This email was sent to all OCFOA officials.

All high schools should have paid all officials for games playing in 2019 by now.

If you have not been paid for a high school football game played in 2019, contact the athletic director of the home school. If there is an issue, contact me ASAP. We need to close out the 2019 season on Arbiter.

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This was copied to all Orange County high school football contacts.

Schedule Changes
– PLEASE CHECK YOUR SCHEDULES! Some games are on WEDNESDAY.

Ejections (VERY IMPORTANT)
– After speaking to CIF Southern Section Assistant Commissioner, Richard Shearer, players who leave the bench area during an altercation on the field will be ineligible next game.  NO EXCEPTIONS. I asked what if after a kick, the new offensive and new defensive players are coming on the field. His response was, “The players have to know to stay on the sidelines until altercations are over”.  This not in the rule book. It is a CIF directive.

Cooler Heads Prevail
– Many games determine playoff spots. Understand the importance and don’t let emotions get the best of you.

Wearing Pink
– Thursday, October 31 is the last day to wear pink gear & accessories. Wear normal gear on Friday, November 1.

Playoff Assignments
– Playoff lists will be posted this week. The list submitted to CIF take priority. Subsequent assignments will go off the Rating Committed list. Any remaining openings are assigned at my discretion per direction of the board.
– If there is a turn back fee due, you may not be considered for playoff assignments (OCFOA Policy & Procedures: Game Assignments & Compensation Item #9).

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This was copied to all Orange County high school football contacts.

Schedule Changes
– PLEASE CHECK YOUR SCHEDULES! Some games are on WEDNESDAY.

Ejections (VERY IMPORTANT)
– After speaking to CIF Southern Section Assistant Commissioner, Richard Shearer, players who leave the bench area during an altercation on the field will be ineligible next game.  NO EXCEPTIONS. I asked what if after a kick, the new offensive and new defensive players are coming on the field. His response was, “The players have to know to stay on the sidelines until altercations are over”.  This not in the rule book. It is a CIF directive.

Cooler Heads Prevail
– Many games determine playoff spots. Understand the importance and don’t let emotions get the best of you.

Wearing Pink
– Thursday, October 31 is the last day to wear pink gear & accessories. Wear normal gear on Friday, November 1.

Playoff Assignments
– Playoff lists will be posted this week. The list submitted to CIF take priority. Subsequent assignments will go off the Rating Committed list. Any remaining openings are assigned at my discretion per direction of the board.
– If there is a turn back fee due, you may not be considered for playoff assignments (OCFOA Policy & Procedures: Game Assignments & Compensation Item #9).

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This was copied to all Orange County high school football contacts and officials.

Forward Progress
– Once a runner is wrapped and stopped/driven back, officials are to stop play. Do not let runners take unnecessary hits. This also eliminates cheap fumbles.

Player Conduct
If an official has an issue with a player, the official has the following options:
– Throw a flag
– If you warn a player, notify the head coach. It’s up to the coach to decide if HE WANTS TO PULL OUT THE PLAYER. Officials are NOT to send players off for “conduct”. This is different from uniforms.
– The coach is the one rolling the dice as to leaving the player in the game instead of pulling the player for a pulling off period.

Ejections
– Officials should slow down and discuss with other crew members. Remember that you already have a penalty. Ejections are because of the action. Don’t let your emotions talk you something it’s not.

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This was sent to all Orange County high school football contacts and officials.

Changes on Arbiter
Schools: Double check that your remaining games are correct on Arbiter. The longer you wait to make changes, the less likely you will have officials.
Officials: Check your schedules on Arbiter. Many schools have changed times or locations on your games. You need to accept the changes on Arbiter. It could delay your payment. We want you at the right place at the right time.

Officials
– Continue to review the rule book. Don’t make up your own rules! Take pride in your own improvement. Don’t assume your partner will bail you out.
– Continue to communicate with coaches.
– Take care of your bodies. We can’t afford to be down more officials.
The October 8th make up meeting is now 6:30 pm at Los Alisos Intermediate School due to the Old World fire.

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This email was sent to all Orange County high school football contacts and officials.

League Starts
– Everything notches up moving forward. Cooler heads prevail. Slow down!
– Officials should find items their previous games that they want to review with your crew.
– Review Mark Andrew’s “Plays of the Week”. Go to www.ocfoa.org and click the link.

Reports
– If an official ejects a player or coach, an ejection report (from the www.ocfoa.org website) must be filled out within 24 hours. Speed Castillo wants to be notified immediately of any ejection.
– All other “incidents” are to be reported on “Incident Reports” (from the www.ocfoa.org website).

Thank You!
– Thanks to the schools helping with the escorting of officials off the field and having locker rooms open at the end of the game. It is greatly appreciated.

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This email was copied to all Orange County high school football contacts and officials.

Weekly Bulletin
Mark Andrews is our Instructional Chairman. He reviews video sent in by schools as well. He as been sending out a weekly bulletin to our officials. I’ve asked him to share them with the school contacts.

Game Changes
Schools: PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE send all changes to me. We are barely getting by with officials each week. When I have to switch officials on games, I need to be sure I am giving them correct information.
Officials: Don’t assume them home team is playing on their own campus. Due to construction of several schools, other arrangements have been made. DOUBLE CHECK the location of your games.

Schools
1) Please reply to officials reaching out regarding information for parking, dressing facilities, etc.
2) Please have chain crew on the field and clock operator available 20 minutes prior to kick off so officials can instruct them.

Officials
1) Just have referee (or have the referee delegate one official) reach out to the athletic director for game information. The crew is to contact the referee for information. The schools are busy and don’t need multiple officials calling for the same thing.
2) Remember to use the OCFOA Ejection Form for ejections and the OCFOA Incident Report for other issues of concern.

Racial Slurs
ZERO TOLERANCE – Don’t simply warn with words. Warn with your flag. If you hear it, throw your flag. Eject when necessary.

Respectfully,

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association

This email was copied to all Orange County high school football contacts and officials.

Invalid Fair Catch Signals
Any signal by any player on the receiving team during a kick other than a legal fair catch signal will cause the play to be dead once there is possession or the ball becomes dead by rule. This includes players waving their arms to signal “get away”. Steve Coover (California State Rules Interpreter) has clarified that if the ball ends up in player possession, there will be a flag throw. If the ball simply rolls dead, no flag will be thrown.

Communication Between Schools and Officials
It has been frustrating that officials reach out to schools to clarify where to park and dress and there is no response by the schools. Some schools do not have working shower for after the game. That’s understandable but it would be appreciated if the schools would notify the officials. It’s extremely disappointing that officials have to beg for water during the game and at halftime. These are items listed in the CIF BlueBook. Your cooperation would be greatly appreciated.

Heat Index
Schools: Please be sure to contact me for any time changes due to heat. Officials may not be able to accommodate the new time and changes would be needed.
Officials: The referee is to contact the schools for potential changes.

Officials Only
If you are working a varsity game at Bolsa Grande High School, you will dress in the mens coach’s locker room. At halftime, you will be in the room adjacent to the snack bar. If the room is warm, open the door. If you need to use the restroom, you will have to use the one in the team room or the public restroom in the stadium. There will not be anyone to take you back to the coach’s locker room. After the game, you will taken back to the locker room where you can shower.

Paul Caldera, Assignor
Orange County Football Officials Association