<p>I've played organized lacrosse since I was six years old, and I still play in the American Lacrosse League. Let's see &mdash; that's 18 years of lacrosse. I thought I knew a lot about the game, playing for Cockeysville Rec Council in Baltimore when I was a kid and winning a state championship with Dulaney High. Even if I thought I knew a lot about lacrosse, Paul Cantabene made sure that I understood it on a different level at Stevenson.</p>
<p>When I was finished playing in college, my cousin suggested that I join him in the Southern Lacrosse Officials Association. In other words, become a ref.</p>
<p>Being a ref is where you learn the "other" side of the game. As a player, you're primarily concerned with X's and O's, conditioning, stick work and scouting reports. As an official, you are learning the game from a rules and procedure standpoint and protecting the players' safety. This is my third season officiating youth ball (ages 9-14) with the SLOA, and I can tell you that playing the game has definitely made the process a little easier but, like any new experience, there are some things you just have to learn on the fly.</p>
<p>Once I've put on the black and white stripes, I like to think of myself as the "sheriff" out there. I'm in charge, people look to me for answers and people listen to what I say. &nbsp;So here's 10 things I've learned about lacrosse, through the eyes of the "sheriff."</p>
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<p><b>1. You never stop learning about about the game.</b></p>
<p>Every official in the SLOA attends weekly meetings from February to May. It doesn't matter if it's your first year or your 30th year, you are required to attend. Each week, there are new points of emphasis and tricky scenarios to review. Officials pose game situations that they've encountered recently and hypothetical situations are presented as well. The rules in the book can be open for interpretation, so different officials have differing opinions on specific calls. Discussion ensues and the veteran officials do their best to establish a uniform call for the rest of the organization to follow. Without these meetings, different officials would be making different calls in their games each week. The objective is to find a consensus and avoid any confusion.</p>
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<p><b>2. Sometimes moms are worse than dads.</b></p>
<p>We all hear stories about overbearing parents who yell from the bleachers. They yell at the refs, they yell at the coaches, they yell at the kids &mdash; sometimes they even yell at other parents. It's fair to say that most mothers have never played men's lacrosse. It's also fair to say that most mothers are more protective of their kids than the fathers are. That being said, I've caught the most flack from mothers who see their son get hit to the ground or whacked on the arm. Dads know that their son is playing a contact sport and that hitting and checking are part of the game. If the hit is illegal or the whack is vicious and poorly placed, I'll throw the flag. I can't control what an 11-year old does on the field, so stop telling me that I'm "blind" (that's just old) or that I'm "horrible" (that's subjective). Understand that your son is choosing to play a semi-violent sport, and he might go home with a couple bumps and bruises.</p>
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<p><b>3. You can never be too cautious with high hits.</b></p>
<p>As everyone in the sporting community well knows, concussions are no longer brushed off as "part of the game." In the NFL, hits to the head subject a player to massive fines and suspensions. As a lacrosse official it is my job to protect the kids. Any blow to the head, even with a stick, can result in up to a three-minute unnecessary roughness penalty or even ejection from the game. A fellow Dulaney alum who played in college and is just 26 years old has been told by his doctor that it's in his best interest to never play lacrosse or rec basketball again because he would be at risk of suffering his sixth concussion since high school. The lasting effects on the brain and body can be devastating, so I warn the kids before each game that I find it unacceptable. For the most part, I feel my warning is heeded. Let's keep it that way.</p>
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<p><b>4. The lower the skill level, the busier you are.</b></p>
<p>This doesn't mean that the younger the kids are, the busier you are. I have officiated an 11-12 age group game where the skill level is so high that I have only had to throw one or two flags the entire contest. The better the coaches are, the more disciplined and intelligent their kids play. It's easy to see when a team has a superior coach &mdash; the players have better stick skills, the team runs plays and there is a cohesive awareness between all of the players. &nbsp;</p>
<p>On the flip side, when you are officiating a team that lacks good coaching or the players just aren't as talented, it's equally as obvious. The kids are undisciplined, they lack stick skills and have a tendency to run around aimlessly. I'm not picking on those teams; as a matter of fact sometimes they are quite rewarding to officiate, but you inevitably are a busier man. With youth ball, sometimes you are equal parts instructor and official. When a kid runs up and shoves an opposing player from behind on a groundball, it's not because he's a dirty player, it's because he's 10 years old. So you blow the whistle to stop the play and explain to the wide-eyed kid what he did wrong. Nine times out of 10 the kid will nod his head and politely say, "Yes, sir." This example brings me to the next lesson I've learned...</p>
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<p><b>5. The more you communicate, the smoother the game.</b></p>
<p>If there's one thing that will get a coach all over you, it's ignoring him. They're coaches, they don't have a problem talking, so when an official is making calls and he disagrees or doesn't understand, he wants an explanation. As an official, you aren't obliged to have a small meeting with the coaches after every whistle or flag, but a lot of times it's in your best interest to keep things calm and simply explain what you saw. A lot of times the coach will give his two cents as you are running by, following the ball up field. I like to politely tell him why I called what I called, all the while never taking my eyes off the play. From my experience, coaches just want a second opinion if the other official made the call, or they just want to make their point clear. Fair enough. The more you keep the coaches informed with the time in the quarter, how many time outs they have and other similar details, the more they get the feeling that you have everything under control, which leads to a smoother game.</p>
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<p><b>6. When you're in the 4th quarter and the game is tight, let your presence be known.</b></p>
<p>This is similar to No. 5, in that loud and clear communication is key. &nbsp;</p>
<p>Hypothetical: 2:00 left, score is tied. The ball is loose near the crease that Red is defending. In the scrum, Red defender blatantly pushes Blue attackman from behind. Normal play, easy call, but considering the dire circumstances, I blow my whistle and sprint into the middle of the scrum. &nbsp;I yell louder than normal "loose push Red, Blue ball," as I make my hand signal as clear as can be to define Blue possession. &nbsp;</p>
<p>This is important for two reasons. 1. It's a crucial point in the game and you want to exhibit to the coaches and fans that you are in control.&nbsp; 2. In the heat of an intense lax game, instincts have a tendency to override etiquette. So I sprint in, and yell among the group of kids to serve as a reminder that crunchtime doesn't mean win-at-all costs. We still have rules, and I'm still the "sheriff."</p>
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<p><b>7. Even the youngsters cheat.</b></p>
<p>Don't underestimate the little guys, they'll try to sneak one past you. In my three years experience, I've thrown out four sticks. Might not seem like a lot, but remember were talking middle schoolers. They look innocent and you almost feel guilty when you see the puzzled look on their faces as you as you ask them for their stick at the end of a quarter. One kid&nbsp; a couple weeks ago who scored two goals in the first quarter, so as standard procedure (for me at least) I chose his stick to check. Not only was the stick too short, but the ball didn't come out when you tried to roll it out of the throat of the head. The kid was 11. The coach said it was his stick and he was astonished to find that it was illegal. I laughed and said, "Have you checked it recently?" Some of these coaches really want to win, so you never know who to trust. That's why we check &rsquo;em.</p>
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<p><b>8. Coaches aren't always the best influence on their players.</b></p>
<p>As I mentioned, there are coaches who make their teams better by teaching, organizing and instilling discipline. This doesn't always mean that the same coaches are teaching proper values in all aspects of the game. I once overheard a coach say to their kids in a pregame huddle, "Let's go out there and beat the $%*# out of those ____." To middle schoolers. I get it &mdash; you're trying to teach the kids to compete, use aggression and value winning, but to set an example like that basically makes the coach no better than the eighth grade bully they encounter everyday in school. Even worse, an attackman from the same team waited five seconds after the goalie threw a clearing pass, ran up and leveled the goalie IN THE CREASE! He's the only player I've ever ejected from a game. Maybe it would have just been a three-minute nonreleasable if I didn't hear what the coach said earlier.</p>
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<p><b>9. The game is growing and it's great for the sport.</b></p>
<p>When officiating in preseason and postseason tournaments, you get a first-hand glance at teams who travel from hours, even days away to come play in the "hotbed" that is Baltimore. We all know that Maryland, Long Island and upstate New York have traditionally good lacrosse. So teams from North Carolina, Georgia, Ohio and other nontraditional lacrosse areas travel to Maryland to use the local teams as a barometer of progress. Some of the teams grab a win, some hang around, and some get clobbered. Nonetheless, it's fun to see how the coaches and players prepare for the games with such enthusiasm. If you're from Michigan and you beat a Baltimore team, you better believe the Michigan team is celebrating the entire way home and bragging to their friends and family that the trip was a success. A couple weeks ago, there was an super-competitve club tournament and a team from Dallas was playing. After talking with a parent after the game, it turns out that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones' grandson was on the team and they came up on the Cowboys team equipment bus. That's a prime example of how lacrosse is expanding.</p>
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<p><b>10. &nbsp;As an official, your passion for the game shines through.</b></p>
<p>You may officiate a game with another guy who perhaps didn't play in high school lacrosse, or maybe never played at all. Sometimes, those guys are passionate about other sports and ref lacrosse just for the money. For me, I love the game and I love to be around the game. Half the time I feel like I shouldn't even get paid and that if I had the free time, I wouldn't mind reffing for fun. I think that the officials who share that passion would say the same, so you appreciate when you have a partner who is on top of his game. &nbsp;</p>
<p>I like officiating with the veterans and the former players because they enjoy seeing the game played the right way. They are happy to help kids better understand the rules. When you love what you're doing, you do it well and I take pride in officiating a good game, shaking the players' and coaches' hands at the end and realizing that it's about the kids.</p>
<p>Yeah, yeah, so the "sheriff" has gone soft, so be it. I guess it's because, at the end of the day, I'm still the kid who can't wait for Saturdays in the spring.</p>