Officiating in History
Home Officiating in History
Tales of big games, big calls and the officials that worked them.
A History of Strikes and Lockouts
Over the years, strikes or lockouts have impacted the officials of every major sport.
L
abor disputes have been a part of American life since shortly...
Umpire George Magerkurth Ruled With An Iron Fist
S
Umpire George Magerkurth ruled with an iron fist, which he wasn’t above wielding when challenged on a baseball diamond.
Magerkurth worked 2,808 regular-season games and...
Eight Is Enough: 1985 NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship
You would think after officiating more than 166 minutes of a soccer game, the sweat-soaked officials had put in a full day and would...
Emmett Ashford – a rare personality
From the minors to the majors, Emmett Ashford was an umpire who had style. His career was typified by an incident in his first...
Bobby Knight Throws A Chair
Bobby Knight’s molten rage briefly bubbled beneath the surface until, like Vesuvius, he erupted in a pyrotechnic fury.
The Indiana basketball coach blew his top...
The Immaculate Reception: Pittsburgh vs. Oakland Dec. 23, 1972
Fred Swearingen's world had slowed down by 1998 and he was into a peaceful life in Carlsbad, Calif. His serene existence when we interviewed him...
Nolan Ryan’s Final Hit Batter: August 4, 1993
In his illustrious 27-year career, Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan hit 158 batters.
“He did not have a reputation as a headhunter,” said retired...
The Eras of Our Ways
Ron Luciano, who died in 1995, was one of the classic arbiters and characters of the 1970s in professional sports. An AL umpire for...
Hoosiers – Milan vs. Muncie: 1954 Indiana State Basketball Championship
Milan High School, enrollment 161, defeated the favored Bearcats of Muncie Central, 32-30, to win the 1954 Indiana state basketball championship. Plump’s shot with three seconds...
Bronx Brawl – Yankees vs. Orioles – May 19, 1998
Over the years, MLB has seen its share of bench-clearing brawls. Once the benches clear, and the bullpens empty, it is usually a time...
You Are There: Cooney Launches the Rocket
Then-Boston Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens charges at umpire Terry Cooney after Cooney ejected the fiery fireballer during game four of the 1990 ALCS.
AL...
Behind the Scenes on the Legendary Woodson Interception
On Oct. 25, 1997, Michigan State’s Todd Schultz took the third-and-long snap in Spartan Stadium with a little more than two minutes left in...
YOU ARE THERE: Underdog Upset – App. State beats Michigan – Sept. 1, 2007
The giant was going to slay Jack and burn his beanstalk. Goliath was going to smother David and obliterate his slingshot. The cheetah was going to bring down the gazelle and...
Officiating In History: Nolan Ryan’s 7th No-Hitter – May 1, 1991
Texas Rangers' pitcher Nolan Ryan felt every one of his 44 years early in the evening of May 1, 1991. Worse, he was about...
Hammerin’ Hank 715
It was perhaps the most sacred of all of baseball’s sacred records, but when Hank Aaron launched long ball number 715, he became baseball’s...
Mayhem in Cleveland: Browns vs. Jaguars Dec. 16, 2001
It started out as a feel-good day that would eventually take a serious turn for the worse. There was no way of telling that...
MLB umpire Steve Rippley ejects 17 during one ’84 game
It may happen that an umpire can go through an entire career without a “hat trick.” That’s baseball parlance for ejecting three participants in...
US vs. USSR 1972 Olympic Men’s Basketball Final
Peter Rodgers never figured that by opening a gift, he’d close the book on a lingering controversy. The birthday present Rodgers received should, at the very least,...
You Are There: Ass in the Jackpot
By Dan Ronan
Nearly nine years after retired MLB umpire Tom Hallion and former New York Mets manager Terry Collins engaged in a heated, often...
The Game Of The Century – Notre Dame vs. Michigan State 1966
In a game that featured number one against number two — Notre Dame vs. Michigan State — college football fans were highly anticipating which...
One Second Left: Celtics vs. Suns 1976 NBA Finals
Richie Powers recalls that the biggest call he had to make in his nearly 25-year NBA officiating career came at the Boston Garden on...
Inside “The Comeback” – Buffalo vs. Houston 1993
Had the now ubiquitous “Win Probability Chart” been a thing in 1993, the Buffalo Bills and their fans would not have been happy with what it showed at halftime of their AFC...
You Are There: Cal vs. the Stanford Band (November 20, 1982)
By Leon Davis
No, the Pac-10 title was not on the line, but when Stanford's Cardinal traveled to Berkeley to take on California's Bears it...
You Are There: Trumbull Upsets Taiwan in 1989 LLWS Final
If it’s David versus Goliath stories you are looking for, you need to go no further than the 1989 Little League World Series championship game between Taiwan and Trumbull, Conn.
And...