Getting On The Field

I left home at 9 am Monday morning to drive about 350 miles to attend my first WVIAC scrimmage of the 2009 season. I must say this one worked out better than my Charleston scrimmage did…I managed to get two hours of work under my belt topping the four plays I had my first go-around! (he he)
It was scorching hot Monday – temperature showed 91 degrees in the West Virginia mountains.

HOT! But despite the extreme heat, it felt really good to get some snaps and work 7 man mechanics for a few hours.
Since it was a Monday the crew didn’t hang around and socialize, most opting for a quick shower and head for the house.

So I followed suit and got on the road about 6:15 pm. A few stops and 5-1/2 hours later I arrived home in KY. EXHAUSTED!
So I’m getting ready for my opening NFHS game Friday night. I already  have my self addressed DVD mailer complete with a blank DVD ready for the Athletic Director.

My goal is to get game film from all 10 games this  year. In order to do that, I have to get Game #1. Wish me luck on that quest!

I saved the best for last — Stay tuned for a sweet deal to listen in on my next interview. I’ll be sending out the details on Thursday and giving you a chance to listen to me interview a prominent D1 Supervisor of Officials. You will all most certainly recognize this person. But Idon’t want  to let the cat out of the bag just yet. Remember to check  any email you get from me Thursday for the scoop.

Until then,

Be the Best on the Field

Todd Skaggs

So in April of this year I managed to network and cajole my way into a spring scrimmage game at the University of Charleston, WVA. My good friend John Oslica has been working the umpire position in the WVIAC for the past 5 years and he opened the door for me. (Rule #1 – Mentors are highly recommended).

I drove the four hours to Charleston and found myself in a group of 30 officials – some staff some prospects, all wanting some time on the field. My group was the last to work and after four plays (yes, FOUR) the coach decided the scrimmage was over and took the team to the center of the field! Somehow I managed to make the supplemental roster. I’m certain it was due to the fact that I attached myself to Richie Godfrey who was helping the new guys on the LJ position. I was like a leech in the Amazon River. While he watched the other prospects work, or worked himself…I made sure I heard his feedback and asked a litany of questions (Rule #2 – Gain experience, ANY experience)

You can imagine my thoughts on the ride home. Four hours + four plays = NO GAMES!

Nevertheless, I somehow made the Supplemental Roster. (Can LUCK be a rule?)

Which brings me to how I prepared for the clinic. Louis Pasteur once said “Chance favors the prepared mind.” I also remembered Larry Synder’s philosophy on What You Can Control. I found out all officials would be required to run a timed mile and you needed to be under 11 minutes. I told myself that I had complete control over how I trained for this test and for how fast I could run the mile. So I consulted with a local track coach, got some pointers and get to work. First mile time – just over 10 minutes. I’ve got some work ahead of me.

Next, I remembered Larry saying how you should volunteer for every learning opportunity possible. So I Googled the heck out of all surrounding states for football camps, clinics and talked to anyone I knew about scrimmage opportunities. I begged for old film from veteran officials. I met with other guys locally like me to discuss rules and mechanics, all the while remembering that no one made me do any of this. I was in complete control.

Finally I got a copy of the rule book. There are some differneces in NFHS and NCAA rules. I am by no means even close to where I want to be, but I had to admit to myself that rules knowledge was a weakness in my high school game. I made a promise to make rules knowledge the cornerstone of my attempt at college officiating. Again, I control how I study and I control how I learn the rule book. After the past 4 months, I realize that rules study will most likely never end if I stay the course. (Rule #3: What Can I Control)

Note to reader: I heard someone say that the difference between Division II/III and Division I is that on the lower level crews, you have one or two “rules” guys. On a Division I crew, EVERYONE is a “rules” guy!

So jump ahead to late July. I cut my family vacation to Myrtle Beach short so I can come home to attend the WVIAC and Heartland clinics. I drive over 700 miles on Wednesday so I can then drive about 400 miles Thursday to the WVa clinic. My good friends (and fellow aspiring officials) Ryan Kendall and Meddie Kalegi met me in Cincinatti and we hit the road. It started as a joke but the topic soon became the theme of our trip. We all were asked on more than one occasion, “Why are you driving to West Virginia for a football clinic?” As a matter of fact, when Meddie contacted the conference supervisor, he asked Meddie to consult an atlas before he’d further the conversation citing how far he’d have to travel each week. (Rule #4: Sacrifice)

Our answer to the questions and ultimately our motto: We are doing it because the other 99 won’t.

Let me briefly explain. If you surveyed 100 officials about driving 824 miles in three days to visit three states and attend two clinics, we felt that 99 wouldn’t do it. (Rule #5: Commitment)

Now I hope I haven’t bored you with my philisophical rant or stance here. My intent was not to offend or joke. I feel strongly about the theme of this post. I also believe I am no better, no smarter, no more athletic than the 99. In fact, I’m willing to bet there are many that would trump me in each and some in all, of those categories. But I’m not sure if they can out-work me.

So how did it all turn out?

Well, the mile had a negative impact on a few official’s jobs. The resulting openings created more openings and existing refs moved to fill the spots. Those openings needed to be filled so the Supervisor looked to his Supplemental roster for candidates. I ran my mile in 7:43 finishing first among the line of scrimmage guys. Later I found out the deep wing group had two guys that beat my time (1 staff, 1 propect). Now for the record – I’m 6’2″, 225 pounds. I’m not a runner by nature. So to finish third, let’s just say I had a smile pasted on my face for the rest of the clinic!  The second day began by breaking the audience up into crews. These were the actual crews on staff with the supplementals added in. I didn’t actually know to which crew I was assigned so I approached the Supervisor and inquired.

“Skaggs, you looked good yesterday. I like what I see. Do you want some games?” said Billy Altons. (Wanna guess my response?) “Go to Greg Waybright’s crew. He has an opening at Side Judge. Can you work that position?”  After stumbling through some “Yes, sirs” and “Thank You’s” I made my way to the conference room where the crew was meeting. The end result? Five games on my schedule plus two scrimmages and two JV games. Any way I look at it, a full season of NCAA football.

Chance favors the prepared mind.

–Louis Pasteur

and here’s another from the author — “Begin with the end in mind.”

Be the Best on the Field

Todd

Heartland Conference

So let’s quickly revisit Larry Synder’s list of “What It Take To Be A Great Football Official.”

Study Rules of the Game

• Rule Book
• Tests & Quizzes
• Ask Other Officials
• Quiz a Buddy
• Never Stop Learning

Study Mechanics of Game

• CCA Mechanics Manual
• Camps & Clinics
• Philosophy
• Attend area meetings/rules study groups (Do any of you do this now?)
• Surround yourself with better officials
• Its hard to soar with the eagles, when you are surrounded by turkeys.

Part Two

• Watch film – the single biggest factor to rapidly improving your learning and accelerating your advancement. Countless seasoned NCAA and NFL veterans have pointed out to me during their interviews that film review tremendously improved their abilities. In some ways you can consider watching film as a close substitute for snaps. Granted, nothing will take the place of live play, but watching film can definitely add a different perspective while adding to your experience level. Some have suggested that it can advance your learning by a factor of four! What this means is that you can shave three years off your experience level if you are trying to get promoted to a higher level. An aspiring motivated official with 4 years of experience (1 of which was heavy on film review) is similar to an official with 7 years experience (no film review). How do you think guys get into the NFL at age 34? You can bet they spent time in front of a TV reviewing film.

• Experience – How much is enough? Larry is very clear here. Get as much experience on the field as possible. This means youth league, spring and fall scrimmages, junior varsity games, varsity games at the high school level and then basically the same process at the college level. When making the transition to college, you will find conference supervisors are looking for those individuals that are willing to take the scrimmage and JV games. They want a prospect to have a few games under their belt before putting them on the field. There truly is no substitute for experience. I have personally stood on teh sidelines behind seasoned Division I officials just to ask questions, watch from that angle and get a feel for the speed and quickness of the game at the higher levels. Without a doubt, this helped me in my first scrimmage giving me a small comfort level (that is, until the whistle blew!).

• What You Have Control Over – This was the cornerstone of Larry’s list. I hear often, officials at all levels, complain that they can’t get the good games, they can’t get the supervisor’s attention, can’t get noticed and so on… You can probably name a few in your local associaiton or area too. So let’s look at that statement. What can we control? Well for one, I can control my ability to study and know the rules and mechanics of the game. I can use the rule book, study groups, practice or scrimmage activity to really and fully know the rules. I can stay in good physical conditioning. This will allow me to get into position, be quick and react in a timely manner. It will help me look athletic in my uniform. Let me be clear – The Division I conferences have a ZERO tolerance for officials out of shape or overweight. Coaches and players prepare year around for the season. The zebras are no exception. Just take a look at the NFL staff. The athleticism and physical fitness is at its highest level. Its that important.  Attend every learning opportunity you can. Clinics, camps, rules study groups, association meetings, scrimmages, film sessions. While not necessarily consistent across the board, learning opportunities still abound in various forms in every city, state or region. Whether you take advantage of them or not is another topic.

So that’s all for my comments on Larry’s philosophy. I personally know several officials that have been mentored by Larry and they are all performing at the highest levels today. They will all admit that the process wasn’t easy and often times the requirements were not what they wanted to hear. Yet the followed the path and Larry led them in the right direction.

This post is getting long so I’m going to save my next story for tomorrow. It’s about how I applied Larry’s philosophy to gain entrance into the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Be the Best on the Field!

Todd