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Some are worried about officials’ new power
A few weeks ago, I attended a meeting for area coaches and administrators held by the Ohio High School Athletic Association. It was called to discuss rule changes and clarifications for next year.
Most of it, to a layman, dealt with paperwork. But there was one rule that really seemed to make waves.
Beginning next year, coaches who are ejected from games will face a $100 fine. Seems like a worthy advance to keep coaches from acting out of line during games.
A few in the group, though, didn’t seem as happy about it. Their concern was about officials’ power. What if, they said, an official causes an ejection based on something that could be corrected by replay? What if you have officials that don’t like coaches and now know they can hit them in the pocket book?
The $100 won’t exactly keep a coach from feeding his family, but it’s not an insignificant amount, either. Still, will a coach think about money when an official makes a call that he doesn’t like? Sometimes it’s hard enough for the assistant coaches to intervene.
The OHSAA is worried about sportsmanship and giving the right impression to players. More and more, we hear stories about coaches and parents out of control, and OHSAA officials hear those same things. They want to make sure Ohio doesn’t get bad publicity for coaching incidents.
But the new rule doesn’t come without concern.
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