... on Coaches Rating Officials
"Familiarity breeds contempt."
There is a problem that is occurring in wrestling, dealing with the coaches' ratings of officials. Unfortunately, the more often a coach is exposed to the same officials, the odds are that he will witness more close calls that sometimes go against his team. Thus, the coach, knowing these officals, is more likely to give them a lower rating, especially if he doesn't take the time to look at the total picture. And this is the problem. Consider the following true story.
Before the beginning of this season, I received a phone call from an official I consider to be one of the best in the state. He was very upset with last year's coaches' rating. And when he told me, so was I. After investigating the matter as state supervisor of officials, I learned that his poor rating was due to one call, which one coach (who the official knew well) didn't like and quickly wrote a negative report to the state. The coach did so without looking at the official's overall performance--poor judgment on the coach's part.
To alleviate this problem, I feel that coaches, as professionals, must learn to "reflect" after an official has made a questionable call against their matman. They should consider the following:
By the way, the problem of the official I referred to earlier was resolved, and the official received the coaches' rating he truly deserved. Please remember, coaches, even good officials make debatable decisions. So, for the good of the sport, think (or reflect) before you act.
Updated September 29, 1997