NCAA Football, 2016

[Valmy]

I'm still pleased with Wyoming's undefeated season.

I am just glad you are not holding a grudge against their football team for what the administration has been doing. I have been telling people that the Big 12 should just take Wyoming if they are going to consider the Cow College of Fort Collins.

Beat Nebraska!

[MadBurgerMaker]

I like Ft Collins, and Colorado as a whole, so I'm cool with CSU.  Actually, to be honest, I don't really give a shit who they decide to add (if any), as long as it isn't BYU.  I don't care how good of a football program they have and all that. 

[Berkut]

Ft. Collins is awesome. A really great town.

[derspiess]

I got into it with a ref during our game Saturday.  Berkut, you'd be proud

Seriously, we had a kid subbed in on the offensive line and we've been trying to get him to play more aggressively.  On a 50 yard TD run he got downfield and made a great, clean block on a cornerback he had gotten in front of-- de-cleated the kid.  Ref turns around & sees the CB on the field crying and throws a flag for block in the back. 

I mean, we scored on the next play and still won 32-0 but shitty calls like that confuse the kids as to what is and is not a clean hit.

[Berkut]

I got into it with a ref during our game Saturday.  Berkut, you'd be proud

Seriously, we had a kid subbed in on the offensive line and we've been trying to get him to play more aggressively.  On a 50 yard TD run he got downfield and made a great, clean block on a cornerback he had gotten in front of-- de-cleated the kid.  Ref turns around & sees the CB on the field crying and throws a flag for block in the back. 

I mean, we scored on the next play and still won 32-0 but shitty calls like that confuse the kids as to what is and is not a clean hit.

You saw the ref turn around and throw a flag on the kid without seeing the play?

So you were not actually looking at the kid running in for the TD, or the block itself, but at the official instead during this incredible TD run?

[Barrister]

I got into it with a ref during our game Saturday.  Berkut, you'd be proud

Seriously, we had a kid subbed in on the offensive line and we've been trying to get him to play more aggressively.  On a 50 yard TD run he got downfield and made a great, clean block on a cornerback he had gotten in front of-- de-cleated the kid.  Ref turns around & sees the CB on the field crying and throws a flag for block in the back. 

I mean, we scored on the next play and still won 32-0 but shitty calls like that confuse the kids as to what is and is not a clean hit.

How did you "get into it" Spicey?

If you went over and talked to the ref afterwards about a blown call - fabulous!  If you went and ranted and raved, , doubly so if the ref is also a youth.

[derspiess]

You saw the ref turn around and throw a flag on the kid without seeing the play?

Yessir.

So you were not actually looking at the kid running in for the TD, or the block itself, but at the official instead during this incredible TD run?

I was looking at the block.  I mostly coach the O line, so I focus on those guys.  There were only two refs and both were watching the ball carrier the whole time. Two of our other coaches noticed this, and, more importantly, game film backs me up.

[Berkut]

OK.

I am just amazed in general at how good coaches are at seeing all 22 players and 5 officials on any given play. On this one play, you were able to see the block in question (presumably in the field of play), what the official who threw the flag was doing during that block (off the field of play), even though he was likely several yards away, AND still manage to keep on eye on the ball carrier on his TD run! Coaches would make the best officials with their amazing vision.

Personally, the most I can manage is just my keys and the point of attack. But coaches see everything, they are all incredible at that.

In any case, film tells no lies. Mostly.

[derspiess]

These are youth football refs and they don't get paid much for their time, so I try to let things slide as much as I can.  But this one just galled at me because it was a bad call against one kid we're really trying to develop.  I couldn't let it go unaddressed. 

My guess is that when he looked back and saw that there had been a downfield block that put a kid on the ground, he assumed it was a block in the back.  Not the end of the world; hopefully it was enough reinforcement for my player to see us taking up for him.

Now Sunday in a "bowl" game we played I didn't have to lose my shit because the other coaches did a good enough job themselves.  We were invited for all our age levels to play against the other club that is in our same footprint area but in a different league.  I guess to speed things up we played two halves, each with a 25 minute running clock.  We had a pretty easy day of it (helped in no small measure by the fact that their two best players from last year are on our team this year), and were driving for our third TD with about 4 minutes left in the half. 

We get down to the 10 yard line and the other team calls a timeout.  But the clock keeps running.  We ask the ref why and he screamed "IT'S A RUNNING CLOCK, THAT'S WHY!"  That's not how I've ever seen it go in "running clock" games but whatever.  They let two minutes run off the clock before they let us start the next play.  Got down to the two yard line and one of their kids gets "hurt" (pancaked by my son and told by his coaches to stay on the ground).  Clock runs out, end of half.

So we get the ball in the second half, put our star QB back in the game and he runs for a 65-yard TD.  Then we put all our defensive starters back in and blitzed every down on that next defensive series.  Message sent. 

We probably won't be asked back next year.

[Berkut]

We were invited for all our age levels to play against the other club that is in our same footprint area but in a different league.  I guess to speed things up we played two halves, each with a 25 minute running clock.  We had a pretty easy day of it (helped in no small measure by the fact that their two best players from last year are on our team this year), and were driving for our third TD with about 4 minutes left in the half. 

We get down to the 10 yard line and the other team calls a timeout.  But the clock keeps running.  We ask the ref why and he screamed "IT'S A RUNNING CLOCK, THAT'S WHY!"  That's not how I've ever seen it go in "running clock" games but whatever.  They let two minutes run off the clock before they let us start the next play.  Got down to the two yard line and one of their kids gets "hurt" (pancaked by my son and told by his coaches to stay on the ground).  Clock runs out, end of half.

So we get the ball in the second half, put our star QB back in the game and he runs for a 65-yard TD.  Then we put all our defensive starters back in and blitzed every down on that next defensive series.  Message sent. 


We probably won't be asked back next year.

You sound like you and the other teams coaches have really internalized what is important about youth sports, what with your messages being sent to each other and all.

[derspiess]

The kids were pissed that the half ended that way.  We had to do it for them. 

I say "we", but it was the head coach & defensive coach's decisions. 

[Berkut]

The kids were pissed that the half ended that way.  We had to do it for them. 

I say "we", but it was the head coach & defensive coach's decisions. 

Of course. 100% of parent coaches behavior is driven by their desire to "think of the kids". If I've learned anything in 20 years of officiating, it is that all parent coaches only care about the kids, and what they want. When coaches start  yelling across the field at other coaches, yelling their heads off at officials, or leave their starters in to "send a message" that involves pounding some other teams kids some more, it is always because they are thinking of the children. It never, ever, has anything to do with their own egos.

[Berkut]

Spicey, I know I am coming across kind of like a dick. I was not there, I don't actually know what happened, or how I would have handled it if I was there.

But your comments strike me as very, very typical of youth parent coaches. All of whom are absolutely convinced that they are doing this for the kids, they are perfectly reasonable, the problem is always with those damn officials, or the other coaches, or whatever....but never, ever, ever with them.

You (or the other parent coaches) left your starters in a game that you were clearly dominating to "send a message"? Really? And the need to "send this message" was driven by your poor kids who were so upset they didn't get to punch in another score at the end of a half because of the other team having a player hurt (which of course he was faking, right, because those damn dirty faking hurt kids/parents manipulating the clock!).

I wasn't there of course, so I don't know for sure. But you *sound* like a pretty typical parent coach to me.

The other team is faking being hurt to run out the clock of a game we were dominating so I had to leave my starters in to dominate them some more to send a message!

All for the kids!

[Barrister]

I dunno spicey... what ever happened to "being the better man" in a situation like that, even if everything went down exactly as you said?

There's also the possibility the ref just didn't know what a "running clock" actually meant, the second coach told the kid to stay down because he was worried he was hurt?

And you never did say how you dealt with the ref about the blown call.


And finally... why the fuck do you have game film for youth football???

[grumbler]

Spicey, I know I am coming across kind of like a dick. I was not there, I don't actually know what happened, or how I would have handled it if I was there.

But your comments strike me as very, very typical of youth parent coaches. All of whom are absolutely convinced that they are doing this for the kids, they are perfectly reasonable, the problem is always with those damn officials, or the other coaches, or whatever....but never, ever, ever with them.

You (or the other parent coaches) left your starters in a game that you were clearly dominating to "send a message"? Really? And the need to "send this message" was driven by your poor kids who were so upset they didn't get to punch in another score at the end of a half because of the other team having a player hurt (which of course he was faking, right, because those damn dirty faking hurt kids/parents manipulating the clock!).

I wasn't there of course, so I don't know for sure. But you *sound* like a pretty typical parent coach to me.

The other team is faking being hurt to run out the clock of a game we were dominating so I had to leave my starters in to dominate them some more to send a message!

All for the kids!

That had to leave a mark!