Will, your input probably does more to hurt the situation than anything else. The problem lies with this...when a young, energetic, athletic official does get in, they get ran out because of parents and coaches being on their butts so hard. Ten years ago (or so) I had every single one of my seniors get certified to officiate. Some would have been good, but the Kids club and the JH parents and coaches were so brutal to them they said to heck with it. Their pride got in the way of them dealing with the learning curve. I will ALWAYS try to give a young guy some honest constructive criticism in a very calm, sincere way, but it is often seen as being overly critical and they get defensive. The problem lies with the young official himself, and perhaps a lack of a true mentor system to protect the young officials. Most wrestlers have a lot of pride, and that sometimes gets in the way of their development, just like a lot of kids will not sit on the JV until it is their time. They quit instead. I see the same thing with officials.
Not sure how my post hurt the young officials you are referring to. I started three officials who are still in high school this year. I encourage ALL of the kids tournaments to hire young, inexperienced officials for novice and if they newbie officials are good give them some open experience. I can give you a list of 25 officials who should have been doing HS post season and state but are not "in the system".
Rick, I do agree with your comments about tournaments. I cut young guys a lot of slack and joke with them but if I get a veteran who is a pompous ass I am going to be all over them like a wet rag if they blow a call. I also know, from experience, that western Kansas parents are a little tougher on young officials than eastern Kansans. When we have our kids state body meeting we should devote some time to this problem because a shortage of officials will damage our sport.
Trust me, the current high school system is running off good, young officials. There is a much longer line than you guys are portraying on here. The vets don't want to let go and without a merit rating system, mentoring, and evaluating the situation will not improve.
I want to be a part of a solution, not a part of the problem.
