It is almost impossible to listen to a sports talk show these days and not hear about the officiating crisis that is crippling the NFL.  The crusade to get every call right that was born with instant replay has now reached biblical proportions.  Invented by CBS Sports Editor Tony Verna in 1963, his 1,300 pound replay machine has now grown into an even larger gorilla in the room that is crushing the credibility and confidence of professional officials.  

The premise is in games played and coached by mere mortals; officials are now expected to be perfect.  Events that typically take place at high speeds, eclipsing at times just mere seconds are now dissected, magnified and slowed down from every angle imaginable.  Officials, who must make their decisions in real time and from imperfect vantage points, are now being rebuked as incompetent.

NFL fans in particular are clamoring for a complete restructuring of the officiating system.  

For coaches and players it would be as if we could show them the video of the play, then ask them to go back run it again and not make any mistakes.  It would be like Ground Hog Day, just keep running the same play over and over until it is perfect.  Game times would be unlimited.  Imagine the advertising revenue that could generate.

Somewhere, an NFL executive is actually scheming to find a scenario where this could work.

But wait, aren’t human mistakes a part of the game?  Aren’t they a part of life?  Isn’t it the human element that separates the real game from the video game world?  After checking the Xbox message boards, even video gamers complain about calls in the Madden world.  This may not be a sign of the apocalypse, but it is frightening.  They do understand these games are not real, right?

Last season our Central Wisconsin Storm team set a new state tournament record for most penalty minutes in a game as we lost a heart-breaker to Hayward 1-0.  The margin of victory was just slightly thicker than a razor as the game’s only goal caromed off the blade of our own defenseman’s skate.  In a post-game lobby filled with sorrow, frustration and anger, the finger of blame was quickly fixed on the game’s officials. 

They were an easy target, but I don’t believe an accurate one.

One of the lessons we are supposed to take from the athletic experience is that officials, good or bad, are a part of the game you cannot control.  We teach our players to focus on those things they can control, like effort, attitude and decisions.  They also learn, especially in girl’s hockey that body contact is a rule that is interpreted very differently depending upon where you are playing.  Had we played that game in Minnesota, there would have been no record set.

Officiating is the human element of the game, the subjective decisions of people trying to do the best job they can.  Like players and coaches, none of us will achieve that perfect game, nor will our mistakes go unnoticed.  When players and coaches become mistake free, which is of course never, I will then expect officials to do the same.  

 As coaches we know the ultimate responsibility falls on us.  We, like the players are not allowed to go back and correct our mistakes during a game through video replay.  We have to live by the declaration that “what you see on the ice is what you have coached”.  We certainly all have days that we would like to distance ourselves from that blatant fact.

When a difficult loss rears its unwelcomed head I look no further than myself for someone to blame.  It is what I was taught by my parents—to accept responsibility.  It is one of those priceless lessons that those who participate in athletics learn if we are honest enough to accept it.  Many mistakes in life won’t come with an instant replay and a second chance to fix a poor decision.  

Pointing fingers at game officials, playing conditions, injuries and bad luck will always make us feel better, but are merely excuses we use to blanket the truth, because sometimes the truth hurts. 

Human error has always been one of the critical factors in determining the outcome of athletic contests.  In ninety-nine percent of the games I have been a part of it has been the players and coaches and not the officials making the crucial mistakes.  At crunch time winning teams avoid them, while losing teams succumb to them.  Heroes and scapegoats emerge from the friction of intense competition.  Humility and sportsmanship are tested in both victory and defeat.

Those who accept responsibility display the character that their athletic experience has fused through years of competition.  Those who search elsewhere and run from the truth insulate themselves from one of athletics’ most prolific lessons.  Mistakes are an essential component of both success and failure.  Accepting responsibility for them and learning from them is a sign of maturity and perspective.

Unfortunately our quest for the perfect official and our intolerance for their mistakes will trickle down to high school and youth sports like many other professional sports evils.  The impact will surely do more to drive officials from the game than attract them to it.  

I am not advocating for officials to make more bad calls, just asking that we understand that perfection is unattainable—even with the help of video replay.  It would seem learning tolerance of honest mistakes would serve us better now and later in life.  This might be one of those rare situations in life where our obsession with getting it right may just be wrong.  

Dan Bauer is a free-lance writer, teacher & hockey coach in Wausau, WI.  You can contact him at dbauer@wausauschools.org.