Dave Libbey

Seriously... he was unbelievable on Saturday. And it's not that he was bad necessarily (though I think he did have some stinkers)... he just always has to make his presence known. Making obscure calls, making "big" calls going the other way, making the calls that drive the coaches crazy... he can't resist making himself a part of the game. It just gets so annoying after a while.

I knew the second I saw him on the floor that we were going to be in for some drama... and really, him stopping play to check if the SCU 3-pointer was indeed a 3 (duh!) was crazy.... And I cant believe that it wasn't Libbey that blew the long out of bounds call in the 2nd half (across from the UP bench). That was very Libbey-esque...

Funny story: I was playing with the UO band at the Rose Garden this year, and guess who's working that game? It doesn't take long for the crowd to get on him. The guy next to me said, "I don't know who the refs are, but I know who Libbey is!" Yeah, tell me about it.

PilotNut wrote:I knew the second I saw him on the floor that we were going to be in for some drama... and really, him stopping play to check if the SCU 3-pointer was indeed a 3 (duh!) was crazy.... And I cant believe that it wasn't Libbey that blew the long out of bounds call in the 2nd half (across from the UP bench). That was very Libbey-esque...

I don't think I've heard the Chiles Center crowd boo all the way through a time out in 3-4 years. Unreal.

Not that it'll surprise me in the least, but could someone fill me in on the call?

I'm impressed that the crowd booed for that long. Good to hear that the students are showing up in force.

You can see it midway through the highlight video:

http://www.portlandpilots.com/custompages/Videos/011709bbwebpromo.mov

My description of it... Nik poked the ball away from SCU and it rolled over the mid-court line toward the Pilot hoop. TJ and a Bronco gave chase with TJ diving for it first. It very clearly and obviously went of the Bronco player last (it's kind of tough to see from the angle of the video, but not really), but the ref that was nearest to the play pointed the other direction. Unbelievable.

Oh, and it wasn't just the students booing... the entire gym was, especially the guys who were right in front of where it happened.

Stonehouse wrote:You can see it midway through the highlight video:

http://www.portlandpilots.com/custompages/Videos/011709bbwebpromo.mov

My description of it... Nik poked the ball away from SCU and it rolled over the mid-court line toward the Pilot hoop. TJ and a Bronco gave chase with TJ diving for it first. It very clearly and obviously went of the Bronco player last (it's kind of tough to see from the angle of the video, but not really), but the ref that was nearest to the play pointed the other direction. Unbelievable.

Oh, and it wasn't just the students booing... the entire gym was, especially the guys who were right in front of where it happened.

Some interesting officiating going on in the Rose City that night. I was at Lewis & Clark covering the Willamette/L&C game, where Willamette got called for 14 team fouls in the first half while L&C got called for five.

Libbey's a hack.

Not that anybody has mentioned it, but if you read Jim Beseda's article on the game you might think he is the Bronco SID instead of the beat reporter for the Oregonian

Oh yeah, the booing was incredible. Sometimes I wonder how into it the crowd is, but in a twisted way I was glad to see them react like that.

If there were several calls on both teams that puzzled me Saturday I can only imagine how the teams felt.

Stonehouse wrote:Oh, and it wasn't just the students booing... the entire gym was, especially the guys who were right in front of where it happened.

I was right in front of where it happened - and unleashed a few choice phrases.

It was a tough angle for the ref to call it, but still.

I watched the ref that made the horrible out of bounds call for the entire time out right after that, before SCU put the ball back into play... you could tell by the look on his face and his body language that he knew he blew the call... I dont recall a make-up call, either...

PilotNut wrote:I watched the ref that made the horrible out of bounds call for the entire time out right after that, before SCU put the ball back into play... you could tell by the look on his face and his body language that he knew he blew the call... I dont recall a make-up call, either...

YES! I noticed the same thing... when SCU scored right at the shot clock buzzer... the only way I can describe the face he made is by saying he looked like he was at a dinner party and just took a bite of something disgusting but didn't want to say/do anything that would offend the host.

Haha just for fun:

http://statsheet.com/mcb/referees/dave-libbey

Wow...2 stars. What are the chances that we can get Libby to race Barkley?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IA4LZLTrpGA

athleticjames wrote:Wow...2 stars. What are the chances that we can get Libby to race Barkley?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IA4LZLTrpGA

Coky Rochin vs. Dave Libbey. Let's make this happen, people.

Gotta tip my hat to santa from the Dons board for finding this:



Actually, no Dave, that doesn't make sense.

There are a ton more videos on there of Libbey teaching officiating classes. And I especially love his gold chains - extra classy.

"Those that can't, teach?"

Let's do it....the race is on: Rochin vs. Libbey. Maybe a future UP fundraiser. How many blackjack hands can we donate to charity on behalf of the winner of the race? LOL

I can't believe that people pay their hard earned money to hear him as a motivational speaker. I guess it's a free country though...

https://www.eofficials.com/controlpages/ESOCrew/crewbio.aspx?CrewID=14

Rochin vs. Libbey.

Coky will own Libbey... He's in far better condition than the days when he would drive to the commons and cove from row housing...

I thought the same thing after the Santa Clara Game.

I also agree with Dave. I've had both kinds of game in softball and baseball. It's part of the job.

That first video, where he talks about making a different call at diff. points in the game and still being right. I hate that about sports. When I reffed soccer, I don't remember the lawbook being split up by different times left in the match. I think if you can make a call in the middle of the first half, you have to make that call with two seconds left as well.

And the idea of "let the players decide the game," well, if someone decides to foul or travel in a crucial spot, it has to be whistled. That is what he did to decide the game. I just hate when officiating changes in the last few minutes of a tight game. That is just my two cents worth.

Go Pilots!

The less I see of an official at a ball game the better it is ref'd in Basketball. Although, I do like the new emphasis put on the dribbling this year by the NCAA. Every Kid nowaday's think's their Allen "watch me palm the ball every posession" Iverson.

Makes me remember the good ol' days of Havelicek, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West when basketball was a game of skill. Not who can travel the most during their attempt to look like Jordon,Kobe, or Lebron. Oh well, two bit's , four bits,six bit's a dollar everyone for Dave Libby stand up an Holler!!!

mattywizz wrote:That first video, where he talks about making a different call at diff. points in the game and still being right. I hate that about sports. When I reffed soccer, I don't remember the lawbook being split up by different times left in the match. I think if you can make a call in the middle of the first half, you have to make that call with two seconds left as well.

And the idea of "let the players decide the game," well, if someone decides to foul or travel in a crucial spot, it has to be whistled. That is what he did to decide the game. I just hate when officiating changes in the last few minutes of a tight game. That is just my two cents worth.

Go Pilots!

That's an awesome post. This is how officials think.

I just would have liked the video on calling the same thing differently to run longer so we could see what he meant by it. Frankly, just that clip by itself doesn't make sense, Dave. Libbey has worked multiple NCAA tournaments and Final Fours, so someone thinks he's doing something right.