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Wednesday, February 15, 2006
It’s time to lay off the refs and enjoy the game
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Terence Moore
There is an epidemic in sports that has to stop. Whether we’re talking about the big leagues or pee wee, our favorite pastime isn’t baseball or football. It is blasting the stripes off the officials whenever they have the audacity to do more than breathe during a game. Such venom also has been spewed at umpires, who suddenly are viewed as more despicable at ballparks than cold hot dogs and warm beer.
So, if you’re among those wringing their hands over a problem that really doesn’t exist, what’s your solution? Extending the use of instant replay? Mass firings and hirings by leagues when it comes to those calling games? Robots? How about a select committee from Congress making a decision on every play?
Well, here’s my humble advice to all of those who don’t realize that officiating and umpiring never has been better in most leagues and at nearly every level:
Shut up and play.
Shut up and coach.
Shut up and watch.
No question, officials and umpires have produced dramatic gaffes, exemplified during this college basketball season when the refs wouldn’t reverse an erroneously called technical on University of Houston coach Tom Penders after he dropped to the court due to heart problems. You also have those other botched calls of lore, ranging from the Immaculate Reception to Don Denkinger snatching a world championship from the St. Louis Cardinals to Colorado’s fifth down in college football.
Those were flukes, though, which means the longest and the loudest of grumbling over umpiring and officiating is misplaced more often than not. Take Super Bowl XL, for instance. Contrary to popular belief, the Pittsburgh Steelers did more to defeat the Seattle Seahawks than the zebras.
“It’s because people see the replays in a big game like that, but they really don’t know the rules,” said Frank Glover Sr., who really does. He worked 17 years as an accomplished football official in the SIAC without missing a game before he did the same for 17 more years in the NFL through the late 1980s. He also is a member of the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.
Since retiring from the field, Glover has worked for the league as a talent evaluator of officials. I’m limited in space, so you’ll have to trust me on this: He found something in the NFL rulebook to support each of the supposedly controversial calls against the Seahawks during the Super Bowl. Said Glover, who has spent the past 58 of his 74 years in Atlanta, “I think that NFL officiating is at its best now. It’s because of instant replay. We really didn’t like it at first, but it has helped the credibility of all officials. It shows that they are way more right than wrong.”
Such is the case in every sport and at every level. So is the whining. You have the NBA, for instance, where Phil Jackson is exposing himself as a guy who needs the likes of a Michael or a Shaq to prosper. As a result, Jackson is inventing conspiracies involving referees and his shaky Lakers. Elsewhere, umpires supposedly helped the Braves win those division titles by giving Cy Maddux, Cy Glavine and Cy Smoltz strikes within a couple of zip codes of the outside corner. Plus, we all know that Duke continues to dribble near greatness every year in college basketball because of whistles instead of talent.
What a joke. At this rate, a blown call (or a perceived one) might get you something just shy of capital punishment. The truth is that teams always have lost more because of what they didn’t do than what an official, referee or umpire actually did. And, yes, I’m biased. The job that I enjoyed the most behind the one I’ve had for nearly three decades was umpiring youth baseball throughout my teenage years. The stomping and the screaming that I encountered back then as an umpire prepared me for what I occasionally face now as a columnist. You need toughness for both jobs.
That’s why I have softness for officiating and umpiring. That’s also why I nodded when Glover told the truth by saying, “Now they [officials and umpires] might commit an error sometime. They might be inconclusive sometime.” Then Glover added after a pause, “But not too often.”
Permalink | Comments (53) | Categories: Braves / MLB, Falcons / NFL, Hawks / NBA, Tech / ACC, Terence Moore, Thrashers / NHL, UGA / SEC
Plucky Latvia beats U.S. in 3-3 tie
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jeff Schultz
Turin, Italy — If this is going to be a medal run, then give the U.S hockey team points for performing the ultimate deception Wednesday night.
Because it’s not every day you have to frantically rally for a goal in the third period to tie a small Eastern European country playing in only its second Olympics.
Latvia was not supposed to be a problem for the U.S. in the opener of the Olympic men’s hockey tournament. Latvia’s goalie, former NHL veteran Arturs Irbe, played only 10 games in the league in 2003-04. He couldn’t land a deal this year. So he’s playing in Salzburg, Austria, which is mostly famous for the hills being alive with the “Sound of Music.”
Latvia? Latvia used only two players Wednesday night who are in the NHL. One of those, defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh, just finished a six-week stay in a substance abuse program. He received approval to play in the Olympics just the other day.
Latvia? Latvia had the go-ahead goal Wednesday night scored by Herbert Vasiljevs, who played seven games with the Thrashers in 1999, when, well, everybody played seven games with the Thrashers. Latvia 3, U.S. only 3. Exactly what that means depends in part on how the Americans play Thursday night against Kazakhstan. Also how they play when they actually start facing good teams.
“The naysayers had their way tonight,” said forward Mike Knuble, referencing the low expectations by some for this Olympic team. “They can point a finger at us and say, ‘I told you so.’ But there’s still a lot of hockey to be played. It’s probably a little bit of a wakeup call for us. I think we all walked away and learned something really fast.”
For starters, the U.S. learned a 2-0 lead is not safe against Latvia. The fast start on goals by Brian Gionta and Craig Conroy in the first 10 minutes turned out to be an aberration. Whether it was jet lag or focus, the team appeared to hit a wall the last half of the period and in the second, and Latvia rallied with three straight goals. The last came from Vasiljevs, who whizzed a shot over John Grahame’s glove 15:44 into the second.
Suddenly, Palasport Olimpico looked and sounded like the capital of Latvia, whatever the capital of Latvia is.
Look, here’s all you need to know. The U.S. just lost to a country that roughly covers as much earth as West Virginia and has less than half the population of Atlanta.
Maybe we should just forget about playing Russia next week and focus on small former Soviet pieces, like Estonia.
“Obviously this is disappointing for us,” coach Peter Laviolette said. “But [Thursday], we’ll wake up, and I’m sure we’ll feel better. Every day, we’ll get a little more adjusted and, hopefully, we’ll be a little sharper with our game.”
As much as players like Derian Hatcher pointed to the team “feeling out of sync,” the U.S. roster — while not star-laden — shouldn’t need a lot of chemistry to beat an undermanned Latvian team. But a third-period goal by Jordan Leopold and the fact the U.S. carried the play down the stretch (outshooting Latvia 19-6 in the third period) at least suggests there’s some hope for this team.
“We don’t have a lot of time to get together, so it better be now,” Knuble said.
The scoreboard may have read 3-3. But when time expired, U.S. players slumped and Latvia players raised their sticks in celebration. At the center of it were two unlikely participants. One was Ozolinsh, who arrived only Tuesday from rehab. He said little of the past six weeks, saying only, “I was pretty excited and a little bit nervous. Just the usual feelings.”
The other was Irbe. He carried the Latvian flag into Olympic Stadium during the Opening Ceremony. He is revered in his country for helping lead the drive to end Communism in the 1990s. Now if he wanted to, he could be president.
“Look at the crowds, look at the sea of burgundy and white,” he said. “It’s a very special day for us.”
Well. That makes one country.
Permalink | Comments (9) | Categories: Jeff Schultz, Other, Thrashers / NHL
WBC should be DOA
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Terence Moore
The closer we get to the new World Baseball Classic, the worse it sounds. That is, if you want your favorite team to have its best chance to do something this season.
In other words, there still is hope that the Braves can win their first world championship in 11 years. Pitchers John Smoltz and Tim Hudson had the good sense to decline this thing.
Seven other Braves players didn’t, and they include the two Jones (Chipper and Andruw), Chris Reitsma and Jeff Francoeur. That means they’ll be among those involved in this craziness during spring training of practicing with their teams on occasion and with Team USA, Team Canada or Team Whatever on many other occasions.
In addition to Anaheim, Phoenix and San Diego, WBC games are scheduled for Tokyo and San Juan, both sort of a long way from the Cactus and Grapefruit leagues.
Then you have that matter of somebody likely getting hurt.
Crazy. Just crazy.
Permalink | Comments (6) | Categories: Quick Hit, Terence Moore
