NCAA referee with the announcement of the year

Big 10 referee and Officiating Development Program official Don Willard made a mistake Saturday.  He faced the wrong way when announcing a foul. It can happen. It has happened to the best, many times. But, the way he handled himself with a live microphone places him into nomination for referee announcement of

College football referee Ron Cherry retires

Embed from Getty Images   Ron Cherry, one of the most recognizable college football referees for the last decade, has retired according to the Winston-Salem Journal. Cherry suffered a head injury in the USC-Notre Dame game last season and underwent emergency neurosurgery a month later to remove a blood clot. Famous calls Cherry officiated football

4-time Super Bowl umpire Art Demmas passes away at 82

Former NFL umpire Art Demmas died August 6 in Nashville at the age of 82, according to Mike Organ of The Tennessean. Demmas was originally hired by the American Football League and continued in the NFL beginning in 1970 after the two leagues merged.Born in St. Louis, Demmas earned fame

Happy belated birthday to Ben Dreith

View image | gettyimages.com Former NFL referee still giving them the business at age 90 February 1, 2015 was a big day for former AFL and NFL referee Ben Dreith.  He celebrated nine decades on earth by watching Super Bowl XLIX.  Dreith, who lives in Denver, was profiled by a local television

Referee announcements have come a long way in 38 years

In 1975, the NFL decided to put a wireless microphone on the referee for penalty announcements.  Officiating boss Art McNally, wanted the officials to use this new technology very sparingly.  In those intervening 38 years, the microphone has evolved into a critical communication and teaching tool, as shown by Gene