Hustle Released on MyReferee: September 2014 By George Demetriou Dictionaries offer at least a dozen definitions of hustle. The one most relevant to officiating is to move energetically. In my view, hustle is much than that. In the words of my esteemed colleague, Jerry Grunska, hustle is a state of mind. Here’s a look at three components of hustle. Functional hustle. According to the book Successful Sports Officiating, “Hustling is an intense dedication to being in the right position from which to view a play.” If you’ll accept the notion that each official has roughly similar judgement, that form of hustle determines the better officials. Being in the right position is one of the most important aspects of officiating. Most fouls cannot be called properly unless the whole act is observed. Perhaps the best examples are illegal blocks. To call a block below the waist, the official must see the initial contact. If he doesnt, the official may not know if the blocker started with legal contact and then slid on the opponent’s body. If the official doesnt see the initial contact on a potential block in the back, he may not know if the opponent turned on the blocker. Getting to the right position requires a good start. That means knowing your key and then reading and reacting to that key. It also means knowing when to leave your key to observe another act in your area of responsibility. Covering from the optimal position also means determining the point of attack so that there is anticipation to what takes place in that vicinity. In coverage, examples of hustling include the back judge not getting beat on long passes; the wings getting downfield to observe interference, holding and other aspects of pass plays; the umpire getting to the line to rule on screen passes that may cross the line and quarterbacks who cross the line before passing the ball; and the referee sprinting to trail the play when the runner swings out to the opposite side. Beware of “false hustle,” energetic movement during live-ball coverage that serves no purpose other than to demonstrate the official can move rapidly. The real problem with false hustle is no officiating is accomplished while the official is showing everyone how fast he can run. That was demonstrated in a local playoff game a few years ago. The ball was snapped at team A’s 30 yardline. The runner slashed through the line and then broke the tackle of the near-side linebacker. Once it was clear he had almost 70 yards of daylight, the line judge turned to face the pylon and proceeded to attempt to outrun a player less than half his age. During that “race,” the official never looked at the field of play. His sole objective was getting to a goalline already monitored by the back judge. Demonstrative hustle. Unlike false hustle, the so-called demonstrative hustle does not detract from the game, but unlike functional hustle, it doesnt really contribute to making calls. It does contribute to officiating by creating the perception the official is actively doing his best. One example is the referee who blows the ready and trots to his position approximately 15 yards behind the line. Whether he walks or trots doesnt affect the speed of the game — the offense is probably still in the huddle and has 25 seconds to snap the ball. Trotting does indicate the referee is vigorously working the game, while walking may be perceived that the referee is tired or not interested. Other examples of that type of hustle include the umpire retrieving the ball promptly after it is dead; officials trotting to report fouls to the referee and then briskly getting back to their position; and the referee sharply moving away from players toward the press box to give preliminary foul signals so they may be more clearly viewed. Mental hustle. Grunska’s state of mind concept means thinking deeply and perceptively throughout the game. Part of that is “keeping your head in the game.” Each official should always know the down. Each official should confirm the correct down with at least one other official before each snap. The referee should also note and announce the distance to be gained for a first down before he blows the ready. Clock management can be enhanced with knowledge of whether the clock is running or stopped. By mentally noting the clock status when the ready is whistled, there need not be much discussion as to whether to restart the clock on the ready after a dead-ball foul or an injury timeout. Also noting the time remaining can help determine if the clock has malfunctioned. Excess timeouts can be avoided by simply noting the timeouts remaining before each snap: Two blue, one white. That becomes increasingly important as the half winds down and the timeouts are used relatively rapidly. Another aspect of mental hustle is anticipating the play. Recognizing formations and anticipating likely plays in a given situation are attributes of good officiating. The play selection will almost assuredly vary for third and one than for third and twelve. Anticipating the call by deciding a foul is imminent spawns blown calls, but anticipating the play is smart officiating. In summary, hustle is both show and substance. It is also both a behaviour and an act of will. A hustling official actively works the game and does not sit back and react or loaf through it. He avoids coasting and is perceived as an energetic contributor.
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 06:28:59 +0000