High School Referees Get Trapped Inside Their Locker Room with a Vending Machine After Some Controversial Calls

Source - Keith Dalton and his crew of football referees say they were recently officiating a high school game, after which they found themselves locked inside a locker room.

Dalton, a high school referee with the Central Ohio Football Association, believes they were locked in over a controversial call made during the Sept. 10 game between Grove City High School and Central Crossing High School. After the call was made, he said, an assistant coach for Grove City came onto the field and was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.

After the game ended, Dalton said, he and his crew were inside the locker room being evaluated on their performance when the door was barricaded from the outside with a vending machine.

“And we had to push on the door, three of us, to at least get the door wedged so we can get out,” said Dalton. “We as a group have now filed charges against Grove City.” ...

Dalton said both Grove City High School’s principal and head coach have issued an apology. He also said the assistant coach who berated them was suspended for a game.

I'm not advocating for locking someone in a room with a vending machine. I believe I've been very clear on this issue and I stand on my record of never - to the best of my recollection - ever locking someone in a room, locker or otherwise, with a vending machine. But if ever there was a case where you could say "They knew what they signed up for," it's this. 

Hey Keith Dalton, this is Central Ohio Football, not Mathletics. Not Glee Club. You don't don the black and white vertical stripes and step into that arena unless you know what the stakes are. Unless you're willing to live, and yes maybe even die, with your calls. Blow one and get ready for Les Miserables to man the Milky Way- and Dorito-filled barricades. It comes with the territory. If you're going to put on the whistle for COFA, you've got to expect you'll find yourself in a survival situation at least once a season. Hell, there are parts of Texas where coaches and staff will slam the doors locked and torch the place like Daenerys Targaryen did to all the Dothrakis. If you got locked in by a vending machine small enough for three officials to move, I'd say Grove City took it relatively easy on you guys.

So instead of complaining and filing charges, have a plan in place in case. Just in the event they move a refrigerator in front of the doors or back a truck up against it and you can't get out. Scout out air ducts you can crawl through. Have digging tools handy. Draw straws to see who gets eaten, as allowed under the British Laws of the Sea. But filing charges and asking for apologies is beneath the dignity of the high office you now hold. 

If nothing else, the next crew to work a Grove City game is going to think twice before he reaches for his flag against Assistant Coach McTrepasser there. So ... mission accomplished? I guess? High school football is not for the faint of heart.