consistent

By AL GRANING

Consistency. From time to time in this column, I have written words of advice to sports officials of all ages and experience.

Probably the most important advice of all is to be consistent. By that I mean you make the same call the same way all of the time, regardless of the team or time in the game. If a baseball umpire is going establish a strike zone, he must keep that zone throughout a game.

It is grossly unfair for that zone to shrink or expand as the game goes along, and that is probably the biggest complaint I hear from coaches and players during the season.

If a back judge in football calls a certain action pass interference in the first quarter, the same action must bring a flag late in the game. There is nothing that will shorten an official’s career more surely than letting a lineman hold without a penalty until that last quarter drive when the holding call costs the team a chance to win the game.

If that official has made the same call throughout the game, then he had better make it when the chips are down.

Several years ago, when Greg Maddux was regularly winning Cy Young awards for the Atlanta Braves, National League umpires were in the habit of calling strikes when Maddux’s pitches were actually several inches outside.

When the Braves reached the World Series, half of the umpires were assigned by the American League &045; home of a much smaller strike zone. Maddux’s effectiveness was greatly diminished.

I have heard and read for years that National Basketball Association and NCAA Tournament officials are trained to &uot;let them play&uot; on the closing moments of close games. While officials and fans alike want the players and not the officials to decide the outcome of games, it is grossly unfair to give the offense a distinct advantage not allowed by rule.

National Football League rules are actually designed to allow the losing team to close the gap against an opponent. Both the NBA and NFL exist as entertainment and with television money being such a huge factor for both leagues, there is nothing they both detest more than a blowout.

When fans quit watching, sponsors quit buying, and the money dries up.

Most college football officials I worked with felt they were capable of officiating pro football, and most high school officials I remember thought they were good enough to call college football. And that is as it should be.

Speaking of money, I read where the chair umpire for Venus Williams’ Wimbledon loss the other day was canned. With no strong British players left in the tournament, Williams’ exit likely reduces the TV dramatically and costs somebody a lot of money.

The umpire takes the fall for the error, of course, but dozens of others including both players should have caught the mistake.

The College World Series ended, and the SEC &045; which was supposed to be the strongest in the land &045; took it on the chin. Better luck next year.

And that’s official.

Al Graning is a former SEC official and former Natchez resident. Reach him at

AlanWard39157@aol.com.