I’ve been to quite a few athletic events in my lifetime and have seen some pretty exciting moments, along with the ones players would like to forget.While attending these events, there is one thing I see and hear that has grown to annoy me very much.

Let me set the picture. The pitcher has a 3-2 count on the batter and fires a pitch toward the plate that the umpire calls a ball because he judged it to be outside.

All of a sudden there are cries from the fans such as “What kind of call was that blue?”

How about in a basketball game when a player is not called for what some fans believe is traveling, and they heckle the referee?

Yes, what I speak of is the repetitive and some times down-right irritating cries of fans because they did not like the call an umpire made on the diamond or a referee on the basketball court or football field.

I have heard it all too often, and all too often it annoys me. Although, I must admit, calls made by a referee sometimes may seem totally off the mark; however, this does not give a fan the right to call down a referee in an embarrassing manner.

First of all, let me put a common “myth” to rest. The referee under no circumstances costs a team the game.

I used to be part of the crowd who believed that “myth,” until one day at the end of my freshman year in high school I was talking to my godfather about a week after the softball team at the high school I attended lost a playoff game by one run in extra innings.

All during that game, the coaches were saying how terrible the referees were. Even after the game a parent told some adults and players on the opposing team they did not deserve to win the game because the opposing team did not have to work as hard. This team had been automatically admitted to the playoffs because there were no other softball teams in their district at the time, and they had received a first round by in the playoffs. That meant all they had to do was defeat my high school’s softball team in order to make the state tournament.

It was after I told my godfather about the game, and he told me a referee never costs a team a ball game. He said the referee has the authority over the ball game, and we must all respect his decisions whether we like them or not.

Initially, I did not buy into his opinion, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized he was right.

Referees, umpires or whoever is officiating a sporting event has the final say-so in what call is made during a game. They have a passion for the game like no other human being. I do not know of anyone else who in his right mind would want to put himself in a situation to be ridiculed by fans if he did not enjoy the sport they were refereeing.

I completely understand that sports are very emotional and can be frustrating at times. Fans and players all want the game to be called fairly, and to win. Keeping that in mind, does that still give us the right to call down a referee because of a call we did not agree with?

The way I look at it, if someone thinks they can do a better job than the referee, that person should get out of his or her seat and ask for the referee’s uniform so that person can take over his job. If one is not willing to do this, then that person should either leave the athletic event or close his mouth.

If I said I was completely satisfied with every call a referee or umpire made, then I would be lying. There are plenty of calls I do not agree with, but I keep my comments to a minimum. I will never, under any circumstance, stand up and raise my voice in opposition of a referee’s call.

As fans we need to remember what athletics are about. We should be attending sporting events to support athletes for all the hard work they have put into the sport. We should also show appreciation for the officials and coaches who have given up their time to help the athletes become better people on and off the field.

By ridiculing the referees, we do nothing but show disrespect and embarrassment for the programs we support. I certainly do not believe the coaches like to see their fans yelling from the stands at a referee’s calls.

Think about this: the coaches know the game and the players better than we do, so why not leave it to them to decide what should be argued and what should stand? Sound like a reasonable idea? I’ll leave that for you, the fan, to decide.