By Robert Morgan | Published Thursday, February 6, 2008
There is only one thing worse than high school coaches who do not report game information because they are having a losing season - it's the referees who continue to wear their big-boy pants and abuse every ounce of authority they have while making some spare change.
There is only one thing worse than high school coaches who do not report game information because they are having a losing season - it's the referees who continue to wear their big-boy pants and abuse every ounce of authority they have while making some spare change.
It's becoming common for high school officials to worry more about the media on the sideline than the poor job they are doing calling the game. We have had problems in volleyball the last three years, softball last season and now twice this year in basketball.
With home games at just about every gym last week, I chose to send our award-winning photographer Joe Duty to Boyd do what he does best. He never fails to bring home the bacon when it comes to telling the game story through his lens.
However, the officials failed our kids once again. The Messenger shutterbug took one picture before the striped control freaks said that he needed to take pictures from the bleachers.
The chances of Duty shooting from a birds-eye-view are as likely as Decatur football coach Kyle Story becoming the offensive coordinator in Bridgeport. Not happening.
The end result: Boyd did not get coverage of that game, 20 BHS students missed the chance to get their picture in the paper (some of which could have been their first time to be in the paper).
I also blame the parents and coaches who see this problem and do nothing about it. This is not the first time they have witnessed this kind of treatment at games and done nothing. But these same people are quick to call and complain if we don't cover something that makes them look good.
I waited a week to toss out my two cents to see if anyone called the Fort Worth Chapter of officials to complain about the treatment of our photographer at Boyd High School last week. Not a single complaint.
I just don't get it. As a sports writer and a junior high and select basketball coach for the last 12 years, I have seen coaches and fans rip officials from one baseline to the next. I have seen chairs kicked off, clipboards tossed and verbal harassment on the court, and the referees do nothing.
But you get the media on the sideline trying to promote the kids and the sport they love, and the officials have the nerve to abuse their authority and control what's outside the field of play.
For once - just once I beg you- keep your fans in line, the coaches in check and most importantly, make the right calls on the court.
If those three things are accomplished, I am willing to bet that the photographer sitting on the floor will be the last thing he or she worries about.
But that seems to be harder and harder to do these days. In a world full of power trips, egos and selfishness, it will be the kids who continue to lose this battle.
I also place some of the blame on the coaches and parents. Some are more than willing to complain when the coverage of their team does not meet their expectation or is less than someone else's, but when we need some help in making it happen, we get the cold shoulder.
Why?
I don't know. But I know for the fifth time in two years, we have been denied access to take pictures at a Wise County sporting event. Not a single coach or administrator has lifted a finger to figure out a way to fix the problem.
We have a solution - move on to the next school. There are more schools and teams who would welcome Duty and his camera to their events. Perhaps we should develop a "scratch list" of our own.
For those who do not know what that is, basketball coaches have a scratch list that they turn in to the respective officiating associations that prevent certain officials from calling their games.
I guess it's our turn to scratch some venues from the list so that others can get the publicity that others take for granted.
