Even though at this point in my career I have the experience and acceptance, there is still that constant challenge from one game to the next because you never know what is going to happen every time you step on the ice. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. First as an athlete growing up in Buffalo, a high school small forward, receiver and 400-meter runner, then some junior college basketball. I get to watch the Masters.. Trammel wasnt as concerned with a CT scan on his skull as she was on why he fell in the first place. The minute my stripes are on, Im a part of a crew not an official with a disability. Might as well walk fast, too. When I enter the field, theres more bounce in my step, my senses are heightened and my competitive juices start flowing. Smith was admitted into Methodist and put on blood thinners. He told the Star he's happy it happened during the Elite Eight when he could get the right help he needed rather than during an instance when he was driving or sleeping. Bert Smith, the NCAA official who fainted during an Elite Eight matchup between Gonzaga and USC last week, said Friday he collapsed over a blood clot in his lung. Mar 31st, 2021. No matter who you meet, you have to deal with them as people who deserve the best from you. What happens next leads to a picture caught by IndyStar photographer Kelly Wilkinson. Smith tested positive for the coronavirus in August, but doctors cant say whether theres a correlation between COVID-19 and his blood clot. Next thing he remembers, hes looking at the ceiling of Lucas Oil Stadium. As soon as I arrive and begin preparing for the game, my day, my life, enters a new and exciting realm. It was fun and stress-free officiating, and I was able to help pay for college. Todays game is so fast and the players have such a high skill set that its very important to be in the best possible position to judge a play and make a call. I love officiating because of the challenge. By 1993 hes an NCAA Division I official. I looked at him and said, Oh no you didnt. Every chance I get, I want to get my heart rate up, says Smith, 56, who takes the court 90 times a year with elite NCAA athletes. They insisted more. And they found out. Why is he lying down near the Gonzaga bench? When a situation occurs that brings the temperature of the game up, you have to control your emotions and read the emotions of the players and coaches to restore calm. Turns out, that night probably saved Bert Smiths life. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Officials figure they run at least four miles during a game, and its not a jog but a series of sprints. Everything was normal. It is by far the most difficult thing Ive ever done. Medical officials tending to him on the floor insisted he be transported off the floor by the stretcher. I thought he was a good official, a fair official, and when you saw him at a game, you knew you were going to get a good whistle from him., Smith says well see him at games next season I could work again in seven to 10 days, he says but for now he wants to thank some people publicly. Smith's fall to the ground. Do you know you went viral? she playfully asked. Who parks in the farthest spot from the entrance to Kroger? Bert Smith, Raymond Styons. Moves fast? It has put me in the middle of so many exciting situations where my skills and knowledge have been tested and given me and my crewmates the afterglow of satisfaction when you know you nailed it in a championship atmosphere. So when I went off to college I had to work and was asked what I might enjoy doing, I said, Sports. I was hired on the intramural staff and was paid $3 an hour to officiate co-ed flag football, womens basketball and co-ed softball. Nobody can say. Officiating for me has always been the ultimate escape. He said no. For me, it didnt seem like a red flag, Smith says. I continue to coach high school soccer. Smiths also grateful that his health scare, if it was going to happen, took place during the NCAA Tournament and not when he was driving or sleeping. And after it happens, with a replacement official stepping in for Smith, he spends two hours getting treatment at the stadium, where his vitals are normal pulse, blood pressure, oxygen level and he doesnt have a headache. And they heard the sound his head made I heard it too, 30 rows away when it slammed onto the court. Collins and NCAA senior vice president of basketball Dan Gavitt, for their support and kindness to me.. She said: I got the answer to the question. Do we do the things with our family and friends that have value to them? That's where he learned his scary fall was related to a blood clot in his lung. Moves fast, this guy. Given time that night on March 30, those around SmithNCAA doctors, his wife and colleaguesthought it best if he at least visited IU Methodist Hotel in Indianapolis to check his head and spine. Officiating In Perspective with Barry Mano, Amid cancer fight, NBA ref Tony Brown returning to work, Recruiting & Retention: What WorkedWhat Didnt, Next Level Softball Umpiring Free Email Series, High School Volleyball Officials Quiz 2023. Smith, have a good night, I thought they had done a good job, he says, but because she wanted to know why I fell, we got the answer. Dr. Its hard for me to talk about now. He works his first game at age 24. I love officiating for the same reason I love my wife. He was surrounded by medical professionals and eventually was helped on to a stretcher. He mentions NCAA officiating coordinator J.D. Where did it come from? There is no greater place to be than on a softball or baseball field. I still play in a mens league, have refereed more than 700 NCAA games and am in my 17th season as an MLS official. Now he wonders. The doctor says, Thats what Im taking you out on., I said: Listen, Doc, Im walking out of here. Hes on the stretcher, and hes not even a little bit happy about it. Shes an important part of this story.. Trammel had seen the video. More Doyel:Referee Bert Smith got to hear ovation of a lifetime. Smith collapsed just over four minutes into the Elite Eight game between USC. a picture caught by IndyStar photographer Kelly Wilkinson. Working a Friday night high school football game gives me goose bumps. When he arrived, in walked Katie M. Trammel, the physician who, in many ways, may have saved his life. It and she have made me a better person. Bert Smith does. 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. And they heard the sound his head made I heard it, too, 30 rows away when it slammed onto the court. After completing my doctorate, I returned to officiating. Hed rather take the stairs, and Bert Smith doesnt walk them. As the doctor says: Sometimes you dont get a red flag. But slow down, OK? All rights reserved. Hes a motivational speaker and diversity recruiter in addition to being an NCAA referee, and I imagine hes awfully good at both. Referee Bert Smith collapsed on the floor and had to be taken off on a stretcher. " His wife has seen it once, and shell never watch it again. NCAA basketball official Bert Smith hasn't watched the moment that might have saved his life. The referee who collapsed during Gonzaga's matchup against USC in the NCAA men's basketball tournament had a blood clot in his lung, The Indianapolis Star reported Friday. People often ask me how I maintain a smile throughout almost every game, however it is quite unintentional. Look at his scowl. Well get there, but right now were moving too fast. Who parks in the farthest spot from the entrance to Kroger? It would've been about NCAA basketball official Bert Smith, how he'd been used dishonestly as a pawn by the anti-vaccine movement to prove the unprovable: that COVID vaccines were causing. Written By. Then he becomes a basketball official. Another year passed and my father finally allowed me to become a certified referee. A pulmonary embolism. By 1993hes an NCAA Division I official. He goes to IU Health Methodist. Gregg Doyel Indianapolis Star 0:00 0:56 INDIANAPOLIS - Bert Smith hasn't seen the moment that. Hes working Gonzaga-USC the next day, and Bert and his crew are staying in one of the NCAA bubble hotels, Le Meridien. The NCAA announces that Smith has returned to the hotel, and its true. That road includes blood thinners and a trip next week to see a nearby doctor to strategize his future treatment. His crew comes back to Le Meridien with a doggy bag of the dinner he missed at the game, and theyre talking and laughing, but theyve seen replays of Smiths fall. Where did it come from? Two days later, clot gone, he was discharged. Please try again. The passion and emotion of the contestants can never sway the judgment of the crew. He plans to return as soon as he can to the court, and that includes ref camps this summer. I look for officials I assign to have the same respect and values for the game as I do. Hes on the stretcher, and hes not even a little bit happy about it. I'm committed to it year round. Another was former Indiana State coach Greg Lansing. Check this out. Medical personnel at Lucas Oil Stadium treated Smith, who later went to a local hospital. I also love the fact that no game is ever the same and allows us the ability to make constant improvement. Might as well walk fast, too. Being part of the game is a big reason. No, he said hed walk off under assistance. Dr. Katie Trammel, hes wanting me to know, may have saved his life. and would not need hospitalization. Its not some routine youre doing day in and day out. It puts in perspective the value of each day, because we all go through our lives were all guilty of it and we just live, right? I always thought he was a good dude, Lansing says. Smith trains year round on a treadmill or stationary bike, and gets in other workouts like when the family goes to Disney World in Florida and Smith says they dont need a stroller for their grandson, Karter. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. Smith, 56, regained consciousness, and he was alert as he was carried off the floor on a stretcher. Eades, who at age 56 has worked three Final Fours and. Dr. Katie Trammel, hes wanting me to know, may have saved his life. The former NCAA national mens basketball officiating coordinator, John Adams, says Bert is funny but quiet, not a me-first guy. Adams was one of the 500 who reached out to Smith. He doesnt remember passing out, only that things got foggy, he says, and that his breathing didnt feel normal. Referee Bert Smith is taken off the court on a stretcher after collapsing during the first half of an Elite 8 game between Gonzaga and Southern California during the first half of an Elite 8 game . Fox News Flash top headlines for April 10. Andy Lyons/Getty NCAA Reveals Budget for Men's Basketball Tournament Is Almost Twice as Much the Women's Reporters Ross Dellenger and Jeff Borzello later tweeted that, according. Smith does remember the play before it, Gonzagas Andrew Nembhard stealing the ball and going the other way, but now the action is coming back toward the USC basket, where Smith had remained hed been unable to run the court as Nembhard finished at the rim and Smith is wondering whats going on. The arrival at the arena, the pregame, being with various partners, the competition, the players, coaches, ambience, the focus and concentration needed on each possession. Facebook; Twitter; Facebook Messenger; Pinterest; Email; print; INDIANAPOLIS -- A referee collapsed early in the first half of Tuesday night's Elite Eight matchup between Gonzaga and USC . After his nationally televised fall, Smith had more than 500 texts, emails and calls to return, and by Wednesday hed returned them all. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, People in the building, and I was one of them, thought he was dead. Hed rather take the stairs, and Bert Smith doesnt walk them. Why cant he catch his breath? They suggest he go to the hospital to get examined for a concussion, just to be sure. Bert Smith. Why I love officiating can be simply put as it has given me the opportunity to work with and be associated with some of the finest individuals that walk the face of this earth. NCAA Referee Bert Smith Collapses During March Madness. He runs. I ran and grabbed his phone, and he checked his phone and within the first hour, he had 250 texts, and a lot of them from fellow referees. And how did the court get so blurry all of a sudden, like someone smeared it with. Sometimes it just hits you. I dont know which bucket Im in.. Another was former Indiana State coach Greg Lansing. My feelings about my whistle are still the same. When hes saying something serious, though, he slows down. Hes on the stretcher, and hes not even a little bit happy about it. Gaining the best sight line on the ice requires officials to be strong skaters, agile and physically fit. I love that we are the only participants who are not allowed to fail. Trammel was at Methodist the night of March 30. When you live something like I did, it hits you square in the eyes that you really have to value each day.. Trammel was at Methodist the night of March 30. When I am out on the field working a game I am mentally and physically completely focused on doing the job right. Referee Bert Smith is taken off the court on a stretcher after collapsing during the first half of an Elite 8 game between Gonzaga and Southern California during the first half of an Elite 8 game . March 30 (UPI) --The No. Official Bert Smith collapsed on the floor during the game, immediately being carried away in a stretcher. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Just 4 minutes after tipoff in the Elite Eight matchup, Bert Smith crashed to the floor in a terrifying scene -- triggering team trainers and other medical personnel to race to his aid.

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