Be the Referee: Covering Knees

September 8, 2016

This week, MHSAA assistant director Mark Uyl explains the increased focus on making sure knee padding is worn correctly in football.

Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.

Below is this week's segment  Equipment Covering the Knees - Listen

Everything in the game of football, from a rules-making perspective, starts and ends with an increased focus on player safety.

One big point of emphasis for the 2016 season centers on equipment being worn properly by all players. Too often we see college and pro players, especially those at the skill positions, wearing football pants that come nowhere close to covering the knee area.

With a continued focus on all high school players to lower the target zone when hitting an opponent to keep the head out of football, kids must wear pants with knee pads which completely cover the knee area to avoid those types of injuries.

Past editions
Sept. 1: Play Clock Experiment - Listen
Aug. 25: Clipping in the Free Blocking Zone - Listen

Be the Referee: Soccer Shootouts

By Sam Davis
MHSAA Director of Officials

October 18, 2022

Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.

Below is this week's segment – Soccer Shootouts - Listen

It’s tournament time for boys soccer, and that means the return of the shootout. In the regular season, games can end in a tie. But postseason games need to have a winner. If a game is tied at the end of regulation and the 20-minute overtime period, we move to a shootout.

Each team gets five attempts from the penalty spot, alternating between teams. If after five attempts, the teams still remain tied, it moves to one kick for each team until the tie is broken.

Now what happens when a kick is stopped by the keeper but has enough spin on it to roll back across the goal line?

That’s a goal. A shootout attempt isn’t complete until the ball stops moving, goes out of play or the referee stops play. Just because a goalie initially stops an attempt does not mean the play is over.

Previous Editions:

Oct. 11: Safety in End ZoneListen
Oct. 4: Football Overtime Penalty - Listen
Sept. 27: Kickoff Goal - Listen
Sept. 20: Soccer Timing - Listen
Sept. 13: Volleyball Replays - Listen
Sept. 6: Switching Sides - Listen
Aug. 30: Play Clock - Listen
Aug. 23: Intentional Grounding Change
- Listen