__The people he spoke with agreed that the Big 10 needed to “create some kind of a system where our best officials would be rewarded,” he said. Parry wanted to be able to have something down on paper, he explained, “so we could send those top people on to our bowls because they deserved to go.” The same system would also serve to weed out officials who consistently rate low and don’t measure up to expected standards. The result was a five-pronged evaluation in which officials were rated from 0-7, in the following categories: appearance, athleticism, judgment, poise and interpersonal skills.
__“When the official stepped out on to the field, did he look like an official?” Parry asked. “Did he have a clean hat? Were his shoes shined? Did his shirt fit? Did he look fit? Appearance is very important.” It’s key in conveying a positive first impression and professional image, suitable to someone in charge of managing a game.
__When it comes to athleticism, “We defined that as position, movement and coverage,” said Parry. “Could he run? Could he get the angle? Could he be where he should be?” Parry recalled a meeting with Penn State’s Joe Paterno: “When I sat down with him, Joe said, ‘Look, I only want two things from your officials. Number one, I want them in position. Number two, I want them decisive.’ And when you think about it, that covers a lot of sins, if you can do those two things.”
__The Big 10 system weighted judgment three times as much as the other considerations because “that’s really what’s most important relative to the outcome of review of a play,” said Parry. Officials must know what a foul is, and perhaps more importantly, they need to know what a foul is not. “We get in a lot more trouble in football when we would over-officiate the game as compared to when we would under-officiate it,” said Parry.
According to Big 10 data, games that have 25, 30 or 35 fouls in them usually generate “lots and lots of complaints,” he said. “On the other hand, when we have games in which the foul count is relatively low, we very seldom get complaints from the coaches,” Parry observed.
__The fourth category on the officials’ rating system is calm and poise. Parry explained, “Did the official look relaxed? Did he look like he belonged? Did he have a body language that said, ‘Hey! I am glad to be here and I’m having a great time?’” One veteran college football coach told Parry, “If an official looked happy and relaxed, I was happy and relaxed. But if he looked manic and hyper and uptight, I just felt we were going to have some trouble with that official.” People react to nonverbal behavior, stressed Parry. Therefore, officials need to have the ability to portray calmness and poise. It can influence the emotional tone of a game.
__Parry refers to the last category — interpersonal skills — as “people-handling skills.” Can officials get along with each other? With coaches? With players? Can they be in stressful situations that are highly volatile and still communicate effectively? “There are times to keep your mouth shut,” Parry said. He also recognized there are times when “you have to stand up and say something.” It’s how you say it that matters most. Parry encourages honesty, forthrightness and respect.
__Good personal skills are important within your officiating circle as well. Parry tells his people that their fellow officials are usually their best friends. “And probably for three hours on a Saturday afternoon, they may be the only friends you have,” he said. He emphasizes the importance of meeting each other half way, doing little extra things to make a crew a team. “We pay our referees an extra $50 a game because we expect them to be on the phone sometime during the week talking to their other six crew members,” he explained. Why does the Big 10 do that? According to Parry, the crew chief’s job is to motivate others on the officiating crew and let them know he is there to help.
__Parry drove that point home with a story from his first NFL preseason game 26 years ago. “I had a call on the sideline that Grandma could have made from the cheap seats,” he related. “It was a late hit out of bounds. Everybody in the stadium saw it and I threw the flag. It was nothing. But the umpire on the game, an old timer named Lou Palazzi, must have run 40 yards to come over and give me a big hug. He said, ‘Great call, rookie, nice going. Keep it up.’ I remember it as if it happened yesterday and as long as I think of Lou, I will always remember that one play when he went out of his way to pick me up.”
