There are few better examples of declining societal decency than in the bleachers, where in many cases well-meaning, otherwise civilized people become snarling hoodlums at the sight of a missed traveling violation or flag for pass interference.

It’s why there’s a steady decline in officials across all high school sports, in and out of Connecticut. And why two state legislators proposed bills earlier this year that would amend the state penal code, making assault of sports officials a misdemeanor offense. Connecticut would become the 24th state to have passed similar legislation.

And while the plight of game officials and the resulting overall support for them has never been greater — justifiably so — they are still not immune from deserved criticism.

To wit: Two different officiating boards in Connecticut have altered the outcomes of football games this season because their officials did not know and did not apply the rules correctly. They were not judgment calls, as football officials face with pass interference, for example. They were incorrect applications of the rules, one of which cost Sheehan a trip to this weekend’s Class SS finals.

It is not acceptable.

Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference officials acknowledged earlier this week that game officials (from the Central/Hartford Board) made a mistake, failing to understand the difference between illegal substitution vs. illegal participation, that likely cost Sheehan the game. Sheehan lost to Joel Barlow, 17-16.

Per the Meriden Record Journal, Sheehan punted with a 16-10 lead, facing a fourth-and-11 with 1:19 remaining in regulation. During the punt, Barlow had 12 men on the field. The call on the field came after the snap and was deemed five yards for illegal substitution. Sheehan punted again, and Barlow drove for a winning touchdown.

But after an inquiry from Sheehan officials and a glance at National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) rules, the call was incorrect. Per NFHS rules, illegal substitution (five yards) happens when an official counts 12 men and throws a flag before the snap. But if the play happens, the call becomes illegal participation, a 15-yard penalty.

The 15 yards would have given Sheehan a first down and likely a victory with Barlow out of timeouts.

“We recognize that that was an error in enforcement,” CIAC executive director Glenn Lungarini told GameTimeCT earlier this week. “We apologized to Sheehan, to the football players and to the coaches.”

Kudos to Lungarini. But shouldn’t someone from the offending board be made to answer publicly here, too?

Earlier this season, officials from the Fairfield Board, who called the Darien/Norwalk game, didn’t know the proper NFHS overtime rules. Teams begin from the 10-yard line, as opposed to the 25 in college.

In the Darien/Norwalk game, both teams began their possessions at the 25, not the 10.

“When we initially went out there, we questioned it,” Norwalk coach Mike Forget told reporters after the game. “We said: ‘Hey, we thought the rule was the 10-yard line.’ ‘No, 25-yard line, coach, 25-yard line.’”

It turned out that while Danbury scored, Norwalk barely missed as one of its players was ruled out of bounds short of the end zone. Did the extra 15 yards make a difference?

“Obviously, somebody made a mistake. They didn’t do it intentionally,” Gerry Costello, the commissioner of the Fairfield board, told GameTime.

Someone made more than a mistake, Mr. Costello. Someone (seems several someones) were unaware of something as basic as overtime rules.

Many of the catcalls from the bleachers officials endure come from judgment calls. Lest we forget that we’re all human and humans are prone to making mistakes and disagreeing about them. Lest we remember, too, that officials are getting paid and are responsible for knowing the rules. Here are two egregious misapplications of rules that cost one team a regular-season game and another a trip to the finals.

Note to the Central and Fairfield Boards: If you want to cash a check, you need to know the rules. Totally and completely. And while we all agree that officials deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, we should also agree that officials need to know what they’re doing.

I hope the CIAC isn’t the only entity that apologized to Sheehan.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro