Penalties, Personal Fouls and Pass Interference: Off the Gridiron

Given my family background, I should be a referee. My grandfather and two uncles served middle school, high school and collegiate athletics through officiating for most of their adult lives. Through refereeing, they have made an impact on their local communities snd the lives of many young people. I'm proud of my heritage. However, I gave to sports in my own way. I coached high school sports for 20 years and worked in the athletic office for two. Those days might be over, but this entire mix is in my blood. And from time to time, I find myself wishing I were a football referee. As much as I admire Sarah Thomas, it's not that I want the zebra suit. I want those yellow flags. That's right I want to call personal fouls and assess penalties. Not on the field but any and everywhere off the gridiron. Allow me to explain....

Although Jerry Seinfeld didn't create Festivus—a secular holiday celebrated on December 23, his show certainly popularized it. At Festivus, people come together to pass the unadorned aluminum pole and air their grievances. Throwing the penalty flag isn't much different. Sure it's not exactly bringing holiday cheer, but all is fair in love and sports. 

So if you have wanted to call a penalty on a friend, family member or even yourself read on and let me know what you think.

Penalty: Ball has been illegally touched, kicked or batted
A friend posted on social media "Congratulations to Michigan on an undefeated season!" Always one to give a person a wide berth when it comes to supporting their alma mater, said individual is not a Wolverine. While their spouse is a graduate, I still find this to be a penalty and loss of a first down. Why? I find it hard to support a program so egregious in cheating, led by a coach who doesn't care. Perhaps they feel targeted, but honor and integrity went out the door on this one. Whether Michigan fans feel wronged or not, I think a public proclamation and celebration of their 12-0 record is a penalty. No loss of 15 yards. No personal foul. In this case the ball was illegally touched, kicked or batted.

Personal Foul: Roughing the Passer
On September 30, Notre Dame barely beat Duke, 21-14. Even though a win is a win, is a win, Irish fans were not feeling good about this one. Two days later, a friend who has no allegiance to any college football team and is indifferent to Notre Dame football started questioning me— hard—about the vitality of the Irish. "Geez. Notre Dame. WHAT WAS THAT? I mean really?!" I replied by saying, "It wasn't pretty but we got the win." To my surprise, the inquisition did not end. "It's going to be a very long season if you continue to look like that." I replied "well, the Irish were 4-1 coming into the game and are now 5-1. I'll take that any day. Duke has a strong quarterback and it's tough to win on the road." She kept going....

In that moment, I wanted to throw the flag. It's one thing to razz your friend who you know is a huge fan of a certain team. And it's another to push, judge and make assumptions when you're largely agnostic. Personal Foul: Roughing the Passer. Loss of 15 yards. Automatic first down. 

Illegal Forward Pass
This might be a stretch, but I'm going to call this on Sports Illustrated for naming Deion Sanders Sportsperson of the Year. While it was exciting to follow Neon Deion once again, really? SOTY?? Coach Prime finished the season 4-8. Yes, it's an improvement over 1-11 from the year before, but he also brought in 86 new players. Guys on the 2022 team was strongly encouraged to pursue playing opportunities elsewhere.  

This is an illegal forward pass, loss of a down. I am all for advancing exposure and opportunities for those who are part of an HBCU. I will admit the hype around Coach Saunders was electric. He is nothing short of charismatic and engaging but to get to be the Sportsman of the Year given what so many other athletes accomplished and achieved in 2023 in not right.

Penalizing myself
If I were to throw the flag at myself, I would most likely getting called for running pass interference. I've run my own illegal substitution at work. Hopefully, I would never been penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct but I've certainly been offsides.

Conclusion
The truth of the matter is we need more officials. There isn't a high school sport out there not looking for more help. If you want to contribute to the game or help out in other ways—keeping book, running a clock, or posting to social media, opportunities await. In the meantime, I invite you to think about the rules of the sport you play and how those extend beyond the game. Makes life a little more colorful!

Photo Credits
Harbaugh
Flag
Deoin