referees

official
May 8, 2019

Illinois mandates background checks for high school referees

Illinois will now require background checks as part of the registration process for officiating high school sports. The Illinois High School Association's (IHSA) Board of Directors approved the change during its meeting last month. The policy goes...


mike mccarthy high school basketball
February 28, 2019

Complaint filed after former Packers coach Mike McCarthy berates high school referees

Wisconsin high school basketball referees have filed a complaint against former Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy, claiming he berated them this week following a game. McCarthy was watching his stepson's Notre Dame Academy take on Pulaski Hig...


January 15, 2019

Referee shortage forces Minnesota high schools to reschedule basketball games

A shortage of referees forced some Minnesota high schools to reschedule their basketball games on Monday. [caption id="attachment_14971" align="alignright" width="240"] Photo: Kevin Hoffman[/caption] The Minnehaha Academy athletics department o...


atlanta
September 24, 2018

The importance of retaining quality officials

[caption id="attachment_26893" align="alignleft" width="125"] Michael Poploskie[/caption] As a baseball/softball official for more than 20 years, I have seen many officials come and go. Some leave because of the time constraints of their regular j...


nebraska
July 24, 2018

Texas referees say verbal abuse is forcing them from profession

A survey found that 80 percent of Texas high school football referees who left the profession in 2017 did so because of the constant verbal abuse that's thrown their way. The survey, released earlier this month, was conducted by the Texas Associat...


referees
January 23, 2018

Arizona pulls soccer referees out of handshake lines

Arizona high school soccer referees no longer need to participate in postgame handshake lines, a move to curb potential confrontations with players and coaches. According to The Arizona Republic, the Arizona Interscholastic Association made the de...


January 15, 2018

Lessons learned from coaching and refereeing games

With experience as a coach and official, working on both sides of the sidelines has helped me improve in each role. These perspectives made me aware of what coaches or referees may be thinking at any moment, and there are times I wish my counterpart ...


nebraska
December 13, 2017

Survey: 57% of referees say sportsmanship getting worse

A new survey conducted by the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO) provides a glimpse into the minds of referees and some of the challenges they face on a regular basis. Among the findings, 57% of officials said they believed sportsmans...