SAN DIEGO COUNTY FOOTBALL OFFICIALS ASSOCIATION - THE WEEKLY BULL – July 31, 2024
1st and 2nd Year Classes – Meet at Mira Mesa – You will again meet at Mira Mesa at 7:00 pm. Make sure you come early to look through the gently used and donated equipment, and to see Bob Hood and his merchandise for sale. Bob will not be selling after the meeting, so do your shopping beforehand. Your attendance has been outstanding. Keep it up!
Umpire & Line of Scrimmage Clinic - This week we feature the work of our Umpires and Line of Scrimmage Officials. Ed Blick and Steve Coover will highlight and discuss the many areas where these three officials work as a team and rely on one another to be successful. Here is the Zoom Invitation: SDCFOA Umpire and Line of Scrimmage Officials Clinic Jul 31, 2024 7:00 PM Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88013680842?pwd=C5uZEmuvqu94WaFXDyu1kXJD7gDDW7.1 Meeting ID: 880 1368 0842 Passcode: 254356 One tap mobile +16694449171
Officiating Fees 2024 – The following fees are in effect this year. The travel reimbursements are not included here. Tackle Varsity Referee $142 Tackle Varsity Others $140 Tackle Sub-Varsity Referee $95 Tackle Sub-Varsity Others $94 Flag Varsity $70 Flag Sub-Varsity $67
Mechanics Exam On-Line Testing – The On-Line exam will open this coming weekend – This will include the 2nd year and transfer officials. 1st Year officials do not take any exams. You will have one week to complete the exam and submit it for scoring. Your score will be immediately reported back to you, and I will also get a copy of the score and place it on the attendance rosters for reporting purposes and so your crew chief and Instructors will be able to see your score.
Latest on Girl’s Flag Football – Early assignments are out. Please review the Summer Study Guide as you will need to qualify for officiating this year by passing a Qualification Exam of 25 or so questions. They will come right from the Study Guide and CIF Rule Book. You must pass this very reasonable exam the week of our regular Rules Exam for tackle football the week of August 21st.
Wilson Football – The Wilson Football will be the official football for the San Diego Section playoffs. A Wilson football is required to be used in all rounds of the playoffs.
Fouls Occurring Within Last Two Minutes – When there is a foul with less than two minutes remaining in either half, the offended team has the option to start the game clock on the snap, Sometimes the offended team may choose to decline the penalty, wanting the down to count and not replay the down, but still has the option of having the game clock start on the snap.
List of Athletic Directors and Head Coaches - We’re constantly updating this google document of coaches and ADs for the schools playing tackle and flag football. It was shared via google doc to crew chiefs in the past but please email me if you did not get this document shared with you, or a member of your crew. If you do not have a google account, it may be impossible to view it. Find a person who does have google on your crew and have me share it with them. We’re doing it this way so that it can be updated during the season if you discover an error.
Aiding the Runner – Coaches have been told that aiding the runner will be enforced if we see planned plays where the running back lines up behind the QB and just runs forward, places hands on the back of the QB and pushes…Like The Philadelphia Eagles do with Jalen Hurts. They were also told that it is legal to push the pile, and that if the is a question if the teammate is pushing the pile or pushing the QB, we will go with pushing the pile. Remember – be consistent as an Association. 5-yard penalty – Signal 44
Communication Between Coaches and Officials – Coaches were told that we greatly respect the work that the head coach puts into preparing and managing his team. For that reason, we make every effort to communicate with him, answer questions, provide explanations and listen to his complaints in full. as long as they are not unsportsmanlike and the coach is not on the field and objecting. CIF wants us to penalize unsportsmanlike outbursts and demonstrations on the field by any coach. But we have a high tolerance for our head coaches. CIF has also asked us to inform the head coach if an assistant is questioning the work of the officials and acting unsportsmanlike. This gives the head coach an opportunity to correct the situation. If it continues, we are to penalize as directed by the Commissioners.
Problems with Your Coach – If you have a problem with your coach let your referee know. One of the biggest complaints I get from coaches is that the flanks do not communicate their coach’s concerns to the referee. This builds frustration and adds to the original issue. By the time the referee does get to the sideline he now has to deal with an upset and frustrated coach. There shall be two officials present for all meetings between the referee and the head coach, but only one speaks – the referee!
Game Management – The referee, and both flank officials, should know who the game administration will be for the home team, and hopefully, for both teams. Find out if they will be stationed somewhere so that, if needed, you can find them.
Hydrate - It continues to be warm. Don’t forget to hydrate. Does your crew have a person responsible for water and maybe energy bars? Stay healthy!
George Schutte – George Schutte was the designer of our instructional program and always taught us that the instructional program does not begin nor end in the classroom. You must study outside the classroom each week. Have you opened your rule book or case book this week? You need to read a small section each week! Then you continue your learning during the halftime and post-game meetings on Friday nights! Post games are critical! Then you continue your learning and teaching on Saturdays as you work with other officials including our new ones. Finally, we attend our classes and participate in the sessions with questions and note taking. This was George’s design, and it works if you engage with discipline!
“The first flag sets the bar for the rest of the game.” – This quote comes from Greg Burks, Big 12 Supervisor of Officials. Here are our 3-steps which help us “set the bar” at the right level each game. 1 – You become visually aware of an indicator which might lead to a foul. 2 – You observe the whole action and see that the indicator has risen to a material restriction and clear advantage gained. 3 – You are patient and observe the potential foul to judge whether it has any effect on the play at all. If so, then we must penalize. Only through preparation, discipline, and study will we be ready to “set the bar” at the proper level for each game.
Foul Count - Did you know that the average number of fouls at the NCAA level is slightly over 14 fouls per/game. How do we compare to that average? In 2023 our average over all crews and all games was 13.97 per/game. Crews should monitor their foul count and when it is well beyond this average, an analysis of all fouls should be conducted. Sometimes the game is just “one-of-those-games”, but usually we can work to lower our foul count.
Clinic Attendance & Attendance Overall – You are responsible for your attendance being accurate. Your instructor will carefully mark the attendance, but you must make sure it is correct. Have your instructor mark your clinic attendance as well. That may be useful at the end of the season for overall attendance requirements. Your nine (9) meetings include one clinic and the banquet.
US Veteran Patches – The SDCFOA offers US Veteran patches to all who have served our country in the armed services. We proudly display the patch over the pocket and under the American Flag. Again, thank you for your service! See Bob Hood, for your well-deserved patches.
Equipment and Uniform Vendors – All of these vendors can be found on our webpage at www.sdcfoa.org.
