Garth DeFelice is a former National Football League (NFL) referee who served from the 1998 NFL season until 2013. His uniform number was 53 (now worn by Sarah Thomas, the league's first-ever female official, and previously worn by Bill Reynolds and Frank Kirkland), and served in crews headed by Clete Blakeman from 2010–2013. [1] He has also worked under Mike Carey and Bill Leavy, under whom he officiated Super Bowl XL. On May 4, 2014, it was announced that DeFelice would not return to the field for the 2014 season as he will become one of the regional supervisors for the officiating office.
In 2010, DeFelice was involved in a controversy in a game between the San Francisco 49ers and the San Diego Chargers. After a play, 49ers defensive lineman Justin Smith and Chargers tight end Kris Wilson were fighting. When DeFelice went in an attempt to break it up, Smith pushed DeFelice out of the way and was ejected per NFL rules regarding contact with an official. [2] [3]
The 2004 NFL season was the 85th regular season of the National Football League (NFL).
The 1998 NFL season was the 79th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). The season culminated with Super Bowl XXXIII, with the Denver Broncos defeating the Atlanta Falcons 34–19 at Pro Player Stadium in Miami. The Broncos had won their first thirteen games, the best start since the undefeated 1972 Dolphins, and were tipped by some to have a realistic chance at winning all nineteen games. The Minnesota Vikings became the first team since the 1968 Baltimore Colts to win all but one of their regular season games and not win the Super Bowl. After no team had won 14 regular season games since the 1992 49ers, three teams went 14–2 or better for the only time in a 16-game season.
The 1991 NFL season was the 72nd regular season of the National Football League (NFL). It was the final season for coach Chuck Noll. The season ended with Super Bowl XXVI when the Washington Redskins defeated the Buffalo Bills, 37–24, at the Metrodome in Minnesota. This was the second of four consecutive Super Bowl losses for Buffalo.
The 1989 NFL season was the 70th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle announced his retirement. Paul Tagliabue was eventually chosen to succeed him, taking over on November 5.
The 1979 NFL season was the 60th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XIV when the Pittsburgh Steelers repeated as champions by defeating the Los Angeles Rams 31–19 at the Rose Bowl. The Steelers became the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls twice.
The 1971 NFL season was the 52nd regular season of the National Football League. The Boston Patriots changed their name to New England Patriots to widen their appeal to the entire New England region after moving to their new stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, located between Boston and Providence, Rhode Island.
Edward G. Hochuli is an American retired attorney and former American football official. He served as an attorney at Jones, Skelton & Hochuli, P.L.C. from 1983 to 2021, and was an official in the National Football League (NFL) from 1990 to 2017; his uniform number was 85. Before becoming a football official, he played college football for four seasons at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP).
Walt Coleman III is a former American football official who officiated in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1989 season until the end of the 2018 season. He wore uniform number 65. During his final season in 2018, Coleman was the NFL's longest current tenured referee.
Jerry Markbreit is a former American football referee in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons and became one of the most recognizable referees in the game. Markbreit officiated football games for 33 seasons. From 1965 to 1975, Markbreit officiated college football games in the Big Ten Conference. He then joined the NFL in 1976 as a line judge on the crew of Tommy Bell before being promoted to the head referee position in just his second year. His uniform number in the league was 9, which is now worn by Mark Perlman. In his 23 seasons in the NFL, Markbreit had 25 postseason assignments: two wild card games, 10 divisional games, eight conference championships, one Pro Bowl (1978), and four Super Bowls and was an alternate in Super Bowl XIX, Super Bowl XXII, and Super Bowl XXVIII. To date, he is the only NFL head referee to officiate four Super Bowl games.
Michael Carey is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL). His uniform number was 94. Prior to his officiating career, he played college football as a running back for Santa Clara University.
Bill Leavy was an American football official who officiated in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1995 through 2014 seasons, wore uniform number 127, and was also a retired San Jose, California police officer and firefighter, serving for 27 years. In his twenty-year NFL officiating career, Leavy was assigned to fifteen playoff games, including two Super Bowls. He was selected as a back judge on the Super Bowl XXXIV officiating crew in 2000 and most recently headed up the Super Bowl XL officiating crew as referee in 2006.
Terry McAulay is a former American football official who worked in the National Football League (NFL) for the 1998 through 2017 seasons. He was the referee for seven conference championship games and three Super Bowls. He was the Coordinator of Football Officials for college football's Big East and subsequently the American Athletic Conference from 2008 to 2017.
Ron Blum is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL), having served in that role from the 1985 NFL season through the 2007 NFL season. He joined the league as a line judge, officiating Super Bowl XXIV in 1990 and Super Bowl XXVI in 1992 and later became a referee for the start of the 1993 NFL season, replacing retired legend Pat Haggerty. Blum also was the Referee for the 1997 AFC Championship, which would be his highest game worked at the Referee position. Blum moved back to line judge beginning with the 2004 NFL season, and worked his last four seasons on the crew of referee Tony Corrente.
Walter John Anderson is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1996 NFL season to the 2019 NFL season. He wore uniform number 66. Anderson spent his first seven seasons in the NFL as a line judge before being promoted to referee for the start of the 2003 NFL season after Dick Hantak and Bob McElwee announced their retirements. He is notable for officiating Super Bowl XXXV. Anderson was also named as referee for Super Bowl XLV which was played on February 6, 2011, in Arlington, Texas, at Cowboys Stadium.
Scott H. Green is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1991 NFL season until the 2013 NFL season. He had officiated Super Bowls XXXVI in 2002, XXXVIII in 2004, and was the referee for XLIV in 2010. Green was also the head of the NFL Referees Association and led negotiations during the 2012 NFL referee lockout.
Bill Vinovich III is an American football official in the National Football League (NFL) who has worked as an NFL referee from 2001 to 2006 and since 2012; he is also a college basketball official.
Jerome Leonard Boger is a former American football official who worked in the National Football League (NFL) for the 2004 through 2022 seasons. He has worn uniform number 23 since 2006; before that, he wore uniform number 109. He started in the league as a line judge and was promoted to referee in 2006 after two seasons. Along with Gene Steratore, he was one of two new referees for 2006, replacing retired officials Bernie Kukar and Tom White. Boger became the third African-American referee in the NFL after Johnny Grier (1988), who previously wore uniform number 23, and Mike Carey (1995).
Don Carey is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL), who wore uniform number 126. He entered the NFL's officiating staff in 1995 as a field judge until 1998, where he became a back judge due to the NFL swapping position titles that season; he held that position until 2008–09. He was promoted to referee in 2009 upon the retirement of Bill Carollo, the fourth African American to do so, after Johnny Grier, younger brother Mike Carey and Jerome Boger. He officiated one Super Bowl game, which was Super Bowl XXXVII at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
Terry Deleon Killens is an American football official and former linebacker. He played seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Seattle Seahawks. He was drafted in the third round of the 1996 NFL Draft. In the 1999 season, the Titans made it to Super Bowl XXXIV, in which Killens appeared as a substitute; however, they lost to the Kurt Warner-led St. Louis Rams.
James DeBell is a former American football official who was in the National Football League (NFL) and the Alliance of American Football (AAF).