Texas high school football is huge, so it is noteworthy that the state is facing a shortage of game officials.
Three counties in Texas are going through a serious numbers crunch,
Jason Rush, from the Austin Football Officials Association (AFOA) told KVUE that in a typical year, somewhere between 10-20 game officials would leave due to retirement or moving out of the year. This past year, he said, “saw a decline of about 100 officials.”
The solution is simple: Get more officials. But Rush acknowledged that it is easier said than done.
His response to that is to make training as seamless and hassle-free for those looking to be trained as officials.
“Looking at the adult learning concept and the fact that people have jobs and we’re short officials and what makes it easier,” Rush told KVUE, an ABC affiliate in Texas.
“We have a training site in North Austin, South Austin, we’ve now added a site in Marble Falls and in Bastrop.”
Bastrop is 30 miles southeast of Austin.
“At the end of the day, we really preach the reward that comes with this and the good feeling,” Rush said.
“We always enjoy pushing people out of their comfort zone and making them feel better.”