No Football Officials…No Football
“The 2022 High School football season will be played on Thursday and Friday nights this fall.” As this was coming through my car radio I was waiting for some pandemic reason this change in Tennessee high school football was being announced. Very quickly I was told no, not the pandemic, but a lack of football officials for the games.
The lack of folks wanting or willing to be a football official is no secret these days. After all, why would you want to do that? Little to no pay. At least one altercation with a wanna be NFL coach or a parent of a wanna be scholarship kid every game.
Actually when I heard this, I was not at all surprised, but my thoughts immediately went here. Who are the folks that are willing to do this Thursday AND Friday night? Talk about a warrior and a community servant. Then I thought what if they get fed up and leave? No football officials…no football.
My point today is that you as a parent, a fan or a coach are seriously close to losing high school football. That would make a lot of people happy. There are a lot of people out there who only see the negatives of high school and youth football. What an irony it would be if they get their way because no one was willing to officiate a football game, because of…you.
If You Are Someone Who Berates A Youth or High School Official You Have To Go
It’s not a complex situation when you think about it. You solve it by rewarding the football officials financially or you protect the high school officials at all cost as they are doing their job. My guess is that paying them enough is a stretch, although every little bit helps. The most practical way is to elevate their status.
If you are a parent of a youth or high school football player, be your own manager. If you cannot, I implore the league officials to get these parents and their kids out of the system fast. I understand it is not the kid’s fault. However, for the better good of all, they have to go, unless they can play without the parent being there.
If you are a coach and you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. I have had plenty of jobs that my paycheck and career depended on the outcome of a game or season. Have you? If you are reading this right now, my guess is that you have not. If you are abusive to a high school official, there is not place for you in the game.
If you think that this approach is draconian or unfair, then pause to think about the unfairness of not having youth or high school football because no one will officiate the games. We are closer to that reality than some of us recognize.
