Mouths of Coaches...Part II

[elewis023]

After reading through some of these, I couldn't help but post:

Cross-over game where both teams are out of the playoffs, but had a good enough record for the extra game.  Visiting team Coach apparently got shafted by some formula that had a lower ranked team pushed ahead of him.  He is a very accomplished basketball official and I have officiated with him in a rec flag football league.

His star QB is running a sweep and keeps it himself.  As he get close to the tackler, he swings his hand striking the player in the helmet.  I keep pace with the play, I drop my flag at the foul.  As I'm finishing the play, I hear: "Eric, how can you call that....You know he didn't mean it!!" 

[arrakis]

Background:
Head Coach w/20+ years at school
Referee w/25+ years in chapter

Before the game they are chatting and the Coach says "You've gotten fat since the last time I saw you".

Without skipping a beat, Referee says "Now that we've established that, which 20 yd line would you like to kick from?"

Thought I would crack up laughing at both.......

[yarnnelg]

Coach comes to me and says "Ref the defensive line is cut blocking my offensive linemen." "And.....the problem is?" "They can't do that!" I didn't respond and watched the next play ...... THERE WAS NO ONE ON THE GROUND!
"Ref they are cut blocking my offensive linemen!" "Coach, for the second play in a row there is no one on the ground." "I don't care, they are cut blocking!" "Coach do you understand that there is a free blocking zone?" "You mean there is one?"

At halftime I asked if we could switch sides. It was just too rediculous to describe. 

[MAH]

Had a varsity game as the R this year with one of the habitual "whinning" coaches in our association.  First play, visitors havent even handed off the ball yet and all i hear is HOLDING! from the sideline.  Then he spends a fair amount of time on my LJ about the opponent not lining up on the line of scrimmage.  After a coaches conference for that, then he belly aches because we dont have a loss of down on ineligible down feild.  The last play of the first half he throws a 50 yard bomb and kicks the extra point for a 28-0 lead and then gripes about wanting roughing the kicker.  Going off the field he wants to chat.  I figure ok because I have now decided it will be mine turn to talk.  I listened to him and now it's my turn, rather LOUDLY.  (I had told my umpire that I didn't care if we got cut or not but I wasn't taking it for another half.)  I told the coach he ought to join our association because he can see better on the sidelines than any one of us 5 on the field.  And I just pretty much laid into him about everything. Finally he told me I didn't have to holler  and I said why not, you have been doing it to me for the last hour.  A few weeks later I ran into him at a JV game and he and the other coach and I were talking and they were pretty much wearing out another official in our association.  Finally I looked at the coach and said "You need to take back everything you said and thought about my crew."  He just turned around laughing and then told me you got me on that one.  Things have been good with him since!

[AlUpstateNY]

Long, long ago my father warned me, "Never trust people who talk to you about others, because they always talk the same way about you, to others dumb enough to listen."

[JugglingReferee]

Long, long ago my father warned me, "Never trust people who talk to you about others, because they always talk the same way about you, to others dumb enough to listen."

Wise words from your father.

[MAH]

Good words Al.  I didn't trust him before and still don't trust him now-LOL.

[yarnnelg]

From a Player in a Semi Pro game..... there's a reason the NFL has an intellegence test

"White you've won the toss, you can receive the kick or choose to defend a goal." "We'll defer" "White Captain, you have two choices, receive the kick or choose to defend a goal" "We'll defer" "One last time White" "We'll kick" "White the choices are...""Hey I've played Madden 2007, we can defer." "Again, for the final time White" "OK,OK we'll kick" "It's not a choice White." "We'll defend that goal."

And to think that they were mad as hell when asked at the end of the half "White which direction do you want to kick the ball from?"

[AlUpstateNY]

Excuse me, but shouldn't the first option, to either team, include the choice to "Kick", along with choices to "Receive" and "To Defend a Goal"?

[jjseikel]

Excuse me, but shouldn't the first option, to either team, include the choice to "Kick", along with choices to "Receive" and "To Defend a Goal"?

I don't believe that "Kick" is an option in professional rules.

[jg-me]

You are correct. Technically the options you choose from are designating which team will receive or designating the goal you wish to defend. Obviously, when you choose who is receiving you are by default also designating the kicking team.

[AlUpstateNY]

for what it's worth, here's how Coin Toss is described on an NFL rules site.

"The toss of coin will take place within three minutes of kickoff in center of field. The toss will be called by the visiting captain before the coin is flipped. The winner may choose one of two privileges and the loser gets the other:
(a) Receive or kick
(b) Goal his team will defend
Immediately prior to the start of the second half, the captains of both teams must inform the officials of their respective choices. The loser of the original coin toss gets first choice. "

[KB]

Actual wording of the 2005 rulebook:

The winner of the toss must choose one of two privileges and the loser is given the other. The two privileges are::
(a) which team is to receive; or
(b) the goal his team will defend.

So the captain, under (a), can select the other team to receive the ball, so that his team will kick.

[yarnnelg]

Exactly... There are only two choices not three.

Receive

Defend a goal

Personally I liked the "I've played Madden response" That.....was priceless !

[Dommer1]

I've gotten that several times in youth games: "That's not how it is in Madden". I just smile at them until they understand the stupidity of their comment.

[Tom.OH]

I worked 5 or 6 semi-pro ("semi" sums it up) games last spring. If I remember correctly, under NFL rules, defer is not an option.

[harrell12]

I forgot about this comment we got from a visiting coach in a game last year.

Home team scores for the fourth time in the first half.  On the try, one of their defensive guys plows into the holder.  We of course throw the flag for running intothe holder.  No lie, the coach yells, "why can't we tackle him, he has the ball".  We laughed for an hour on the way home.

[Dommer1]

Worked a game (line judge) last Saturday. After a try, one of the Team B players was yanking away at an opponents facemask, I threw my flag and separated the two (wings pinching in all the way after a try is a good mechanic - try it if you don't use it). As the B player is walking away, and has gotten some distance away, he turns around and utters a statement defining either me or the A player behind me as less than smart (with an F-word thrown in for good measure). Got to use my backup flag for that one.

Before the free kick I go to his coach (on my sideline) to tell them what happened.

Coach: Did you toss him?
Me: No, but there will be two 15 yarders enforced on this kick off.
Coach: Ok, but could you?

Apparently not the coach's most favorite player...

[jmay]

coach must want you to do some paper work

[JugglingReferee]

I worked 5 or 6 semi-pro ("semi" sums it up) games last spring. If I remember correctly, under NFL rules, defer is not an option.

You're correct, defering to the second half was not an option for the 2007 - 2008 season.  However, beginning with the regular season starting in September 2008, NFL teams will be able to defer.

[eprov]

A few years ago I had a head coach tell me after just giving up another score 49-0 that we wanted to kickoff. I told him, coach they just scored on you. His reply was, "If that jerk (the opposing coach) wants the ball he can have it". This was before the rule change so his team kickoff. Don't you know the other coach is throwing bombs down field to try and score again. I guess he was right.

[KFox1979]

A few years ago I had a head coach tell me after just giving up another score 49-0 that we wanted to kickoff. I told him, coach they just scored on you. His reply was, "If that jerk (the opposing coach) wants the ball he can have it". This was before the rule change so his team kickoff. Don't you know the other coach is throwing bombs down field to try and score again. I guess he was right.

Has that rule changed?  I thought it was still the decision of the team that was scored upon who would kick.

[JugglingReferee]

A few years ago I had a head coach tell me after just giving up another score 49-0 that we wanted to kickoff. I told him, coach they just scored on you. His reply was, "If that jerk (the opposing coach) wants the ball he can have it". This was before the rule change so his team kickoff. Don't you know the other coach is throwing bombs down field to try and score again. I guess he was right.

Has that rule changed?  I thought it was still the decision of the team that was scored upon who would kick.

Did you have a mental ooopsie?   

[KFox1979]

Has that rule changed?  I thought it was still the decision of the team that was scored upon who would kick.


Did you have a mental ooopsie?   

Actually, no for NFHS I am pretty confident in my interpretation of 8.3.9. "After  a try, the opponent of the scoring team (aka the team that was scored upon) shall designate which team will kick off."

[busman]

This year already, one varsity game and one jv game:

1.  Two requests for horse collar tackle penalties.

2.  One request for 12 men in the huddle call (They called it on us Friday!)

3.  One coach yelling at me as Umpire about the offensive line "not being on the line".

4.  Wanting an illegal shift when the o-line went from a two-point to a three-point stance on the second sound.