Preps Coach vs Officials

I covered a preps game tonight...

On deadline...it was a dull preps game....final score was 8 (only because kid on losing team hits a half-court bomb at the end)....

I wasnt going to get quotes from the boys gamer...just a short cap because we had an important girls gamer before that will take up most space.

I'm gathering my stuff when the manager approaches me and says that the coach wants to speak to me.

I go and he said he wanted to be intereviewed, so I obliged....and he lit into a tirade about the officials and how the association that covers their conference comes in with preconceived notions about who should and who is going to win the game. And that the association is the worst in the state. And that the official who gave him a technical foul did unwarranted.

Should this go in? Should it be printed? I really didnt feel like this game was affected by the officials that much....it was 2nd place vs 6th place... He's made comments about it all year, on the record....as was tonight's tirade..

 

Have you reported on any of his previous rants?

 

excellent blog material.

 

Well not to this detail.

He's bitched about situational calling all year and I've ran those quotes 2-3 times, because in reality....it was poor officiating.

Tonight? Here's the quotes I've pulled. He had one that I did not pull about how he asked an official a question and the official said he was accusing him of cheating by asking the question and that if he said anything else he would "get hit" (with a T, I assume)....and that he grinned and that he got hit with a T

“There’s been a history of this place, ever since I’ve been at XXX high school 14 years, you don’t come here and beat them that much and it was proven tonight. It’s a sad day when the officials in our association dictate the outcome of games, and I really thought they did tonight.

“Our association in this area is to me – the worst in the state. They come into games with a preconceived thought of who is supposed to win and that’s who wins. That’s sad for the kids because they fight just as hard as anyone else. I’m not saying that because we’re 2-8 in the conference. Every game I’ve watched they know who’s supposed to win that game and that’s the majority of the time who wins.

“The fouls tonight were about 24 on us and 11 on them and they play more aggressive defense than we do. That’s sad.”

 

Don't run it. Without talking to the officials, you're basically running a one-sided rant. While that may be fine in a sidebar on John Calipari or Bob Knight, this is high school. You just don't do it.

 

Call other coaches around the league, and among schools which use the same officiating group, and see what they think. Then you either have a consensus -- "The refs are out to get us" -- or a controversy. And a feature either way.

 

Well here's the deal. I dont think many coaches are going to go on the record with these type accusations.

If they did...they'd get fucked over.

Which is why I have the hesitation of printing this. Team plays on Thursday in an elimination post-season game. Officials live in our distribution area. Officials have a pre-post-season meeting. One of them would likely bring this to the meeting and likely first words coach says, he's getting popped and that makes the team and kids suffer.

Gotta love prep sports...

 

If you do run it, save for a notebook package... Coach Blow hasn't been two happy with officials this season, complaining on several occasions about officials from the Dick Hands Association. Friday night, he was madder than ever....

 

Do not run it. Do not include it in a notebook or a sidebar or anything else.

Hey coach...you fucking lost. STFU and work at making your team better. It ain't the officials' fault that your guys suck!

Seriously, losing coaches bitching about the officiating just isn't news.
And when you print it and some state association comes down on the coach, he'll say he was misquoted and rip you a new one for making him look like the asshole he really is.

 

I've Covered My Ass.

Used my iPod recorder for this one. The audio file is on my computer.

I asked him 4 questions....
1) "Just a tough game on the road tonight, coach?"
2) "Is it tough to overcome stuff (on the road)?"
3) "Did he say anything else to you?"
4) (a stunned PTSportsWriter) "Do you have anything else?"

I'm going to run a snippet of his comments. But, I aptly noted in my lede that his team endured an almost 6-7 minute scoreless stretch from the late 2nd quarter into the opening 5 mins of the 3rd....

 

Losing coaches bitch about the refs all the time. Cover both your asses and leave it out. The worst that can happen is he'll call tomorrow and ask why his quotes weren't in the story. Tell him you didn't think he would have wanted them printed. If he persists, write a feature about what a whiny bitch he is and include all the sniveling comments he wants.

 

Well, you got it half right Loblaw.
I hope I'm just not seeing the sarcasm font on the part about writing a feature about what a whiny bitch he is.