Rule #1 for officials: call them by the book!

While attending a regional volleyball rules meeting in South Dakota, I was dismayed to hear our instructor advise us (officials) to choose whatever rules we wanted to use and to ignore the ones we didn't.

South Dakota is a state in which the officials are hired by the home coaches or athletic director, and I believe that the instructor was attempting to win friends and be hired for more games.

He also let us know that, as an official, he allowed the coaches to sit on the floor, stand whenever they wanted, or crawl out onto the floor whenever they wished.

He was insinuating that though these actions were against the rules, they could be allowed because they did not affect the outcome of the game. More likely, it was his way of ingratiating himself with the home coaches who did the hiring.

He either forgot or ignored several passages in the 2001-2002 National Federation of State High School Associations Volleyball Rules Book.

MORE SPECIFICALLY, RULE 10, SECTION 2 ON PAGE 36:

If the coach stands to request a substitution, he/she shall immediately sit down once the request is recognized or after he/she greets the replaced players. If the coach stands to greet a replaced player, he/she shall immediately sit down after greeting the player(s).

RULE 12, SECTION 2, ARTICLE 5, ON PAGE 41:

Coaches shall remain seated on the bench during the game except to request a time-out or substitution during a dead ball.

During any dead ball, they may stand to request a review of the accuracy of the score, verify the number of time-outs used or the serving order of his/her team, or to verify the proper server for the opponent.

They may also stand at the bench to greet a replaced player, confer with players during time-outs, spontaneously react to an outstanding play by a member(s) of their own team, confer with officials during specifically requested time-outs, or attend to an injured player with permission of the official.

RULE 12, SECTION 2, ARTICLE 7, PAGE 42:

Coaches who enter the court while the ball is in play, hold unauthorized conferences, and illegally leave the designated bench during play are committing unsportsmanlike conduct. I believe that the rule is specific and required of all high school volleyball coaches.

If coaches are to be allowed to sit or crawl on the floor in playable areas, shouldn't bench players be allowed in playable areas to encourage the team? Shouldn't the assistant coach be allowed in the playable area? Shouldn't we allow cheerleaders to sit just outside the court in playable areas? What about parents with cameras?

On the other hand, I really do see a reason for requiring the coach to remain seated on the bench during play. It affects both the outcome of the game and the safety of the players.

When do we begin holding coaches, players, and referees accountable for the rules? Should we allow high school sports to flout the rules the way professional sports do? Should the referee allow a certain person or team to break the rules, or should we ignore the rules altogether, as in professional basketball, where the stars are allowed to travel with the ball, or in professional baseball, where the players are allowed to make double plays without contacting the base?

Professional wrestling is just one of the many other sports that are conceived as performances rather than competitions. Everyone in the show is required to make the star athletes look good.

For example:

Coaches must also be allowed to put on a show by yelling, throwing chairs, and having tantrums.

Referees are required to submit to being punched and called filthy names. The referees are expected to never make a mistake and it is always their fault when a team plays poorly. Disrespect has become the norm and part of the show.

Is this what we want for high school sports? Shouldn't our students be proud of winning by the rules, or do we want them to be proud of winning by distraction, belligerence, poor sportsmanship, intimidation, and home-court cheating?

Most of the students I've coached learned to feel proud only when they won a game fairly. Even the children I've taught learned to identify cheating and unfairness and show pride only when the victory was achieved fairly.

Even with the unfairness we see on TV, I believe most students and their parents prefer fairness in their sports. Many people who watched the last Olympics knew that the Canadian team skaters had won, even though the judging stated differently.

What can we do about maintaining the integrity of high school sports? I feel that coaches, players, and referees should be expected to strictly adhere to the rules. If a rule is not liked, the best procedure is to attempt to change it.

The rules were made for a reason. If they allowed a coach to move all over the floor, a player could be injured falling over the coach in a playable area. The coach's movement could be used to distract the opposing team. An advantage could be gained by the coach's nearness to his players. The umpire might have a difficult time knowing when the coach wants to substitute or call time out.

Each of these aspects and many more are good reasons for the adherence to this rule.

The pressure to win at any cost that we are placing on younger and younger athletes is another concern. The pressure on students to be unfair is increasing, and the instability of all sports jobs is expanding it.

As a teacher, coach, and referee, I am personally concerned with what seems to be a growing necessity to win. Not only in varsity sports, but also in junior varsity and junior high, the coaches' jobs are threatened when they lose.

Many coaches and schools will redirect this pressure toward the referees. Referees would no longer be expected to be fair, but to favor the school that hired them if they want to be asked back.

This can have a devastating effect upon young athletes. It is especially hard on the student who missed the last shot, dropped the last pass, or watched the last serve hit the floor.

Young athletes have a great awareness of fairness and feelings of guilt after an undeserved win. I have actually seen high school players go to the opposing team's locker room to apologize for an unethical win.

This innate sense of fairness in young athletes does not allow for coaches who belittle them after a loss. Many young athletes who can't win may be waiting to physically mature to become excellent senior athletes.

The star of the junior high may not improve at all through his high school years; the pressure to remain a star may be too great.

Pressure to win at any level can be a coach's worst enemy. Many young teams can win a volleyball game by just making the first hit go over the net. Or they may lose a game because they cannot set the ball. With experience, they can learn to be winners.

Pressure can be a merry-go-round: the school board and parents will pressure the superintendent who will pressure the principal who will pressure the coach who will pressure the players, all of which can hurt the team for years to come.

We have all discovered that life is riddled with mistakes and the perfect parent, coach, athlete, or referee has yet to be found, but all survive by seeking to improve.

I don't feel that integrity, fairness, or concern for students should be compromised to get or keep a job in sports, but I also feel that the choice should not be necessary. The necessity to compromise integrity should definitely not be demonstrated to impressionable young athletes.

What can be done to encourage the adherence to the rules? Possibly both coaches and referees should be evaluated by impartial observers. Although coaches and athletic directors should want to hire competent referees, they should also want fair referees who stick to the rules. Varsity coaches should not be influential in hiring the referees.

One solution could be to involve both schools in the hiring and payment of referees for every game. Maybe each school could pay its share for every tournament they play in.

Another solution might be to give qualified referees in each region an equal numbers of games to work. Every referee's dates could be provided and impartial regional leaders could then assign games according to the availability of the referees.

Research into the practices of the high school organizations in other states might reveal solutions to this problem.

KAREN EVANS ODELL

Sky Ranch for Boys

Camp Crook, SD