Jim Tunney, the Dean of Referees, dies at 95

The officiating community has lost a titan.

Jim Tunney, universally known as the dean of referees, died Thursday peacefully at his home in Pebble Beach, Calif., according to published reports. Tunney was 95. He was the second oldest living on-field official at the time of his passing.

“Jim Tunney was an officiating legend,” said former referee and current NFL officiating rules analyst Walt Anderson. “For decades, he was not only an outstanding referee, but a credit to the entire officiating profession. He took the time to mentor young officials, and his tremendous integrity earned him the respect of the entire football community, especially those who played and coached the game at the highest level.”

Tunney was one of just seven officials recognized to have officiated more than 30 years and worked approximately 444 NFL games on the field, which is estimated by Football Zebras and Quirky Research due to gaps in game records in the 1960s. His 31-year NFL career started in 1960, having declined an invitation to join the startup AFL. He was a field judge through the 1966 season, and was at the referee position until his retirement in 1990. Tunney and referee Ben Dreith have the record for the longest number of years of service. (The presumed leader for many years was head linesman Dan Tehan at 32, but our research shows that the number includes non-NFL service in other leagues in the 1930s.)

It was not just his longevity, but Tunney was one of the most respected voice on officiating. His experiences were vast, from starting from a controversial call in a one-game playoff in 1965 between the Green Bay Packers and the Baltimore Colts.

As the field judge and the sole official stationed at the goalpost, Tunney had to rule on field goal for the Western Conference title. After the two-minute warning, the Packers kicker Don Chandler sunk his head after his field goal attempt to break the stalemate appeared to sail wide to the left. The official standing at the back of the end zone, however, raised his hands to rule the field goal had scored.

At the time, the H-style goalpost was used and was placed on the goal line. Tunney, the field judge for the playoff game, stationed himself on the end zone behind the posts, and with Chandler’s straight-ahead kick, he was in position to rule on the post closer to the snap hashmark. The ball sailed over the height of the posts, and Tunney had to determine if the ball was inside or outside the plane of the goal from 10 yards back. Film evidence was inconclusive, as the camera was even further back. There were no changes to the rules that offseason, but the NFL transitioned to the slingshot-style post, made the uprights 10 feet taller, and two officials are now under each upright.

The assignment that most people would ask Tunney about are not his 3 Super Bowls (VI and, in consecutive seasons, XI and XII). It’s not his 8 championship games he worked. Out of his 19 postseason assignments, it was a divisional playoff game from Soldier Field that very few people saw.

Known as the Fog Bowl, the 1988 Divisional Playoff between the Eagles and Bears was another challenge to the veteran referee. At the 2-minute warning in the first half, a fog rolled off Lake Michigan and blanketed Soldier Field. What should Tunney do? He checked with league representatives throughout the game, and a pause of the game was considered but not acted upon. Both coaches were content to forge ahead, despite the fact they couldn’t see the plays they were calling. To assist, Tunney would announce the down and distance, and occasionally add details such as incomplete passes. They were able to see the goalposts and the play clock, and so the game continued despite the fact that only those who were on the field have the only recollection of what actually happened.

The league had the responsibility to explain the series of decisions following the game. The procedure at the time, and which exists now, is that the referee and the game supervisor meet with a local reporter who shares a pool report transcript with the rest of the media. In a sign of the immense comfort the league had in Tunney’s abilities, they took it a step further. “As soon as we returned to our locker room, the phone rang,” Tunney wrote on the 30th anniversary of the game. “It was NFL Vice President of Communications Joe Browne informing me not to change out of my uniform since CBS reporter Will McDonough wanted to interview me about why we continued to play in these unusual conditions.” Tunney also conducted an interview for NBC’s pregame for the second playoff game of the day.

Tunney retired after the 1990 season, and worked for decades as an observer and a trainer. With his many years of leadership on the field, he had become a very accomplished public speaker, wrote frequent columns about sportsmanship and teamwork, and has authored 5 books.

He was admired by many, but perhaps a measure of how far that extends, he earned a great deal of respect from former Raiders coach John Madden. In 1990, he was the first official to be named to the All-Madden Team, an annual honor from Madden’s days at CBS. He has received lifetime achievement awards from the National Association of Sports Officials (the Golden Whistle Award) and the NFL officiating department (Art McNally Award). He has been nominated several times to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but has not yet appeared on the final ballot.

In retirement, he was still reminded by Don Shula, the Colts coach in 1965, that he felt Tunney’s call was wrong. Tunney told him, “It’s been [several] years now. Let it go. Let it go.” Shula was first in line to endorse one of Tunney’s books, saying, “I know of no one more qualified to write about character, leadership, and values, than Jim Tunney.”

He even got Shula to change his tune.

Here is our feature on Tunney for his 95th birthday earlier this year: