Referees had a tough call to make as Harper Creek sons played first varsity game

You have a job to do.

And, you are also a dad.

What happens when those two facts collide? And then, throw in the fact that there aren't a lot of people out there who can, or will, do your job if you have to take some time off to be a dad.

While referees can throw a flag on a 10-yard holding penalty any day of the week, making the call between living up to a commitment as an official, or going to watch your son play his first varsity football game is much harder.

MORE: 2022 Football: City/Area High School Football Schedules

And there's nothing in the playbook that tells you what the right call is.

That was the decision facing the dads of two Harper Creek football players.

Chad Jackson and Michael Bess both were scheduled to be officials at varsity football games last Friday. Just a few days before they were to put on the stripes for those events, Harper Creek coach Mason Converse made the decision to call up their sons from the junior varsity to the varsity.

With sophomores Nate Jackson and Brayden Bess getting ready for their first varsity game, the dads had a tough decision to make.

"It was exciting to hear he was getting called up, and I wasn't going to miss it," said Michael Bess, scheduled to do the Lakeview at Portage Northern varsity contest on Friday. "I knew, before the season started, that it might be a possibility that this might happen at some point. So I told the guy who assigns the crew that this might happen and he should be ready for it."

Jackson didn't want to miss his son's debut either, but his situation was a bit different as he prepared to work the Battle Creek Central vs. Portage Northern game as the leader of his crew.

"He got a phone call over the weekend and he got this weird look on his face, and he said, 'Coach just called and I'm getting brought up to varsity this week,' " Jackson said. "Later in the week, on Tuesday, it looked like he would be up on varsity, but as a backup. Then, like the day before, he found out someone was hurt and he would be starting. ... I was like, 'Ugh, I want to be there.' But by then it was too late to figure something out.

"Friday night comes, and I am working the Battle Creek Central game, and (Bearcats coach) Lorin Granger comes up to me out of the blue and says, 'Are you Nate Jackson's dad. I heard he got called up to varsity ... what are you doing here?' I just told him, I have a job to do, and with the shortage of officials and everything, I have to be here."

With the dwindling number of officials throughout the state, this has become a common story. Officials are working more games than ever and are spending more nights away from their families.

In past seasons, both Jackson and Bess would also work on Thursdays each week. But both took those days off their schedule this year, as their sons started the season on the junior varsity for Harper Creek − with those games on Thursdays. Now, going forward, each are going to switch back to Thursdays and have an extra person on their usual crew pick up the Friday slots.

"The state is hurting for officials. There is a lot of life/work balance that comes up," Bess said. "We have an extra guy on our crew and that helps with this kind of stuff. I love doing it and it is fun, especially being with the guys I work with, but they don't pay us enough for it to be our jobs. It's more like a hobby. And you can't miss things like your kid's first varsity game for something like that."

Those officials shortages have football programs adjusting schedules almost every week. A lot of games are getting moved to Saturdays to allow for area crews to work Fridays and Saturdays. There was another example last week, where the Pennfield varsity football game had to be moved because individuals on that officiating crew were not going to be able to be there for personal reasons.

After looking to move the game to Thursday, or even Saturday, it was announced the Panthers were to play at 4 p.m. on Friday − something that was decided just days before.

"There our life needs, work needs, things come up. You try to get extra guys on the crew to make up for that, but even that, it's almost impossible to find someone to replace you when it is last minute like that," Jackson said. "My wife wasn't too happy about me having to miss that game, but I just said, I can't let all these people down and my crew.

"My son is only one kid. I have all the kids from Battle Creek Central, from Portage Northern and the fans of both schools and all the coaches who were depending on me to be there that night."

Being the son of an official, the Harper Creek players know their dads had a tough call to make.

"I obviously wanted him to be there for my first game, but there is more than just me in the world," said Nate Jackson, a defensive back at Harper Creek. "There are other kids who want to play football, and not just our team, and he wanted to be there for the game he was supposed to be at."

It was a quick adjustment for everyone as Harper Creek brought up a large group from the junior varsity. The Beavers started the season 0-2 and now have 10 sophomores on the varsity, including eight who are starting.

"He loves his job and loves the people he works with, but he wasn't going to miss my first varsity game. So that was the discussion we had once I found out I was coming up," Brayden Bess said.

Contact Bill Broderick at bbroderi@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on Twitter @billbroderick.

This article originally appeared on Battle Creek Enquirer: Refs had tough call to make as Harper sons played first varsity game