Common Sense – Good Judgement

California Football Officials Association

Common Sense and Good Judgement Approach to Officiating
Adapted from:
CALIFORNIA FOOTBALL OFFICIALS ASSOCIATION INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL

AS A FOOTBALL OFFICIAL, YOU SHOULD REMEMBER THIS:

Each play is the biggest play of the game/day.
Forward progress and timing are the two most important aspects of the game.
Officiate in a manner that no one will ask who the officials were/are.
Get involved, either physically or mentally, in every play.
Concentration is knowing your responsibilities and mentally reviewing them before each down – ‘Go thru YOUR check-list’.
Concentrate on each play – one play at a time – down, distance, clock and team.
Concentrate your efforts on the point of attack, not away from the ball.
When in doubt, the pass is incomplete.
When in doubt, it is a fumble.
When in doubt, progress was stopped rather than a strip.
When in doubt, it is a touchback.
When in doubt, the pass is forward rather than backward behind the neutral zone
When in doubt, the pass is backward rather than forward beyond the neutral zone or when there is no neutral zone.
When in doubt, the block is legal rather than below the waist.
When in doubt, the block is from the side.
When in doubt, the ball was accidentally kicked.
When in doubt, it is not a face mask. Putting a hand on the facemask is not a foul.
When in doubt, the ineligible was not downfield.
When in doubt, the celebration was not prolonged or choreographed.
When in doubt, don’t throw the flag or blow the whistle.
When in doubt, the passers arm was going forward and it is an incomplete pass rather than a fumble.
Never look for/anticipate fouls or hunt for trouble. Let them happen.
Never guess what may have happened.
Never show arrogance, irritation or anger when enforcing a penalty.
Never ‘react’ emotionally.
‘Holding’ should either gain an advantage or restrict or place an opponent at a disadvantage.
In calling a foul, YOU must know; was it a live or dead ball foul, loose or ball in possession, inbounds or out-of-bounds, spot of the foul.
If it didn’t affect the play or take advantage of an opponent, it is not a foul.
If it involves the safety of a player, call it.
Overriding principle: it is the purpose of the rules to penalize a player who by reason of an illegal act has placed his opponent at a disadvantage.
Don’t call it unless it hits you in the face; Someone can get hurt / it directly affects the play or if everyone in place saw it.
Don’t miss/pass on personal fouls, unsportsmanlike and dead ball fouls.
If you think it was a foul, it was not.
Don’t blow your whistle unless you see the ball.
See the ball break the plane of the goal line in player possession.
Be consistent in declaring the ball dead.
If you did not see the approach, it is never a clip.
Always be sure of a foul, and never guess, as there are no phantom fouls.
Pick up your flag if you realize the foul wasn’t there.
Keep officiating after you throw a flag.
Judgement in the final analysis is the application of common sense, and common sense tells us that extremes are as undesirable in officiating as in anything else.
Avoid unwarranted/unneeded contact with coaches before and after the game.
Talking will get you in trouble.
Be felt, not heard, as much as possible.
When you see pass interference, don’t let crowd noise help you call it.
Be slow and positive in declaring possession on fumbles.
Help players, especially on a muddy, unmarked field, who are possibly lining up in the neutral zone as split ends rather than having a penalty contest with the other flank official every play.
Let the players decide the game: Avoid technicalities that don’t affect the game.
Know the rulebook so you know the game, not so you can be over technical.
Don’t see how fast you can count to 40 or 25 seconds, especially early.
Fouls inside the 5-yard line should be called like fouls at the fifty.
On emotional plays where a team attempts to make a first down, bring out the chains and let them decide it. It’s a great ‘PR tool’.
An officiating sin, moving the chains without orders
The only part of officiating to emphasize is your signaling.
That player that is running to get off the field doesn’t have to be watched until he is completely off. Step up (forward) – He is off if he has passed the flank official.
No ‘mystery’ flags. Get it in the air where everyone can see it.
Let the foul ‘jump up at you’ before calling it.
Flanks – Talk to wide-outs before the game, and tell them to get out there quickly and you will work with them in getting them lined up correctly (to avoid a foul).
Nobody ever paid to see an official officiate.
Let the play kill itself.
It can be understandable when an official doesn’t see something – it is never understandable when an official calls a foul that wasn’t there.
Your job is officiating – not coaching.
When you report a foul to the referee, you should know the proper enforcement of that penalty. Check to see if it is enforced correctly.
Avoid an air of belligerence.
How can you react correctly if you’re not prepared?
The best officials always seem to be in the best position to see things.
When you watch great officials, you’ll always see great mechanics.
Kicking plays usually always decide close games. Maybe these are the plays to ‘bear down’ on even more.
Never sacrifice accuracy for speed in making officiating decisions. Slow down.
Knowing what to look for and where to look is a requirement of every official on every play. Some-do, some-don’t. The great ones always know.
If another official questions your call, don’t ignore him/her. Reverse the question. Ask what he/she saw/thinks.
Preventative officiating is your best weapon towards maintaining game control.
If you can talk someone out of a foul, just do it
A word of warning at the right time goes a long way.
If a player is baiting or having words with an opponent, warn the player through his teammate or coach. Warn, don’t threaten. Let them handle him before you flag him.
Officiating is a team game. You’re all members of the same team.
Good officials officiate. Great officials dead ball officiate.