Weekly Bull 8/20/14

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The Weekly Bull – 8/20/14 

New Rules to Lower Level Coaches – I’ve attached the summary of new rules that can be shared with coaches at the lower levels and to any youth coaches.  It will be helpful to review the major ones including targeting and the new free kick formation restrictions.

Fees – The game fees are the same as last year:

Varsity Referee – $74

Other Varsity Officials (4) – $72

JV Referee – $62

Other JV Officials (3) – $61

Frosh (all 4) - $61

Umpire Bonus Meeting – Great meeting with Marlow Fitzgerald of the Mountain West Conference.  We had an excellent discussion of categories of holding with supporting video.  In communicating with coaches this year we will state the exact category of the hold.  This will eliminate the need to describe what happened in any other way (no need to go into a paragraph discussion of the action!)  The 6 categories are: Grab and Restrict; Hook and Restrict; Tackle; Takedown; Pullover (Reverse Takedown); and Jerk and Restrict. I will provide a handout at Wednesday’s meeting for all officials.

Communicate W/Referee at Frosh and Youth Level – It is the referee’s responsibility to communicate with their crew during the week so that we’re all on the same page, know what is expected from the referee and all logistics are decided.  This is for every level - youth thru varsity. If a crew chief leaves a message or you’ve seen an attempt by the crew chief to communicate these important pieces of information, CALL HIM BACK. 

“I'm Coachable” – I was recently given an article where Barry Mano of NASO interviewed former NFL umpire Ron Bothchan.  Ron was the umpire for 5 Super Bowls!  When asked a simple question: "What has made you so successful in officiating?" He gave a two-word answer, without hesitation or equivocation: "I'm coachable."

Asked what the heck that meant, Ron said, "The League tells me what it wants me to do and I go out and do that." “The starkness and simplicity of that answer really struck me. He is a ref who states he's successful because he is "coachable." Piece of cake - listen to what the league tells you to do and just go out and do it. Man, what could be easier?” – Barry Mano Executive Editor Referee Magazine

Scrimmages and Hudl – We should be seeing some scrimmages showing up on HUDL (in my Library).  I will send those games to the crews that work them.

Communication – Don Carey (former NFL BJ and now SDCFOA Instructor) shared some important information on the power of communication in our work.  I will be sharing much more in the future, but for this bulletin let’s begin with non-verbal communication. One study at UCLA indicated that up to 93 percent of communication effectiveness is determined by nonverbal cues. The study indicated that our words make up only 7 percent of our communication, while 38 percent is communicated by voice quality (tone), and 55 percent by our nonverbal communication such as posture and facial expressions.  So if you’re worrying about what you say to a coach or team member, don’t forget your posture, facial expressions and tone!  Famous expression – Your actions speak so loudly that I can’t hear a thing you’re saying!

Referee Bonus Meting Sept. 3^rd 7:00 pm with Chris Wiggins – You won’t want to miss this final position meeting.  Chris has worked two State Bowl Championship games and is a top rated referee in the SCIAC Conference.  Chris promises tips and video support for the discussion of the referee position. 

2014- New Rules:

1. GAME OFFICIALS AUTHORITY (1-1-7): Due to teams being on the field earlier than 30 minutes prior to the game, state associations can require game officials to be on the field for pre-game responsibilities more than 30 minutes prior to game time. This change extends the game officials authority in those states.

2. TARGETING DEFINITION AND FOUL ADDED (2-20-2 NEW; 9-4-3m NEW): Continuing with the focus on risk minimization, the committee determined that taking aim at an opponent with the helmet, forearm, hand, fist, elbow or shoulder, to initiate contact above the shoulders with an intent that goes beyond making a legal tackle, a legal block or playing the ball is prohibited. Furthermore, the committee feels it is important to separate and draw specific attention to this illegal act.

3. ILLEGAL KICK CLARIFIED (2-24-9): The committee clarified the intent of an illegal kick. When an illegal kick occurs, the loose ball retains the same status that it had prior to the illegal kick.

4. DEFINITION OF DEFENSELESS PLAYER ADDED (2-32-16 NEW; 9-4-3i(3)): The committee added the definition of a defenseless player in an attempt to continue concentrating on risk minimization. A defenseless player is a player who, because of his physical position and focus of concentration, is especially vulnerable to injury.

5. END-OF-PERIOD PROCEDURE CHANGED (3-3-3, 4): This rule changes the procedure of determining when to extend a period with an untimed down. In order to extend a period with an untimed down, time must expire during the down.

6. PROVISIONS TO FREE-KICK FORMATIONS ADDED (6-1-3b, c NEW): Two new provisions were added to adjust the free kick. One provision balances the kicking team’s formation and the other limits the maximum distance of the run-up for the kicking team.

7. CLARIFICATION OF CREATING A NEW FORCE (8-5-1b NEW): This rule change clarifies that a new force is not created when a player is blocked into the ball.

8. ROUGHING-THE-PASSER FOULS REVISED (9-4-4): Roughing-the-passer fouls now include all illegal personal contact fouls listed in Rule 9-4-3. These fouls against the passer now result in an automatic first down in addition to a 15-yard penalty.