The Flawed Selection Process

In recent years, as officiating in the NFL has become more and more of a financial windfall, the selection process has become more and more questionable. I have already referred to the widespread nepotism in the NFL officials' selection process but there is more. Now officials--usually less qualified officials than others--are able to rise quickly through the officiating ranks by paying to attend football officiating clinics, working in the Arena Football League, or both. This strikes me as unfair to the athletes and coaches.

Up until the mid 2000s, when NFL officials took over collegiate officiating, Division 1 officials would nurture, train, coach, and recommend officials from the area to their supervisors for selection into the various major conferences. Politics were a small part, if at all involved, since area officials' reputations were on the line. But this is happening no longer.

With the advent of profit-based football officiating clinics around the country, politics has been brought to the forefront. These clinics, which can cost up to $1500 each, include NFL officials being paid as "clinicians." Some lower-level football officials have attended as many as ten of these clinics over the years. Suddenly after the rise of these clinics, attendees are being selected--without the input of their area Division 1--officials to officiate levels of football that they don't deserve and are not qualified for; these selections only hurt the players and coaches. Those who were deserving, who had the experience needed, who had been trained by more experienced officials in their area, and who were being pushed for potential promotions by their area officials are being passed over by the paying clinic attendees. The use of clinics in officiating has created a type of "money politics" whereby officials who pay to go the clinics are rewarded with promotions to higher leagues.

The only way to get better at football officiating is to get experience by working football games and then being selected for higher divisions after gaining a good amount of experience. Attending trainings at clinics or working practices do not make officials qualified for higher levels of football; under the NFL officials' supervision--instead of hiring qualified and experienced officials--inexperienced and unqualified officials are promoted and then trained at the higher level on the job. This is unacceptable. An official should be ready to step onto the field of a higher football league the moment they are hired for that higher level, whether it be a higher collegiate division or the NFL.

Furthermore, the Arena Football League has become a proving ground for NFL officials. Have you ever heard of a college coach or NFL coach applying for an arena league coaching position? No, because AFL football is a different game than traditional football. Played on a 50-yard by 17-yard field, it doesn't even feel like football. But NFL officiating uses it as a training ground. There is not one mechanic that an official uses in the AFL that mimics a Friday-night high school game, a Saturday college game, or the NFL's own game played on Sunday. You might as well have a volleyball official working football games. So why is the AFL being used to train officials and judge their abilities?

In 2007 Mike Pereira, former vice president of officiating for the NFL, selected an official who had one season of experience in the Pac-10 and three seasons in the AFL. This is a perfect example of an under experienced official being selected for a level that they are not qualified for and being trained on the job. Another example this year is a one-year veteran of Arizona junior college football and a three-year AFL veteran being selected to officiate football for the Pac-12. He was chosen by NFL officials in California who have never seen him work a college football game. This is a direct slap in the face to all who have worked years to prepare themselves for the opportunity to work in the Pac-12. And is it fair to the athletes who will compete and the coaches who have prepared all year long for such as individual do be at their level?

Nepotism and politics have no place in two professions: judges and officials. But the officiating profession is rampant with both. The coaches are right: the officiating is getting worse.

To The NFL Players

If the NFL owners would only recognize it, there are plenty of qualified, experienced collegiate officials, who have never worked an Arena Football League game, that would relish the opportunity to work NFL games. And they would work for a lot less money than they are paying the existing NFL officials right now. These are people who are driven by their love of the game--for players, for the coaches, and for those whose livelihood depends on it--not for the money.

Now, don't get me wrong: a bump in yearly revenue would be great but not at the rate that the NFL officials think they deserve. The NFL officials did not make the game what it is. In fact, on several occasions, they have actually ruined games (see Lions vs. Saints 2012, Chargers vs. Broncos 2008, and Super Bowl XL). Mistakes will be made but when bad calls change the game and the officials have no lasting consequence, it diminishes the sport.

Instead of continuing to pay the NFL officials an exorbitant salary, the league could hire the perfectly qualified Division 1 collegiate officials at a lower rate. Savings on $9.7 million per season could be reaped by paying a crew of seven officials a flat rate of $60,000, which would total $420,000 per crew per season. Comparing that figure to the current average crew salary would save $9.7 million that could go to the former NFL players association. The former players deserve that money. They made the game what it is today. They need the money. They earned it.

The Infiltration of the NCAA

As listed in the previous post, a number of NFL officials also serve as supervisors or assistant supervisors of officials for NCAA conferences:

• Walt Anderson (R) is the supervisor of officials for the Big 12 and CFO West, which controls the Mountain West and Southland conferences
• Byron Boston (LJ) is the supervisor of officials for the Southland Conference
• Gary Cavaletto (FJ) is the assistant supervisor for side judges for the Pac-12
• Carl Cheffers (R) is the assistant supervisor for referees for the Pac-12
• Tony Corrente (R) is the supervisor of officials for the Pac-12
• Garth DeFelice (U) is the assistant supervisor for umpires for the Pac-12
• Terry McAulay (R) is the coordinator of football officials for the Big East
• John Hussey (LJ) is the assistant supervisor for line judges for the Pac-12
• Rob Vernatchi (BJ) is the assistant supervisor for field judges for the Pac-12

However, there has been an even greater annexation of the control of collegiate officiating by the NFL. In addition to the current NFL officials who work with the NCAA, there are also some retired NFL officials who run football officiating for Division 1 Conferences. Here is a list:

• Gerald Austin--former NFL official and supervisor of officials for Conference USA [1]
• Jim Blackwood--former NFL replay official and supervisor of officials for the WAC [2]
• Bill Carollo--former NFL official and supervisor of officials for the Big 10, Mid-American Conference, and the Missouri Valley Conference [3]
• Doug Toole--former NFL official and supervisor of officials for the Big Sky [4]

Before the early 2000s, the supervision of the NCAA Division 1 officials typically was handled by former collegiate officials. So what changed? What caused this sudden encroachment into the NCAA by NFL officials?

Beyond the obvious reason of money, there was a more exploitative cause and it started with the 2001 NFL officials' lockout. During the lockout, replacement officials were hired and used, most of them culled from the ranks of Division 1 football. During the 2001 lockout, the NFL officials reached out to their Division counterparts and asked them not to work as replacements but, ultimately, they had no control over the collegiate officials' decisions. Their subsequent willingness to work as replacements--and the fact that they were able to do the job at least at successfully as the existing NFL officials, with no consequences bestowed from their collegiate conferences for working as replacements--showed the NFL officials that they could not allow Division 1 football officials to be eligible to cross the picket line.

The way to prevent any future Division 1 officials from working as replacements was to become the supervisors of the college officials in some of the top conferences in the NCAA. In this recent lockout, no calls were made to Division 1 officials about not serving as replacements because there was no need for it; the fear of dismissal came solely in the names of their bosses.

This is also why I, someone who has no professional affiliation with these conferences anymore, am the only one that can speak about the NFL infiltration without fear of reprisal.

Even the so-called training ground for NFL officiating, the Arena Football League, is under NFL-related control: the supervisor of officials for the AFL is Carl Paganelli, Sr., the father of the three Paganelli brothers who currently serve as officials in the NFL [5]. Paganelli has already cancelled the schedules of at least two officials who decided to work as NFL replacements.

By creating a collegiate officiating system where they govern, the NFL officials have ensured their own necessity by controlling the talent pool from which the NFL can pull replacement officials. This would be akin to the Teamsters limiting the pool of potential replacements, leaving only 14-year-olds to drive. No other union has ever had as much power as the 119 men of the NFLRA.

Sources
[1] "Austin Without Limits": http://www.referee.com/more/Samples/non_subscribers0908/austin.html
[2] "Jim Blackwood": http://www.wacsports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10100&ATCLID=1580262
[3] "People You'll Meet": http://www.wacsports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10100&ATCLID=1580262
[4] "Staff Directory--Doug Toole": http://www.bigskyconf.com/staff.aspx?staff=9
[5] "Carl Paganelli Sr. hired as Arena Football League's supervisor of officials": http://www.mlive.com/sports/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2011/01/carl_paganelli_sr_hired_as_are.html

A Hard Knock Life?

Ever since the 2001 lockout of the officials, when Ed Hochuli first suggested it, there has been talk of making the NFL officials full-time league employees. Supporters of full-time status argue that officials that part-time status discourages officials from striving for the NFL [1], that full-time officials will ensure consistency [2], or that full-time officials will have more time to devote to the league [1]. All of these reasons are ridiculous.

Any official who decides not to work for the NFL because of the part-time status of the officials is not someone the league should want. NFL officials as part-time contractors make more in a season than most people make at their full-time jobs in an entire year; those men who would turn down the NFL just because they would not be full-time have misguided priorities.

I will be the first to admit that there is a lot of work in officiating at every level. New officials devote time to learning the craft, memorizing and interpreting the rule book, and going to meetings to be taught by more experienced officials all in the hopes of not only calling a good game but also of moving up the ranks. More experienced officials in higher leagues spend their time studying, meeting, and working for the same reasons. It is this work that ensures consistency.

Sacrifices are made, whether it is giving up vacation time to travel to games, scrimmages, and conference clinics or spending hours outside of work studying film or the rulebook or, as in my case, missing out on a child's sports career because they play a fall sport. But officials make these sacrifices because they love the game. Most officials I know would not consider officiating a job but a way to be involved in something they are passionate about. For that reason alone, I find the push by the current NFL officials to be made full-time a bit misguided.

However, I find it to hypocritical when taking something else into consideration.

Here is a rundown of NFL officials who currently serve in non-NFL football roles, too [3]:

• Walt Anderson (R) is the supervisor of officials for the Big 12 and CFO West, which controls the Mountain West and Southland conferences
• Byron Boston (LJ) is the supervisor of officials for the Southland Conference
• Gary Cavaletto (FJ) is the assistant supervisor for side judges for the Pac-12
• Carl Cheffers (R) is the assistant supervisor for referees for the Pac-12
• Tony Corrente (R) is the supervisor of officials for the Pac-12
• Garth DeFelice (U) is the assistant supervisor for umpires for the Pac-12
• Terry McAulay (R) is the coordinator of football officials for the Big East
• John Hussey (LJ) is the assistant supervisor for line judges for the Pac-12
• Rob Vernatchi (BJ) is the assistant supervisor for field judges for the Pac-12

If the NFL officials are so busy with NFL-related work that they are lobbying to become full-time league officials, how are these officials finding the time to also run college officiating (which includes, among other things, watching college film and grading officials, traveling to college games to observe officials, organizing and attending conference clinics, and serving as a liaison to the entire collegiate football officiating community)?

I leave you with a line from an email sent by one of the NCAA Division 1 supervisors to their football officials in reference to the NFL officials' lockout: "To say it bluntly, our universities expect us to be focused on [the conference's] football." I would imagine that the NFL owners would expect their officials to be focused on NFL football?

Sources
[1] "Full-time officials? Yes, please": http://espn.go.com/espn/commentary/story/_/id/7475204/full-time-nfl-officials-yes-please
[2] "League will consider hiring some full-time officials next season": http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/01/15/league-will-consider-hiring-some-full-time-officials-next-season/
*Note: All information on the current NCAA supervisors, who are also in the NFL, is from current officials and my personal knowledge and the email line was forwarded to me by current officials

The Numbers

So how did I come up with the magic number of a $2.5 million difference when comparing a 20-year career of an NFL official and an NCAA Division 1 official? From various sources, including ESPN [1], we can use what was offered to the NFL officials in the recent CBA negotiations.

A rookie NFL official in 2011 who was still working in 2018--his eighth year--would average approximately $121,000 per year or about $960,000 in eight years. A 10-year veteran official in 2011 who was still an official in 2018--his eighteenth year-- would average approximately $170,000 per year, or about $1,360,000 in eight years. Being conservative, the yearly salary would be at least $165,000 if there was no raise from 2018 and years 19 and 20 would be at least $200,000 each if no raise. Thus, the total revenues over a 20-year NFL career would be $2,885,000. Of course, they have been offered a pension plan starting at $16,000 per year. Using this and being conservative, the next 20 years would bring in another $320,000.

Now compare those numbers to those of a career Pac-10/12 official based on figures known: that there has been an average of a $600 per year increase over the last eight years and this year being at $14,400 over a 12-game season would total $132,000 over the next eight years or about $400,000 over 20 years. And there is no pension plan in sight for collegiate officials.

Of course, also working in the Pac-12 conference are six active NFL officials and one former official who are assistant supervisors; it was revealed that these men were paid over $10,000 each last season. Over the next 20 years, they will make more than half of what the game officials make, if the supervisors do not get a raise.

It's all about the Big Money at the end of the officiating rainbow and who has the opportunity to grab it.

Money Matters

So, why is there funneling of family members into the NFL? It cannot be all about love of the game or family reputation, right? Well, it's not. It's about money. Yes, NFL officiating--and its selection process--has been tainted by the allure of cash. Over a 20-year career an NFL official can expect to make, at their current salary, $2.5 million more than a Division 1 official.

This started in the mid-1990s when the first high-paying contract was signed with the owners. Until then the one thing every official--the ones who put in the time, the trips on the road driving six hours to work small college games, the meetings in both the preseason and during the season, all for the love of the game--knew was that it wasn't about the money.

A Division 1 official would work an NFL game for $3,000 per game--about $1,500, on average, more than they make now--for their whole career and be happy, which would save the NFL millions of dollars per year. Those savings could go to, say, the NFL players' alumni association to help pay for medical costs to those who deserve it and who made the game of football what it is today.

And now, being selected as an NFL official no longer holds the distinction of being the culmination of a long, accomplished career; it is merely a pot of gold at the end of the road.

It's ALL Relative: Familial Connections Beyond the NFL

The family links are not limited to the NFL itself. There are several sons and brothers of current officials racing up the ranks of the collegiate and AFL football. Here is a rundown:

• Allen Baynes (SJ) and Rusty Baynes (LJ) have a brother, Mark Baynes, who is an up-and-comer in the Conference USA as an umpire [1]
• Derick Bowers (HL) has a brother who is working in the AFL [2]
• Walt Coleman (R) has a son, Walt Coleman, Jr., who is a rising star in the Big 12 as a line judge [3]
• Kirk Dornan (BJ) has a son, Matt Dornan, who is working in the AFL as a head linesman [4]
• Steve Freeman (BJ) has a son, Brad Freeman, who is an up-and-comer SEC as a field judge [5]
• Ed Hochuli (R) has a son, Shawn Hochuli, who is a rising star in the Pac-12 and the AFL as a referee, and formerly worked in the Big 12 [6]
• John McGrath (HL) has a brother, Kavin McGrath, who works as a head linesman in the Big East [7]
• Gene Steratore (R) and Tony Steratore (BJ) have a cousin, Frank Steratore, Jr., who is a rising star in the Big 10 [8]

It is no great mystery where these officials are headed by virtue of their familial connection. These relatives of NFL officials are climbing the ladder, leaping over other officials who have more experience and better abilities, who deserved the opportunity, and who the players and coaches deserved to have officiating their games.

Sources

[1] "Former Tallassee coach earns NFL officials award": http://www.riverregionsports.com/wordpress/?p=11325/ and "Tulane vs Rice": http://www.conferenceusa.com/sports/m-footbl/stats/2011-2012/rice1119.html
[2] Information from a current official

[3] "Behind the scenes with Big 12 officials": http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7036478/officials-offer-unique-view-game

[4] "Five Minutes With...Kirk Dornan": https://www.arbitersports.com/myrefereeapp/?mod=Article&id=113962 and "Game Preview": http://www.kccommand.com/2011/07/20/game-preview-kansas-city-command-vs-tulsa/

[5] "Meet a ref with NFL playing experience": http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/mike-pereira-nfl-referees-what-you-need-to-know

[6] "Oregon vs. Colorado": http://projects.registerguard.com/web/sports/27058362-41/colorado-game-oregon-conference-ducks.html.csp, "Football Ref Says Managing Money Prepares Him for Fans Catcalls": http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=akYJ4qCgV8K8&refer=home, "AFL Official and Athletic Trainer of the Year Announced": http://www.arenafootball.com/news/afl-official-and-athletic-trainer-year-announced, and "Texas making it look easy": http://espn.go.com/blog/big12/tag/_/name/shawn-hochuli

[7] "Hyland's Heroes: Bobby McGrath": http://catholicsportsnet.com/louisville/articles/2012/2/4/hyland-s-heroes--bobby-mcgrath

[8] "About Us--Steratore Sanitary Supply": http://www.steratoresanitary.com/about-us.html

NFL Officiating: A Family Affair

One of the most egregious flaws in the selection of NFL officials in recent years has been the promotion of family members of both former and current NFL officials. Here is a rundown:

• Allen Baynes (SJ) and Rusty Baynes (LJ): brothers and sons of Ron Baynes, former NFL official and current NFL director of recruiting officials [1]
• Jerry Bergman, Jr. (HL) and Jeff Bergman (LJ): brothers and sons of Jerry Bergman, Sr., a former NFL official [2]
• Mike Carey (R) and Don Carey (BJ): brothers [3]
• Keith Ferguson (BJ): son of Dick Ferguson, former NFL official [4]
• John McGrath (HL): brother of Bobby McGrath, former NFL official and current NFL replay official [5]
• Dana McKenzie (HL): son of Dick McKenzie, former NFL official and former NFL supervisor of officials (part-time) [6]
• Carl Paganelli, Jr. (U), Perry Paganelli (BJ), and Dino Paganelli (BJ): all brothers and sons of Carl Paganelli, Sr., the supervisor of AFL officials [7]
• John Parry (R): son of Dave Parry, former NFL official, former supervisor of officials for the Big 10, and former national Division 1 supervisor for officials [8]
• Jim Quirk, Jr. (FJ): son of Jim Quirk, Sr., former NFL official [9]
• Jeff Rice (U): son of Bob Rice, former NFL official [10]
• Jeff Seeman (LJ): son of Jerry Seeman, former NFL official and former director of NFL officials [11]
• Gene Steratore, Jr. (R) and Tony Steratore (BJ): brothers [12]
• Tony Veteri, Jr. (HL): son of Tony Veteri, Sr., former NFL official and former NFL supervisor of officials [13]

So, to recap, 19 current NFL officials, out of 119 total officials, are the sons or brothers of current or former NFL officials. That is 16% of current officials! I would accept that there might be some instances where sons would succeed fathers into the NFL; however, I have trouble believing that 19 of the best officials in the country just coincidentally have immediate family members who are or were NFL officials, especially when three current officials come from the same family. Even the largest unions in the country (i.e. steel, auto, Teamsters) did not have a percentage like this.

Sources
[1] "Former Tallassee coach earns NFL officials award": http://www.riverregionsports.com/wordpress/?p=11325/ and "Memo shows NFL seeking scouts' help in finding replacement refs": http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2012-06-06/nfl-referees-lockout-replacement-officials-scouts-help
[2] "It's All Relative": http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1108870/index.htm
[3] "It's All Relative": http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1108870/index.htm
[4] "San Jose football official works Super Bowl XLIII": http://members4.boardhost.com/spartantalk/msg/1236868145.html
[5] "Hyland's Heroes: Bobby McGrath": http://catholicsportsnet.com/louisville/articles/2012/2/4/hyland-s-heroes--bobby-mcgrath
[6] "Browns notes: Wright's return sends Haden to sideline": http://medinagazette.northcoastnow.com/2010/08/22/browns-notes-wright’s-return-sends-haden-to-sideline/ and "Q&A: Under fire, Mangini opens up about Browns, Quinn, Belichick": http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/12493344/qa-under-fire-mangini-opens-up-about-browns-quinn-belichick
[7] "A Herd of Zebras": http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1108868/index.htm and "Carl Paganelli Sr. hired as Arena Football League's supervisor of officials": http://www.mlive.com/sports/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2011/01/carl_paganelli_sr_hired_as_are.html
[8] "John Parry loves being an NFL official": http://www.nwitimes.com/sports/article_4cc78297-e1fb-5d5f-9594-f4f61c0930a5.html
[9] "It's the Super Bowl for officials, too--Rumson's Jim Quirk knows it well": http://trtnj.com/featured/its-the-super-bowl-for-officials-too-rumsons-jim-quirk-knows-it-well/
[10] "Snap judgment": http://www.review.net/section/detail/snap-judgment/; his father's name came from a current football official
[11] "It's All Relative": http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1108870/index.htm
[12] "It's All Relative": http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1108870/index.htm
[13] "Flag The Official Boomer Wants Justice": http://articles.nydailynews.com/1995-10-12/sports/17990165_1_whistle-tony-veteri-official-s-fault

It's About the Players

And the coaches. And the support staff. And the fans. It's a love of the game.

These are the reasons why every person connected to football should be interested in what I have to say about the officials, who, I believe, are a huge part of the game.

I am not naive enough to suggest that the NFL is not a moneymaking endeavor for a significant portion of the people who are part of the game; it clearly is. However, I also believe that for a lot of the players, coaches, and others, there is an enduring love for the game. It is for those people--the ones who put their health on the line every time they lace up their cleats or in the work out in the weight room and the ones who give up countless hours watching film--that we must maintain the integrity of the game.

In this blog, I will be illustrating the ways in which the selection of NFL officials--and now, honestly, the selection of collegiate officials--is flawed. I will try as best I can to provide independent attributions for the information I provide here; however, some of the information I use is from current football officials who cannot be named for fear of reprisal. I will note when something comes from an official, though.

The game of football starts with the rules and the officials that govern the game itself. When the selection process of those officials is flawed, the integrity of the games is in question.

Who loses? The players, the coaches, the support staff, and the fans.