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Cal Hubbard was a unique
individual. He is the only person to be enshrined in both the
baseball and pro football halls of fame.
As a football player, he
played for the Green Bay Packers and the New York Giants. He was
viewed as the most feared lineman of his time.
During his summers in Green
Bay, he pursued his baseball umpiring career. This avocation
eventually earned him the title of umpire-in-chief for the American
League and a spot in Cooperstown.
Obviously, Hubbard was
well-versed in the rules of two sports. He was quoted as saying,
“Being an umpire wasn't such a tough job. You really have to
understand only two things and that's maintaining discipline and
knowing the rule book.”
Some may think Hubbard had
a tendency to oversimplify what officiating is all about.
The Bible is our training
manual for life, and is often referred to by the acronym – Basic
Instructions Before Leaving Earth. It has 10 simple rules called
commandments. All we have to do is learn them, and we should be set
for the “game of life.” Football has 10 rules as well, but they are
divided into quite a few sections and actually count into the
hundreds when all is said and done.
As a WIAA football
official, I knew what it took to be prepared for each game, and
knowledge of the rules was certainly a huge part. However, I always
thought anyone involved in any sport had to be well-versed in the
rules of the game to thoroughly understand, enjoy, and even succeed
at that particular sport.
One thing that certainly
can be confusing for the average football fan is that high school,
college, and the NFL have significant rule differences.
For example, we often hear
how the Packers’ offensive linemen work hard at developing proper
technique in cut blocking. For safety purposes, cut blocking is
only allowed in high school right after the snap in an area called
the “free blocking zone.”
In the pros and college,
certain passes are deemed by the officials as uncatchable and
therefore no pass interference is called. In high school football,
judging whether a pass is uncatchable doesn’t apply when determining
pass interference.
In high school and college,
the game clock stops after first downs are gained; in the NFL it
doesn’t.
These are just a few of the
differences.
It’s unfortunate, but when
coaches, players, and even fans don’t know the rules of football,
sportsmanship usually suffers.
I realize the coach’s job
is to teach the game. I’m sure they don’t spend as much of their
free time studying the rule book as an official does.
However, if you’re the head
coach of a high school football program, it is your responsibility
to know the rules of the game you are teaching. Coaches are
required to attend WIAA Rules Interpretation Meetings every year
just like officials, but usually, these meetings only cover a few
rule revisions or points of emphasis. It is not an official’s job
to teach the coach the rules during a contest.
When the coach starts
taking out frustrations on the officials, the players invariably
follow his lead. Talk about leading by poor example.
I do know of programs in
which coaches have local officials come in and teach them, their
players, and even their fans significant rule changes prior to the
season. This is a great way to educate everyone before the heat of
battle takes over.
Some coaches find
themselves fielding a winless team in part because they lack
knowledge of these rules. How embarrassing for them and their
school when they rant and rave at officials during a game, and then
find out that the true problem isn’t the officiating – it’s that
they didn’t focus on teaching the sport the right way.
Coaching certainly is a
difficult job, but knowing the rules is one of the many important
components that can’t be left out.
Sure, officials aren’t
perfect either, but knowing the rules and maintaining discipline are
the only two things we need to know.
Just ask
Cal Hubbard.
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