That's a bad call!

The final seconds are ticking off the clock and your team is down by one. Shot goes up. Miss. Player goes down but the whistle is silent. “Hey, where’s the foul?”—game is over.

OK, athletes, so you already know referees regulate games to keep a fun and safe environment. And they have the authority to make final decisions. But every day, every game and every year officials make bad calls.

Players aren’t the only ones who lose games. A final ruling on a questionable call by a referee can determine a team’s fate. It’s like the officials crew is your friend one day, and then the next day they turn against you.

Do you know why referees make bad calls? I’ll throw you some facts. Arguing, criticizing and using profane language to try to prove your case will give the officials the urge to punish you. And this may lead your teammate or coach to be ejected.

Coaches expect referees to keep up with the pace of the game. But they don’t know when to expect controversial calls or fixed games. Games that run down to the last second are always intense. And for the teams that fall short, disputes and suspicions are likely to accumulate.

Officials aren’t any different from the fans and just can’t see everything. In football, for instance, you have players stacked play after play making it complex to decide if a player’s knee hit the ground, if a fumble occurred, or who recovered the ball.

This is why the instant replay crew audits plays that are challenged by the coaches. Yes, that’s why the red flag was invented in the NFL — to legally challenge plays. In college football, coaches have one challenge per game as long as they have a time-out. But even so, it will not always negate the call made.

In the past, there have been suspensions regarding bad officiating. One college football official, Gordon Riese, who particularly made a bad call in an Oklahoma vs. Oregon game in 2006, was suspended due to his failure to reverse the call.  

Then there is the extreme out-and-out cheating. NBA official Tim Donaghy was caught fixing a game while officiating a game in 2007. In fact, he was fixing games all season until feds popped him and took him to prison for several months.

Other than football and tennis, you certainly can’t challenge plays. Tennis has an electronic system that limits few challenges to call balls in or out, or the game would take forever.

Sports like football, basketball, baseball and hockey have official replays. But not all sports have the same method.

We know ultimately someone wins. But a team that knows they should’ve been added to the win column shouldn’t have to play extremely well just to offset bad calls by the official.

Again, I’m just saying that officials will always impact a game, whether they’re on your side or against you. We know they are strict in various situations. As I’ve said, they must be dealt with in most sports.

But understand, if there were no officials to manage a game, it might never end.

—Myka Williams is sports editor for the News-Register.