referee Page 31 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Big Brother Is Watching You, Serie A
Italian referees can now use instant replay to determine if players used naughty language, and book them appropriately. Meanwhile, Bud Selig is still not sure about this "checking home runs" thing. [Football Italia]...

Vancouver Canuck Thinks Referee Targeted Him (Because Ref Told Him He Would)
The (alleged) vengance stems from an incident in December when Burrows was hit by Nashville's Jerred Smithson. Auger gave Smithson a five-minute major and a game misconduct, which was later rescinded because it appeared that Burrows embellished the hit. (He didn't miss a shift that game.) Since his ...

Matt Bullard Delivers His Color Commentary Directly To Refs
Remember Matt Bullard? Of course you do. He's now working the sidelines for the Rockets TV team and recently got so worked up about the poor officiating he was seeing, he decided to share his thoughts directly with the officials....

Illicit High-Five Is Apparently A Thing Now
The NFL actually had to release a statement explaining that what happened between referee Jerome Boger and Vince Young on Monday was not technically a high five. You say "tomato," I say "terrorist palm slap." [Houston Chronicle, PFT]...

Last Night's Winner: Referee Jerome Boger
In sports, everyone is a winner-some people just win better than others. Like NFL referee Jerome Boger, who must have had something riding on last night's game. Nobody likes Vince Young that much....

Study: College Basketball Refs Suck, Too
A couple of professors watched a bunch of college basketball games and came to the very reasonable conclusion, in a peer-reviewed academic journal, that they were all being reffed by Dick Bavetta....

Steve Nash: NBA Optometrist
Got an image you'd like to see in here first thing in the morning? Send it to [email protected]. Subject: Morning crap....

Kiss Dick Bavetta Goodbye?
Bavetta, the Barkley-kissing ref suspected of involvement in pretty much every conspiracy dating back to the assassination of Caesar, says he might retire at season's end. At least, that's what David Stern told him to say. [Orlando Sentinel, via Slam]...

The Book The NBA Doesn't Want You To Read
We've obtained a copy of Tim Donaghy's book, Blowing the Whistle, which purports to expose the NBA's "culture of fraud" and which Random House was set to publish next month — until, a source says, the league threatened to sue....

Your Late Games Open Thread
Citing a rise in player/referee collisions, the NFL plans to address the issue next season, including the possibility of officials wearing helmets. Now put on your padded commenter helmet and make fun of the late games. [ESPN]...

David Stern Peels His Scabs
The referees you've always hated will probably be back for Tuesday's NBA opener, replacing the replacement referees you were going to hate even more. And so ends a monthlong referee lockout that really had nothing to do with the referees....

Hockey, Wearing Not So Much As A Stanley Cup
Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter's anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and the blogosphere to bring you everything you need to know to start your day....

Scab Refs Won't Blow So Hard During The Regular Season, Statheads Assure Us
Basketball Prospectus' Kevin Pelton takes a look at the 1995 ref lockout and finds that replacements "increased the foul rate by .005—one call, that is, per 200 possessions, which is a little more than one game." [Basketball Prospectus]...

Does This Look Foul To You?
Good thing that Major League Baseball adds two extra umpires to cover those close plays down the line in the playoffs. That way no one will have any grounds to complain that a bad call completely ruined their season....

So, How Are Those Replacement Refs Working Out?
Scab refs called 75 fouls during last night's Celtics-Rockets preseason game. The teams combined to shoot 102 free throws. The NBA: Where play stoppage happens. [Chron.com, via TrueHoop]...

Finally, Objective Proof That Referees Favor Manchester United
Imagine if every time the Yankees lost, the umps decided to play a 10th inning. That's what's happening in England, with (obviously) Man U being the beneficiary of some super-shady timekeeping....

Fired NBA Refs At Head Of Line To Join The Scabs
The NBA needs replacements for their locked out referees so they're putting together a list of guys who own whistles—one of whom just happens to have been fired for being terrible at refereeing NBA games....

Anyone Want To Ref Some NBA Games?
"The NBA formally declared a lockout of its referees Friday, virtually guaranteeing that the league will open the preseason with replacement officials in two weeks." [NYT]...

NBA Players Will Have To Call Their Own From Now On (UPDATE)
Here's a tip for the NBA referee's union. When negotiating for better benefits and more job security, try to avoid bargaining from the position of being the most hated and least respected workforce in America....

It's Bizarro Phillies Dad!
Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter's anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and the blogosphere to bring you everything you need to know to start your day...