd work youth games usually on Saturdays and Sundays and get between $25 - $50 per game with 4 - 5 games per day, longest games would be 60 minutes but most were around 40. During the week (once I was high school aged) I'd pick up a couple adult games usually at between $60 - $80 per game. When you factor in all of my friends were getting $5.15 an hour in whatever **** after school job they were stuck in and I was getting paid in cash with no taxes, it wasn't so bad.

Hell, it's why I kept doing it through college and even once I had my first professional job - I was doing a smaller amount at that time, but I definitely needed the extra cash.
 

1UNI2ISU

Well-Known Member
Jan 30, 2013
6,864
8,680
113
Waterloo
I started reffing at the age of twelve and by fifteen I was doing adults. One thing I learned very quickly is that you have to be that authority figure yourself because there is no white knight coming to bail you out. The only way to deal with problems be it players, coaches or parents/fans is to nip that **** in the bud. I had no problem stopping games and addressing the problem (95% of the time it's parents/fans) face to face. Partly to show that I was not going to be walked all over and I was in no way intimidated by that person, but mostly to embarrass the hell out of them - which not only works great when it comes to shutting someone up, but is also deserved.

I was a ref for a little under fifteen years and I can say without question it's definitely not a side job for those with thin skin or have any mild issues with confrontation.


Totally agree with you there. It's just that when you get to that 3rd or 4th warning when you've got somebody right up against the backstop that you can't get out of there short of stopping a game and taking time away from the kids getting to play it makes it a problem. I'm not saying that I hear listen to everything, but as soon as you cross that line in to personal, its got to stop.

Tell me I missed one. That's fine. Don't insult my appearance and intelligence while you're doing it.