The Ugly Side of the Game

Last month I was asked to work the so-called County All-Star game. I've worked several of these contest in the past and each year I say I'll never do them again. They are simply the poorest representation of what this game is all about. This year was no exception.



I only agreed to work the game if we could use NCAA mechanics and we could use this game as a training exercise. This seemed like a good idea since four of us were CCFOA candidates. All agreed and we decided to use seven-man mechanics.



I worked line judge (I typically work White Hat on JV/Fresh and Umpire on Var) which took a series or two for me to get my eyes back, so to speak. Holding my ground until the ball passed the LOS is not natural. This is not the same mechanic as five-man HS. Eventually, I settled in.



Even more challenging for me was trusting the field judge. Again, I was not used to having this help on passes to my sideline. We had one of those plays where the receiver danced the sideline. I saw feet in, but not the ball. I ruled catch, but the FJ saw the ball was not possessed in the field of play. I should have looked at him before killing the clock. Lesson learned.



All this was marred in the 2nd half of the game More than once we spoke with the team captains to get everyone under control and once we even brought both head coaches together to calm things down. Just a lot of pushing and smart mouthing. We ejected a player for throwing the ball at the opposite team's coach following a touchdown. It all finally came to a head when the benches cleared and there was a big brawl with about 4:00 remaining in the 4th. We tried for a good two minutes to get things under control. We'd get it stopped, then it would start-up again.



We finally ran off the field when fans entered the playing field. We were already being heckled and the losing side was looking for an excuse to take it out on us. When the cops came on the field, then I knew our jurisdiction was finally over.



All very sad since this game is for charity and these players are supposed to be 'all-stars'.

Now the fun begins

For anyone who has worked both High School and College Football, then I don't need to explain just how screwed-up your mind gets. I already find myself saying - oh crap, that's a HS rule. This is only my second season in the college rule book and I'm already feeling like I'm going to do something stupid.

For those who are not familiar with the 'distinctions' between the two systems, let me explain. In the Football Rule Differences 2007 book which outlines the differences between the two codes) there are 286 pages (after you exclude the index, table of contents, and other diagrams). Essentially, over 200 differences. Some are not that big of a deal - in HS you need shoes, but not socks. In NCAA you can kick barefoot but need socks otherwise. The number of panels on the ball, who can talk to the media. Simple things like that. Other rules are more complicated. In HS, no blocking below the waist except in the free block zone, but in NCAA, well this is a difference story depending upon who is doing the blocking, where it occurs on the field, and it which direction. This is blog entry in itself.

So, I paid my HS association dues ($75 bucks this year) and now have the 2007 HS books. I'm afraid to open them. I finally have what seems to be a fairly clear picture in my mind of what NCAA rules are and I'm going to cloud it all up with HS rules. The old timers tell me to not compare the two systems. But how do you avoid this?

My college mentor (who is a HS Crew Chief and a College White Hat) told me he worked HS for 15 years before he started college. When he first started college ball he said it was as if he never officiated before. It is a completely different game.