MEMPHIS, Tennessee — Is technology the friend or foe of sports officials?

When it comes to training, evaluating and ensuring that the close calls are correct, the equipment is definitely an ally to those in charge of enforcing the rules. But that same technology — instant replay, for example — can sometimes de-humanize the profession.

About 200 sports officials at the high school, collegiate and professional levels gathered to discuss the best ways to do their unsung jobs at the 24th annual National Association of Sports Officials Summit July 30-August 1.

Their take on technology? Even veteran officials rooted in traditional techniques are embracing the advancements.

These days in fact, it’s common for most officials who work at the professional or Division I college level to use laptop computers to view Internet sites or watch a DVD of the game they just officiated. Any more, a personal digital assistant is as important to a sports official as a whistle.

"We tape two or three college games on television," said Dave Yeast, who coordinates Division I baseball umpires for the NCAA. "We pick out positive and negative plays to show on a Web site provided by the NCAA. We want to show our umpires plays from which they can learn. We’re going to display good habits that demonstrate how well someone helped on a play."

Other officials shared Yeast’s views on the benefits of technology, including those who cover games or supervise officials for the National Football League; the National Basketball Association; Major League Baseball; and World Cup soccer, volleyball, and softball events.

Video is a tool that can be used to help officials be in better position to avoid "kicking a call" (a term officials use to denote making a mistake). It’s the last phrase any official wants to hear.

But why implement instant replay to subject an official who may have kicked a call to thousands of spectators?

Because it’s in the best interests of the game, officials say.

The Big Ten Conference was the first to implement instant replay in college football in 2004. Other leagues tried their own versions in 2005, and this year, a uniform version of instant replay will be a fixture in all games involving teams from the football bowl subdivision.

"I love instant replay," said Bill LeMonnier, a Big Ten football referee. He said he wished it had been available several years ago when his crew worked a Saturday night game between the University of Michigan and the University of Illinois, Champaign, on ESPN. It was the Big Ten opener for both unbeaten teams.

LeMonnier said his crew was having a good night for 58 minutes until a controversial play unfolded as Illinois was trying to hold onto the lead deep in its own territory. An Illinois running back was upended after catching a pass and the ball came out as he plunged head first to the turf. The question was whether the fumble occurred after the player hit the ground.

"The kid presented me the ball in an ‘are-you-looking-for-this’ manner," LeMonnier said. "I asked if anyone really saw the kid recover the ball. Your heart is telling you he stole the ball on the ground. But if we don’t see it, it’s survival of the fittest."

After the game, LeMonnier saw a replay that showed the play was a fumble, but the Illinois player did retrieve possession before a pile of players landed on him. In the mass of humanity, a Michigan player was able to pull the ball away. If instant replay had been in effect, the play could’ve been overturned. Instead, Michigan gained possession at the 20-yard line and scored the winning touchdown two plays later.

"I won’t tell you that is the only reason Michigan won, but if we got the play right, Illinois would’ve kept the ball and punted on fourth down," LeMonnier said. "Michigan would’ve had to either return the punt or probably go 60 yards for a touchdown.

"If replay can save us from that situation again, I’ll take it."

To help, not embarrass

Another advantage of technology? On the night before a game, LeMonnier shows his crew clips of the previous games they have worked. The meeting usually lasts about two hours.

"We challenge each other to get involved in the discussion so that we can really cover the things we do," LeMonnier said. "I’ve got guys wanting to go another 15 minutes. They say, ‘Bill, do you have any plays from that other game?’ That helps us be better prepared for the next day. We look at the mechanics of the official, and then the philosophy of the call."

Dick Honig, a former Big Ten referee and current replay official, worked last year’s Bowl Championship Series title game between the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Southern California along with Jim Augustyn, another former Big Ten referee. They had previously worked together on the field in the 1991 Rose Bowl and the 2001 BCS championship game.

Both said the pressure they felt in the replay booth was much greater than being on the field.

"That’s because the expectation of being absolutely perfect is always there in the booth," Honig said. "There were never those expectations of being absolutely perfect on the field. If you have a perfect game as an official, then you should retire. In the booth, you are under the gun. You have to make a decision within 25 or 30 seconds before the next snap — the play can’t be overturned if you see something too late."

Replay officials review every play but are careful to not interrupt the flow of play on the field unless they spot something egregious.

Augustyn said it took Big Ten football officials about three weeks to realize that the guys upstairs were there to help and not to embarrass anyone.

"When we first went with replay there was a little fear from some of the officials," he said. "They were thinking, ‘How am I going to look if I make a call and now someone reverses it?’ If we didn’t have replay, and you went home and saw it on ESPN and everyone knows about it, that is a worse feeling than having it changed."

An unintended consequence also developed from the use of instant replay.

"In the past if we made a mistake in the first quarter, I heard about it the rest of the game," LeMonnier said. "You hear, ‘Why am I supposed to believe that call when you didn’t get the first one right?’ Now even if a call goes against a coach and it was reviewed, they accept the change. They don’t say those things to the officials much anymore."

It was clear at the summit that most officials have reached a comfort level with instant replay — which they believe enhances the game and does not detract from the human element inherent in the profession.

Discussion on the topic included how on-field officials could operate in a manner where they aren’t reliant on instant replay. One takeaway was that while officials are still making the calls "in the moment," they should use their instincts when they know they have a close call on their hands.

For example, on a close touchdown call, officials might be more deliberate in marking the ball for the point after so the replay official has more than a few seconds to decide if the game should be halted for review.

Summit participants also acknowledged that the next frontier for replay is the high school level. Last winter in fact, the Minnesota High School League became the first state athletics governing body to allow instant replay at its ice hockey and basketball championships.

Sign of the times

Another topic at the officials summit was background checks. Officials at any level are going to have to endure them.

From youth sports to the professional ranks, leagues are making sure they have as much information on officials as possible.

Background checks have become common at the collegiate level. Men’s and women’s basketball officials, Men’s College World Series umpires and postseason football bowl officials must submit to background checks if they want to work at that level.

"Over time it has become accepted, and everyone understands the intent," said Anita Ortega, who is a Division I women’s basketball official and a commanding officer in the Juvenile Division of the Los Angeles Police Department. "Initially you heard people saying, ‘You are invading my privacy and questioning my integrity. How dare you.’ We’re in these times now. The decision you have to make is, do I want to go through a background check or do I want to be an official?"

Doug Rhoads, a football official in the Atlantic Coast Conference, has 35 years of law enforcement experience, including 26 years in the Federal Bureau of Investigations. He has conducted background checks for all types of circumstances for years, and now ACC rules require the league to do one on him.

The database checks can look into criminal, civil and financial records. Criminal and civil records are more easily found, because they are public information. The reason for the check on civil records is to reveal if someone has a conflict of interest in a certain area or if they have any history of discrimination claims or sexual harassment.

A waiver or release must be acquired to do financial background checks, Rhoads said.

"Financial checks are clearly a matter of examining the susceptibility to compromise and influence," he said. "Most major spy cases we’ve had in this country aren’t about philosophical difference as much as they are about financial motivation. If someone is making $100,000 a year and spending $200,000, you want to know what’s going on."

Officials at the summit reiterated their commitment to ensuring fair play. The bottom line according to summit participants in fact was that they know background checks now come with the territory, and it’s worth submitting to them to continue in the profession they love.