Dzily Nebraskan
Psgoll
As ref sees it . . .
Monday, January 30, 193-V
Ccr.tlr.aed from Yzcs 10
Practise E'.aics near perfect
I was a little nervous before I went In about half
way through the first half: I tried to remember every
thing v,e had been told about the rules and hand
signals. Relax, call the obvious, be acssive, I told
I took my position under the basket, then the
game was going and I was trailing the action. My
thoughts were on the late Mendy Rudolph, the great
NBA official, when a foul was committed right in
front of me. I blew my whistle but the only sound
that came out was a weak "Phweectt." Forgetting to
raise my hand to signal a foul, I pointed at the guilty
player and ran to the scorer's table to report the
violation. I did my best imitation of "over the back"
and ran back onto the court to put the ball in play.
Then, for a brief instant, I forgot whose ball it was.
Luckily, the player who had been fouled came over
to the spot where I was pointing and waited for the
ball I made a mental note not to let that happen
again. , , '
The rest of my 10-minute shift went smoothly
except that I continued to forget to raise my hand
and blow my whistle simultaneously when I made a
calL My whistle was still a little weak and I wa3 still
unsure of myself. I was sweating when I came out
because it had been a fast-paced game, but I felt like
I had hustled well and done a pretty fair job my first
time out Ready or not, I volunteered for the 6 p.m.
shift for Thursday's regular season games.
Each shift lasts about 2lA hours and includes
three games. I had only planned on refSng one game
but at $3.35 an hour, I figured I could handle three
games. While officiating wont make a person rich, it
does offer a student some pocket money and a
chance to gain experience. Scheele said the pro
gram is designed to provide experience to students
interested in future officiating jobs, particularly on
the high school level The rules for intramural games
are those used in high school games and sanctioned
by the Nebraska School Activities Association.
I studied those rules on Wednesday, my final
preparation day. At home, I practiced my hand sig
nals and drove my wife crazy blowing my whistle all
over the house. I also watched some basketball on
television, paying close attention to the referreels
positioning and movement. And Wednesday night, I
played in a city-rec game and called all of the fouls
committed by the other team whether I was in the
game or not.
I arrived at the Coliseum Thursday about 45 min
utes before game time. After a final look at the rules,
I helped supervisor Paul Dudley carry the scorers'
tables onto the floor. The supervisor's job includes
collection of score sheets for each game, keeping
track of officials and teams scheduled to play during
his shift, and evaluating new officials to help them
improve their technique. .
The first time
Twenty minutes before game time, I grabbed a ball
and shot some baskets to warm. up. Then two
women's teams took the court and started to shoot
baskets with me. Wait a minute, I thought. Nobody
said anything about officiating a women's game. The
thought had never crossed my mind. Please under
stand that I have nothing against women's basket
ball I always watch the girls' state basketball tour
nament games. But I was geared to ref a men's game
and these new developments took me by surprise.
My apprehension disappeared as I watched the
teams warm up. Most of the players were good and I
realized this wasn't going to be much different than
a men's game.
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255 tiorth 13th Strst
Lincoln, t khrs'Jt
475-0057
My partners on the first shift were !-!orrii Haden
fddt and Barry Nevrman. Both had cfll dated before
and I faired I vra3 lucky to be with experienced
people who could bail me out cf any tough spets.
We decided that two of us would ref and the third
person would be the scorer and timekeeper. Morris
and I decided to ref the first pr.s.
When the game started, I ran up and down the
court, concentrating on the dribbling, shooting and
colliding players. My attention became focused on
jersey colors, player numbers and the movement of
the ball Features were lost in the blur of bodies; I
paid no attention to the score. My only concern
became keeping the game under control and being
as fair as possible-.
' When I made a call, I felt like everyone in the place
had their eyes on me. My confidence Increas ed when
a player would say, Good call, ref" Eut comments
like, "That call was a little quick" or "How wa3 that a
foul?" made me think twice ai-cut what I had seen
and what I had called. I stuck with the criminal call
in every instance.
At haiftlme cf the first game, Dudley gave me an
evaluation card. I got a "good rating cn hustle and
enthusiasm. Eut I still needed improvement in
whistle-blowing and fist-raising. I also wa3 forget
ting to count when players brought the ball up the
Goer and I wa3 cut cf position several times, which
resulted in a lot cf extra running.
I worked the second game as score-timekeeper
and had lew problems with that job. When I relied
the third game cf the evening (a men's game). I felt -that
I did better and concentrated more cn not
making the mistakes I made in the first game
All three cf the games I cdHeiated seemed to go
fast. In UNL intramural games, teams play two 20
minute halves. The clock runs continuously, except
for timeouts, and only stops for fouls and out-of-bounds
balls in the last two minutes cf the second
hall Most teams rely on getting down the Cocr fast
and most cf the players are quick and fast. This
element cf the game posed its own problems because
I am slow and not very quick. Seme cf my biggest
challenges came when I tried to keep up with a fast
break and found myself being passed by the fast
breakers. After that happened ence cr twice, I
adjusted my position on the floor so I could keep
ahead cf the play.
They're crdy tamaa
Even though I made a let cf mistakes and miss ed
some calls, everything went smoothly. No fights
broke out, nebciv got hurt, the games were-always-under
control and I only called cne technical
because a guy went up for a rebound and hung cn
the rim. Some of the women said thank yo u when I
handed them the ball cn an in-tcunds play. Mast cf
the men were good sports when they were hit with a
foul
I expected more comments from the players but
there was only the usual grumbling that accompan
ies any close foul And there were the questioning
looks that Tm sure Fve given referees cr.ee cr twice
as a player.
But my image cf the much-maligned cfllsia!, suf
fering verbal aius-? from the fans and the players,
....I-l..- J .,4 T?w 1!m t
there were
hardly any fans. Most cfthe coaches were players so
that factor was eliminated. And the players were
usually aware cf their violations and cooperated
with me and the ether officials.
I guess I expected too much criticism. After all,
these were intramural games and were played fsr
fun and exercise. Every team will qualf for the
playoffs so a ls-ss during the regular season went
hurt any teams' chances.
As for my own performance, I followed the patt
ern cf the beginning referee. Scheele told me later
that the most common problem cf new officials is
timidity. She said new refs usually aren't forceful
enough and may be somewhat intimidated in their
I will admit that I fit the description. I didnt feel
intimidated but my apprehension may have sof
tened the sound cf my whistle and curtailed my
aggression when I slapped a player with a personal
foul
Scheele said it usually takes a beginner about a
dozen games before he or she feels comfortable and
confident on the court. Because of school and work,
I wont continue in the program- long enough to
reach that point.
But my experience as ? referee gave me a new
perspective on the game. Officials are human and
they do make mistakes. They cant see everything
but they do their best. Having had the chance to see
the game from their point cf view, I have a better
understanding of the game and the responsibility
that they must assume.
Lend A
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