Officiating crew

[WIWRESTLING1010]

I am not able to do this because there is zero transparency behind the process...I am just saying that there were refs there that had no business being there and I think everyone can agree with me...I do not care about years of service or how good you use to be

[Handles II]

I am not able to do this because there is zero transparency behind the process...I am just saying that there were refs there that had no business being there and I think everyone can agree with me...I do not care about years of service or how good you use to be

I'm pretty sure that their ratings from decades prior don't carry over.
Maybe you should learn a bit more about the process and then post your findings and how they related to the officials that were there and the calls that you didn't agree with. Or start a conspiracy theory.

[WIWRESTLING1010]

LOL at you thinking the refs with the best ratings are at the state wrestling tournament...some of them are no doubt, but some of them get passes and matches are lost because of it

[DocWrestling]

I know that refs have to beg coaches to even submit ratings so this falls partly on the coaches.

I know that refs would love easy to access training such as videos that they can do on their own time with no travel or expense. 

The more training, the more comfortable all refs will be and maybe even more will stick with it longer or even become officials.

Right now the process is sign up with WIAA and pass the test and then ref.  Many use their local officials associations as a resource though.  More could be done by the WIAA in all sports.

[WIWRESTLING1010]

I don't think it would be too much to ask for some transparency in the selection process...I did the WIAA thing, signed up for an association, and was a ref for several years..I also coached for several years and was always sure to submit ratings on refs...You can only have so many negative conversations about a referee with coaches before you begin to realize that some of the refs are there based on name and not on actual performance

[WINfan]

There is a rating system.  I was told my a ref at the sectional tournament that the WIAA did not use the rating system to select this years refs for the state tournament.   If this is true, then how were they selected?  Not sure what the point of rating the refs is if you're not going to select the best rated officials. 

[WIWRESTLING1010]

Thank you WINfan...some more transparency would be nice, but I think that would expose things...

[Gordy M]

I agree with Doc also, the parents are way out of control, and have been for years, I had a guy come right out on the mat and grab me when I was a ref, needless to say it didn't go real well for him, this was in the early 80s and it's gotten worse, in our area, they don't let the parents go down on the mat with there kids anymore, I thought it would be better but they just scream louder from the bleachers, I agree kick them all out hopefully it will help.

[TomM]

How are State Officials Chosen?

Great Info on the Selection of Officials.

We could use more officials. Registration for interested officials is always available. Give it a shot. You can do it!

2021-22 Guide For Sport Officials
https://www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/Officials/guide.pdf?ver=38MnuT88vNxGAqa5w4nn6w%3d%3d

[Mwt22]

 I think it's sad that this discussion criticizing the reffing is even taking place.  On every questionable call, the ref is wrong 50% of the time, depending on what wrestler you are rooting for.  As said in an earlier post, it is their part time job, they are not professionals - but just trying to help out the sport.  Without refs, we have no competition.  Were their some calls that maybe cost a kid a match, I imagine their was.  You want refs to review tapes of matches and do other things to improve - where does that unpaid time come from?   All refs try to do their best and call it like they see it - you may see it differently, but they are the ref, not you.  Not sure on the process to work as a ref at the state meet, but who says someone that you feel is a top ref even wants to work the state meet.   Another weekend away from family for minimal pay - it's not for everyone.  So, let it go and enjoy the matches. be thankful we have refs, because sometime in the near future, this may not be the case.

[badgerstateref]

Hello all - I appreciate the passion of all those on the forum and felt the need to respond to some of the comments on here. What a wonderful tournament this one was. A few comments and observations from a fellow official:

- We are evaluated by coaches through a ranking system which spits out an aggregate ranking at the end of each year, as well as a 3-yr average to measure longer term performance. The scale is 1 to 6. 6 being state-level, 5 sectional-level, 4 regional, 3 varsity, 2 JV, 1 would not hire again. State AVG is typically in the high 4's. Some refs end up with hundreds of ranks, some have tens, etc. You're likely removing some statistical anomalies with the greater number of rankings. I've observed some differences in how coaches view this criteria. I've always just asked that coaches give it genuine thought - would they be comfortable having that person ref their contestant at state, sectionals, etc. Many coaches will wait until the end of the year to rank in bunches, many don't rank at all. All this being said, I still feel the ranking delivers an important and legitimate metric as to the general opinion of the coaches about the referee. I believe most other WIAA sports use the same criteria. Consistency.

- In addition, similar to other sports, there is a committee of assigners that takes into account annual rankings, informal evaluations/feedback, geographical representation, etc, and assigns the postseason in coordination with the WIAA. The committee is made up of highly respected veteran officials.

- There are many younger officials who have worked their way up and are working the state tournaments (girls, individual, team). There are many younger officials that have worked their way up and are working sectional and team sectional tournaments. There are many young officials who are on their way to these events. I've never left a season as confident as I have than this one about the quality of the up and coming refs. There are flat out a ton of awesome, developing officials right now that are going to get there soon - they just have to trust in the process, seek feedback, and keep going. As I type this, many names coming to the top of my mind. Do me a favor - next time you see a ref and you appreciate the work they are putting in - tell them and encourage them! You never know how important that comment might be to someone's self-confidence - it might be the comment that sticks with them and keeps them in the mix.

- If you want to be an elite official, you've got to get comfortable with watching tape. I absolutely love how schools are streaming events on YouTube and archiving it. Coaches/schools - pease don't stop doing this! I've been reffing for a long time, but I still pick things up from watching video. Was I in good position here? How are my mechanics and presentation? Was that line call correct in the 2nd? I'd like to see that scramble again. Etc. There's a Facebook group called "Wrestling Officials" that is wonderful for this kind of thing. Great sharing across the nation of tough situations.

- Hopefully NFHS continues to adapt rules to make it easier on wrestlers, coaches, and officials. One example is the out-of-bounds rules & "supporting points" definitions. You can understand that rule like the back of your hand, and it's still a bit challenging to navigate every now and then.

- Everyone wants stalling to be as consistent as it possibly can be. Wrestlers, fans, coaches, and us, the officials. We talk a ton about stalling. We have sessions on it at our officials clinic/virtual meetings and our association meetings. We read the stalling rules, and we discuss interpretations. It is a major point of conversation, as it should be, because it is an exercise of the officials judgement more so than any other call in the book. I personally would like the stalling rules to continue to be more "objectified" like they've done at the NCAA level. The high school stalling rules are very subjective - particularly when on the mat; "Refusing to aggressively work for a fall" or "Refusing to aggressively work for an escape or reversal"...there's a lot to unpack there.

- Yes officials are paid to do our job. We take that job very seriously. We are striving for perfection. I think constructive criticism is healthy when levied appropriately. I was emailed an evaluation by another veteran official this year. Super respectful and I really appreciated it. It made me think and made me better.

- Reffin' is hard sometimes. But it is a ton of fun. I love the sport, genuinely appreciate the friendships and relationships that I've built, and I have a blast working with the high schoolers. They are great to work with and it's interesting to see how things have changed over the years. I feel that it is the best hobby I could have, especially in wintertime in Wisconsin. I really liked wrestling in HS and had success, but I like reffin' way more.

- As has been said on this chain, many officials are not-renewing for different reasons. Please consider contributing to the sport by reffing - it doesn't matter if your goal is to ref in the Kohl Center or just stick to doing your local youth and JV events. Every ref serves an important role in providing opportunities for kids. But, if not, that's OK, too. If you're on here, you are likely an advocate for this sport and care deeply about it. That's awesome in-and-of itself.

Enjoy the Team State Tournament! Onward

[DocWrestling]

Outstanding Post and Thank You!

[SP]

Hello all - I appreciate the passion of all those on the forum and felt the need to respond to some of the comments on here. What a wonderful tournament this one was. A few comments and observations from a fellow official:

- We are evaluated by coaches through a ranking system which spits out an aggregate ranking at the end of each year, as well as a 3-yr average to measure longer term performance. The scale is 1 to 6. 6 being state-level, 5 sectional-level, 4 regional, 3 varsity, 2 JV, 1 would not hire again. State AVG is typically in the high 4's. Some refs end up with hundreds of ranks, some have tens, etc. You're likely removing some statistical anomalies with the greater number of rankings. I've observed some differences in how coaches view this criteria. I've always just asked that coaches give it genuine thought - would they be comfortable having that person ref their contestant at state, sectionals, etc. Many coaches will wait until the end of the year to rank in bunches, many don't rank at all. All this being said, I still feel the ranking delivers an important and legitimate metric as to the general opinion of the coaches about the referee. I believe most other WIAA sports use the same criteria. Consistency.

- In addition, similar to other sports, there is a committee of assigners that takes into account annual rankings, informal evaluations/feedback, geographical representation, etc, and assigns the postseason in coordination with the WIAA. The committee is made up of highly respected veteran officials.

- There are many younger officials who have worked their way up and are working the state tournaments (girls, individual, team). There are many younger officials that have worked their way up and are working sectional and team sectional tournaments. There are many young officials who are on their way to these events. I've never left a season as confident as I have than this one about the quality of the up and coming refs. There are flat out a ton of awesome, developing officials right now that are going to get there soon - they just have to trust in the process, seek feedback, and keep going. As I type this, many names coming to the top of my mind. Do me a favor - next time you see a ref and you appreciate the work they are putting in - tell them and encourage them! You never know how important that comment might be to someone's self-confidence - it might be the comment that sticks with them and keeps them in the mix.

- If you want to be an elite official, you've got to get comfortable with watching tape. I absolutely love how schools are streaming events on YouTube and archiving it. Coaches/schools - pease don't stop doing this! I've been reffing for a long time, but I still pick things up from watching video. Was I in good position here? How are my mechanics and presentation? Was that line call correct in the 2nd? I'd like to see that scramble again. Etc. There's a Facebook group called "Wrestling Officials" that is wonderful for this kind of thing. Great sharing across the nation of tough situations.

- Hopefully NFHS continues to adapt rules to make it easier on wrestlers, coaches, and officials. One example is the out-of-bounds rules & "supporting points" definitions. You can understand that rule like the back of your hand, and it's still a bit challenging to navigate every now and then.

- Everyone wants stalling to be as consistent as it possibly can be. Wrestlers, fans, coaches, and us, the officials. We talk a ton about stalling. We have sessions on it at our officials clinic/virtual meetings and our association meetings. We read the stalling rules, and we discuss interpretations. It is a major point of conversation, as it should be, because it is an exercise of the officials judgement more so than any other call in the book. I personally would like the stalling rules to continue to be more "objectified" like they've done at the NCAA level. The high school stalling rules are very subjective - particularly when on the mat; "Refusing to aggressively work for a fall" or "Refusing to aggressively work for an escape or reversal"...there's a lot to unpack there.

- Yes officials are paid to do our job. We take that job very seriously. We are striving for perfection. I think constructive criticism is healthy when levied appropriately. I was emailed an evaluation by another veteran official this year. Super respectful and I really appreciated it. It made me think and made me better.

- Reffin' is hard sometimes. But it is a ton of fun. I love the sport, genuinely appreciate the friendships and relationships that I've built, and I have a blast working with the high schoolers. They are great to work with and it's interesting to see how things have changed over the years. I feel that it is the best hobby I could have, especially in wintertime in Wisconsin. I really liked wrestling in HS and had success, but I like reffin' way more.

- As has been said on this chain, many officials are not-renewing for different reasons. Please consider contributing to the sport by reffing - it doesn't matter if your goal is to ref in the Kohl Center or just stick to doing your local youth and JV events. Every ref serves an important role in providing opportunities for kids. But, if not, that's OK, too. If you're on here, you are likely an advocate for this sport and care deeply about it. That's awesome in-and-of itself.

Enjoy the Team State Tournament! Onward

Great post. I feel 5here is a large percentage of officials that approach their job with this type of commitment and attitude.

Two points:
1. There was a few calls that some refs made that they flat missed. I am confident that if you asked them now they would say they know.they missed it. The person that wrote.this post is most likely that type of ref. Calls are missed, they own it, learn from it and use it to get better.

2. The frustrating 0art is refs that make calls and refuse to admit they missed it or were wrong. These type of refs are a small percentage of the entire pool. What I feel most people are not happy about is these refs made a large portion of what people feel are poor calls. I feel Some refs get to involved in matches when they don't need to. They almost like to get involved and like to make calls and this takes away from the atheletes. I see this in other sports as well. The best refs seem to be invisible to the crowd. These refs feel like.they have nothing g to improve on and will not give a coach the time of day. This type of attitude is not part of the growth mindset that we should all have.

[littleguy301]

While I am one that will moan about refs, we have to realize that it is a thankless job.

A ref posted a week or 2 back about the out of bounds rule. Man in Wisconsin they make the rules tough.
Look at the amount of physical activity they put in in a tournament. Man I know some refs that put in alot of gym time to be able to keep up.
As a 50 plus year old i am not trying to keep up with these physically gifted high schoolers,  that is a darn near impossible task!

I do believe that most all refs are doing there job to give the athletes a chance to enjoy a sport they all love. Do some refs get talked into points.....i am sure they do but while i may not like it i bet i would at times also get talked into stuff.

I think the refs have been doing a good job overall.

Just my .02 cents.

[digimon]

Mwt22 and badgerstateref thanks for your posts. Great comments and observations