Be the Referee: More Lines

By Sam Davis
MHSAA Director of Officials

January 17, 2023

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 – More Lines - Listen

Lines, lines, everywhere lines. But as we learned last week, different lines mean different things.

To recap, on the line in basketball and football is out of bounds. But in soccer, tennis, volleyball, baseball and softball – on the line is in bounds.

But what about other sports?

In hockey – the puck has to be all the way over the line to be considered a goal or to be in the next zone.

In golf, a ball on the line is in play, not out-of-bounds.

Lacrosse is like football – a ball touching the line is out.

How about a track example? In the long jump – if your foot touches the line, it’s a foul.

And in bowling, if you completely cross the line – it’s a foul.

Know the lines and you’ll always know if you are in … or out.

Previous Editions:

Jan. 10: On the Line - Listen
Jan. 3: Basketball Measurements - Listen
Dec. 13: Pregame Dunks - Listen
Dec. 6: Gymnastics Judges - Listen
Nov. 22: Football Finals Replay - Listen
Nov. 15: Back Row Illegal Blocker - Listen
Nov. 8: Swim Turn Judges - Listen
Nov. 1: Soccer Referee Jersey Colors - Listen
Oct. 25: Cross Country Tie-Breaker - Listen
Oct. 18: Soccer Shootouts - Listen
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

Be the Referee: Animal Interference

By Paige Winne
MHSAA Marketing & Social Media Coordinator

September 20, 2023

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 – Animal Interference - Listen

In golf – it’s common to hear about birdies, eagles, maybe even an albatross. Or in my case, a snowman. But what if an actual animal interferes with your ball while in play?

There are two kinds of interference.

The first involves a ball still in motion. If you are putting and a squirrel darts out and stops or redirects your putt, you simply get a do-over from the original spot.

Off the green, if a moving ball is stopped or re-directed, you play the ball from where it ultimately stops.

If your ball is stopped and a seagull picks it up and carries it off – you just replace the ball to its original spot and proceed.

It doesn’t happen often, but now you know how to deal with squirrels and seagulls … in addition to birdies and eagles.

Previous Editions

Sept. 13: Feet Rule on Soccer Throw-In - Listen
Sept. 6: Volleyball Jewelry - Listen
Aug. 30: Football Rules Similarities - Listen
Aug. 23: Football Rules Differences - Listen

(PHOTO by Gary Shook.)