NFL announces 2014 officials

This post has been updated to reflect changes in the 2014 officiating staff after the initial announcement. The NFL has announced its 2014 roster of officials (full list below after the jump).  The roster features 12 new hires.  Earlier we reported that 11 officials were not going to return to the

NFL hires five more officials

Four new hires have collegiate referee experience Football Zebras has learned the names of five more college officials hired by the NFL, and that there will be a total of eleven new officials in 2014. Alex Kemp, Brad Allen, Scott Novak, Bryan Neale and Brad Freeman have been hired by the NFL according

NFL getting their stripes in a row for 2014

League has several shoes to fill in the offseason The Super Bowl is fast fading into the rear view mirror and we now enter what is called the "dark period" in regard to NFL officiating.  According to the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and the NFL Referees Association, there is

NFL winds down advanced training program as college season opens

As Labor Day weekend approaches, the developmental officials that comprised the NFL's "taxi squad" are headed back to their college conferences for the start of the college football season. It is officially known as the advanced training program, the NFL initiative that brought 21 officials from the major college conferences to

Sarah Thomas 2014 debut all but assured

The NFL is piloting an advanced training program to give college officials an apprenticeship with NFL crews this season. There are supposedly 21 recruits, which the NFL declined to disclose names to us, but one name has been made known. Sarah Thomas is one of the recruits and is on a

Father-son team cover deep in preseason

Back judge Steve Freeman got a rare opportunity on Friday night, and even though it was a meaningless, forgettable preseason game, it is likely an experience he will remember as a highlight of his career. Freeman's son Brad, a field judge in the Southeastern Conference, has been actively scouted by the