interview a lot of high school and college officials and coaches, and there is no doubt that controversy abounds with regard to handcheck fouls. There are two sides, each with officials and coaches who feel the same way about handchecking.

One group wants it called, the other doesn't. The complaint in both camps puts it right at the feet of the officials. The guys who really know the rules are caught between very opinionated coaches who often influence how it gets called by local associations.

Coaches often do that by helping to determine who gets to work varsity games based on input to the assignment secretaries of local organizations, with the latter attempting to please one camp of coaches or the other.

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