Referee who caused one of the season's biggest controversies chosen for Super Bowl
The NFL always hopes its Super Bowl officiating crew can avoid controversy during the league’s biggest game, so there’s some irony in the fact the man selected to be the referee for Super Bowl LII was involved in one of the most talked about controversies of this past season.
The NFL announced Wednesday that Gene Steratore will be the referee for Super Bowl LII, Feb. 4 in Minneapolis.
Steratore is in his 15th season as an NFL game official. He was promoted to referee in 2006.
He has officiated 11 playoff games, including two conference championships. He was the alternate referee for Super Bowl XLIV.
This will be Gene Steratore's first Super Bowl assignment in his 15th season as an NFL ref
Here are some stats about the games he's officiated https://t.co/FzcCNwCRru pic.twitter.com/6Sc7YHuSHf
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) January 18, 2018
Steratore was the referee for the Week 15 matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Oakland Raiders. During the fourth quarter of a game with playoff implications for both teams, Steratore asked for a measurement after Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott ran the ball on fourth down.
The measurement seemed to indicate Prescott had just barely reached the line to gain, but to confirm, Steratore pulled a folded index card from his pocket, slid it between the ball and the marker, then signaled first down.
Steratore said he used the card as nothing more than “reaffirmation” that the ball was touching the marker pole, but some questioned how something so unofficial looking could be used to make such an important call.
The NFL eventually said Steratore did nothing wrong in using the card, but also told its other referees not to follow a similar procedure.
To be chosen to work the Super Bowl, referees must rate in the top tier of their position to be eligible, as well as have at least five years’ experience for selection.
In addition to Steratore, the remainder of the Super Bowl officiating crew is as follows: Roy Ellison (umpire), Jerry Bergman (down judge), Byron Boston (line judge), Tom Hill (field judge), Scott Edwards (side judge), Perry Paganelli (back judge) and Paul Weidner (replay).
Collectively, this year’s Super Bowl officiating crew has 127 years of NFL officiating experience and 101 combined playoff assignments.
The “index card game” was not Steratore’s first time under the magnifying glass as an NFL referee. The Calvin Johnson play that was ruled a non-catch in the end zone, the Dez Bryant non-catch in the playoffs at Green Bay and the New England Patriots inadvertent whistle play in a 2015 game against Buffalo all happened in games with Steratore as the referee.
In addition to his officiating work for the NFL, Steratore is also a basketball official for the Big Ten conference. After officiating Sunday’s playoff game between the Saints and Vikings, Steratore officiated Monday night’s basketball game between Minnesota and Penn State.
He also owns a janitorial supply company in Pennsylvania.
So how does he manage to all three?
“When I am officiating both sports, I have more time to devote to my officiating than if I were home running my company,” Steratore told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune in 2016, explaining that during basketball season he spends most of his time in his hotel room working on his NFL prep work while waiting to officiate a basketball game that night.
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