college referee assignments

How Are NCAA Referees Assigned?

As an avid sports fan, I’ve always been curious about how referees are assigned in the exciting world of college athletics. So, today, let’s dive into this fascinating process and uncover the secrets behind it.

Table of Contents

The Role of Assignors

As we delve further into the intriguing world of NCAA referee assignments, it’s time to shine a spotlight on the unsung heroes behind this intricate process – the assignors. These dedicated individuals play a crucial role in ensuring that each game has competent and fair referees at its helm.

Assignors are the masterminds responsible for handpicking and assigning referees for NCAA games. They possess a deep understanding of the intricacies involved in officiating various sports and hold immense knowledge about different officials’ abilities.

These experienced professionals act as evaluators, carefully assessing referees based on their performance history, expertise, and overall suitability for specific games. Think of them as talent scouts entrusted with assembling top-notch teams of officials to maintain integrity during matches.

Responsibilities

The responsibilities shouldered by assignors go far beyond simply selecting names from a list. Their duties encompass several essential aspects vital to successful referee assignments:

Evaluating Performance 

Assignors closely monitor referees’ performances throughout the season, considering factors such as accuracy in decision-making, adherence to rules, professionalism, and ability to handle high-pressure situations effectively.

Coordinating Schedules

Juggling numerous games across multiple conferences is no easy feat! Assignors excel at coordinating complex schedules by taking into account travel logistics, avoiding conflicts or overlaps between assignments, and ensuring that all parties involved can perform their duties without hindrance.

Ensuring Fairness in Assignments

Maintaining fairness is paramount when it comes to referee selection. Assignors strive to distribute assignments impartially among eligible officials while considering factors like experience level, geographical proximity to venues, and familiarity with teams or conferences (when necessary), aiming for an equitable distribution of opportunities within established guidelines.

In summary, assignors act as meticulous gatekeepers who assess referees’ capabilities objectively before assigning them suitable games while also managing the logistical puzzle that comes with scheduling assignments across a wide range of NCAA games.

The Assignment Process

In our quest to unravel the mysteries behind how NCAA referees are assigned, we now turn our attention to the fascinating process that brings officials and games together seamlessly. Get ready to dive into the intricacies of the assignment process!

Game Requests & Schedules

The journey begins when schools or conferences submit game requests, providing specific dates and times for their upcoming matches. These requests act as a starting point for assignors to map out referee assignments. 

It’s like laying down the foundation for a well-organized season of thrilling sports action.

Availability & Preferences

Referees have lives outside officiating, too! To ensure efficient scheduling, they indicate their availability and preferences regarding game assignments through an online platform or system designed specifically for this purpose.

This allows them to manage their commitments effectively while still being a part of exhilarating collegiate matchups.

Matching Officials with Games

Here comes the exciting part – matching officials with games! Assignors meticulously review available referees’ profiles, taking into account various factors such as expertise in specific sports, geographical proximity to venues, schedule compatibility, and any other pertinent considerations. 

It’s all about finding that perfect fit between official and game – ensuring optimal performance on every whistle-blow.

Communication & Confirmation

Once assignors have made their decisions, it’s time for communication! They reach out to selected referees with their respective assignments—bringing moments of excitement mixed with anticipation. Referees then confirm or decline these assignments based on factors like personal availability or conflicts. Clear lines of communication between assignors and officials keep everyone on track throughout this dynamic process.

As we peel back the layers surrounding NCAA referee assignments even further, we’ll uncover more captivating details about logistical challenges faced by assignors and how they overcome them. 

Frequently asked questions

1. What are some logistical challenges assignors face in referee assignments?

Assignors deal with travel arrangements and accommodation logistics for out-of-town games/events, ensuring officials can reach their assigned venues on time.

2. How do assignors manage conflicts when schedules overlap or personal reasons arise?

When conflicts arise, assignors may need to reassign referees or find suitable replacements to ensure smooth officiating throughout the season.

3. Do assignors consider preferences of referees regarding travel distance for game assignments?

Yes, assignors take into account geographical factors and try to minimize excessive travel distances whenever possible, considering referees’ preferences and well-being.

4. Are there any systems in place to handle last-minute changes or emergencies affecting referee availability?

Assignor systems often have contingency plans in case of unexpected situations, allowing for quick adjustments and replacement options when emergencies affect referee availability.

5. How do assignors communicate schedule changes or reassignments to affected referees efficiently?

Assignors utilize various communication channels such as email, phone calls, or online platforms specifically designed for efficient communication between assignors and officials.

And there you have it, my friend! We’ve embarked on an exhilarating journey into the captivating world of NCAA referee assignments. From the meticulous role of assignors to the challenges they face in matching officials with games, we’ve uncovered the secrets that make our favorite college sports events possible.

Similar Posts

What is Illegal Touching in Football?

Explain ‘4th and 20’ and ‘3rd down Conversion’ in Football

How Tight Should Football Pants Be? Finding Your Perfect Fit

Soccer Cleats Vs Rugby Cleats: Unveiling the Key Differences

What does ota mean in football.

How Can I Get Better at Football?

🥎 WCWS picks

👀 Regionals to watch in WCWS

🏌️‍♂️ DI men's golf regionals

🥎 DII softball super regionals

⛳️ DIII men's golf finals

NCAA.com | March 27, 2023

Ncaa division i men’s basketball committee names game officials for 2023 men's final four.

INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee has approved the 11 game officials recommended by Chris Rastatter, the national coordinator of officiating, to work Saturday’s two national semifinal games and Monday’s national championship game. A three-person crew will work each Men’s Final Four game, while two officials will serve as the standby officials for all three contests. 

The NCAA has notified these 11 individuals that they have been selected to work the 2023 Men’s Final Four, which will be played at NRG Stadium in Houston:

• Jeff Anderson, West Henrietta, New York
• Roger Ayers, Roanoke, Virginia
• Ron Groover, Newnan, Georgia
• John Higgins, Omaha, Nebraska
• Keith Kimble, Arlington, Texas
• Kipp Kissinger, Omaha, Nebraska
• Terry Oglesby, Maryville, Missouri
• Mike Reed, Mount Shasta, California
• Doug Sirmons, Virginia Beach, Virginia
• Bert Smith, Florence, Kentucky
• Paul Szelc, Lawrence, Kansas

“The 2023 NCAA tournament officials have collectively done an exceptional job of officiating the tournament,” said Rastatter. “We are fortunate to have an extremely qualified pool of officials. These officials have gone above and beyond to help make this tournament fair and successful for the student-athletes, coaches and participating teams.” 

Sirmons will be officiating in his ninth Men’s Final Four, while Higgins has been selected for the eighth time. Anderson will work his sixth Men’s Final Four and Groover will work his fifth. This will be the fourth Men’s Final Four for Ayers and Kimble, while Oglesby will work his third. Kissinger and Smith will work their second Men’s Final Four, while Reed and Szelc will make their first Men’s Final Four appearance.

Saturday’s first semifinal features East Region champion and No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic facing San Diego State, the No. 5 seed, and champions of the South Region. Florida Atlantic and San Diego State are both making their first Men’s Final Four appearances. Tipoff is set for 5:09 p.m. central time. The second semifinal game, which is scheduled 40 minutes after the conclusion of Game 1, pits West Region champion UConn against Midwest Region champion Miami. The fourth-seeded Huskies will be making their 6th appearance in the Men’s Final Four, while the No. 5 seed Hurricanes are in the Men’s Final Four for the first time.

The officiating assignments for each semifinal game, as well as Monday night’s national championship game, will be announced an hour before each game.

• 2025 March Madness: Men's NCAA tournament schedule, dates

The most-picked March Madness champion every year since 2014

• 2024 USA men's basketball Olympic roster: College careers, highlights

March Madness

• 🗓️ 2024 March Madness schedule, dates
• 👀 Everything to know about March Madness
• ❓ How the field of 68 is picked
• 📓 College basketball dictionary: 51 terms defined

Greatest buzzer beaters in March Madness history

Relive Laettner's historic performance against Kentucky

The deepest game-winning buzzer beaters in March Madness history

College basketball's NET rankings, explained

• What March Madness looked like the year you were born

DI Men's Basketball News

• How often fans picked the right NCAA men's champion, every year since 2014
• 2025 Selection Sunday: Date, schedule, TV times
• From unranked to NCAA champion
• Way-too-early 2024-25 men's basketball Power 36 rankings
• Why the AP No. 1 team is far from a national championship lock
• Recapping all 67 March Madness games from 2024
• UConn builds a longstanding legacy with 6th national title, 'old school' methods

Follow NCAA March Madness

• CBSSports.com
• Fanatics Sportsbook
• CBS Sports Home
• Champions League
• Motor Sports
• High School

Football Pick'em

College Pick'em

Fantasy baseball, fantasy football, fantasy basketball, fantasy hockey, franchise games, 24/7 sports news network.

• CBS Sports Golazo Network
• PGA Championship
• UEFA Champions League
• UEFA Europa League
• Italian Serie A
• Watch CBS Sports Network
• TV Shows & Listings

The Early Edge

A Daily SportsLine Betting Podcast

With the First Pick

NFL Draft recap

• Podcasts Home
• The First Cut Golf
• Beyond the Arc
• We Need to Talk Now
• Eye On College Basketball
• NFL Pick Six
• Cover 3 College Football
• Fantasy Football Today
• My Teams Organize / See All Teams Help Account Settings Log Out

Which conference refs will be officiating the College Football Playoff?

The college football playoff announced the officials for peach bowl, fiesta bowl and cfp title game.

The College Football Playoff has determined the assignments for the officials that will determine the national championship. The names of those officials won't be revealed until game day, but now we know which conferences are responsible for providing the refs for the Peach Bowl, Fiesta Bowl and CFP title game.

The Big 12 getting the title game is not a surprise, as it was the conference that got left out of the playoff. Every year, the one league (or one of the leagues) missing the playoff will be assigned to the title game.

While every fan seems to have a bias against a certain set of conference-based officials, the most notorious ref-related controversy from the 2016 regular season season was the end of Oklahoma State-Central Michigan. The MAC officials (not in the playoff) for that game were suspended after it was determined they had erred in giving the Chippewas an untimed down that led to the winning score. The blunder helped CMU become bowl eligible, but it did not ultimately prevent Oklahoma State from playoff consideration following Oklahoma's undefeated run through Big 12 conference play.

However, the Big 12 did later admit that it could have buzzed in from its replay center to potentially prevent the untimed down . Luckily, I think the national championship game will have everyone's eyes, making it unlikely for any mistake to go unrecognized.

Our Latest College Football Stories

Dabo Swinney defends lack of activity in tranfer market

Shehan jeyarajah • 2 min read.

ACC commish stays optimistic on conference's future

John talty • 5 min read.

Despite ranking, top-10 coaches face pressure in 2024

Will backus • 5 min read.

Huma leads fight for rights of college athletes

Dennis dodd • 9 min read.

Florida lands former 5-star CB Cormani McClain

Ranking the top 25 Power Four coaches in 2024 season

Tom fornelli • 14 min read, share video.

Who will officiate the playoff?

Ranking the Power Four coaches from No. 25-1

Huma advocates for college athletes

Top-10 coaches still facing pressure

Power Four coach rankings: No. 68-26

ACC commish optimistic on conference's future

Big Ten on CBS: Notre Dame-Purdue, Michigan-USC set

ACC unlikely to salvage marriage with FSU, Clemson

• Behind the Football Stripes
• Football Zebras

Welcome Guest. Please Login or Register .

• Officiating Corner

NCAA/College

• Special Guest Series
• High School
• Other sports
• Website & Message Board Questions, Comments, and Announcements
• Create Thread
• « Prev
• Next »

Board Information & Statistics

Assignments

NWSL Assignments: Week 9

The assignments for Week 9of the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League regular season.

MLS NEXT Pro Assignments: Week 10

The assignments for Week 10 of the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro season.

MLS Assignments: Week 14

The assignments for Week 14 of the 2024 Major League Soccer season.

USL Championship Assignments: Week 11

The assignments for Week 11 of the 2024 USL Championship season.

USL League One Assignments: Week 9

The assignments for Week 9 of the 2024 USL League One season.

MLS Assignments: Week 13

The assignments for Week 13 of the 2024 Major League Soccer season.

NWSL Assignments: Week 8

The assignments for Week of 8 the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League regular season.

MLS NEXT Pro Assignments: Week 9

The assignments for Week 9 of the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro season.

USL Championship Assignments: Week 10

The assignments for Week 10 of the 2024 USL Championship season.

USL League One Assignments: Week 8 [Updated 05/07]

The assignments for Week 8 of the 2024 USL League One season.

• ← Previous

1Win Casino 'daki slot makinelerinde şansınızı denemeye hazır mısınız? Şanslı bir kazanan olun ve sadece birkaç tıklamayla hesabınıza gerçek para aktarın.

Interested in gambling sites not based in the UK? These non UK based gambling sites bring exclusive games and offers. Dive into the action now!

College Football News

2023-24 bowl games National Championship Game

2023-24 bowl games Sugar Bowl

2023-24 bowl games Rose Bowl

2023-24 bowl games Fiesta Bowl

2023-24 bowl games Orange Bowl

2023-24 bowl games Peach Bowl

2023-24 bowl games Cotton Bowl

College Football

Officiating crews for the 2022 college football conference championship games.

Officiating crews assigned by the college conferences for their championship games.

Football Zebras has obtained most of the crew assignments for the 2022 college football conference championships. Assignments are handled by each conference. Depending on the procedures for each conference, crews are may eligible for bowl games.

All times listed are Eastern. This post will be updated as we confirm the rest of the crews.

• ★ 2021-22 New Year’s Six or National Championship Game official
• ★ 2021-22 bowl game official (includes assignments to cancelled bowls)
• MDP Mackie Development Program official, the NFL’s development and training pipeline (active in last 3 years)
• PRO 2019 AAF, 2020 XFL, and/or 2021 USFL official

2022 Army-Navy Game liveblog

Alberto Riveron is the new ACC officiating boss

Ben Austro is the editor and founder of Football Zebras and the author of So You Think You Know Football?: The Armchair Ref's Guide to the Official Rules ( on sale now )

You may like

Football Zebras network

• ✨ Quirky Research
• Behind the Football Stripes forum
• So You Think You Know Football?
• ⚾ Close Call Sports

May 15 is the end of the officiating offseason. There are high expectations for the new NFL officiating leadership

Bills hire John Parry as an officiating specialist

John Parry leaves ESPN

UFL Week 7 officiating assignments

Ramon George is the new NFL head of officiating, Mark Butterworth is VP of replay

New TV program gives outstanding information about NFL officials

Ufl week 6 officiating assignments.

40 years ago, the USFL had officials the NFL recruited and those cast aside as too old

Ufl week 5 officiating assignments.

Trailblazing official Maia Chaka is out of the NFL

Officiating shakeup continues as VP of replay is out after only 1 season

Former NFL side judge and Cedar Rapids civic leader Bill Quinby dies at 92

Jaire Alexander suspended one game by Packers for not knowing coin flip rules

2023-24 bowl officiating assignments

Week 17 referee assignments

Week 12 referee assignments

Week 11 referee assignments

Week 15 referee assignments

Week 16 referee assignments

Rules School: Officiating mechanics at the end of the half

How could a false start be so wrong? What if it wasn’t wrong?

Smith and Blakeman are Conference Championship referees

Week 9 referee assignments

Week 14 referee assignments

Rules review video: Touching the pylon, ball carrier down, and targeting with the lights out

Rules review video: Unconventional handoffs, unnecessary roughness, and roughing the passer

Rules review video: Scrimmage kick advancement, targeting, and blocking below the waist

Rules review video: Kick catch interference, invalid fair catch signal, and penalty enforcements

Rules review video: Roughing the kicker, forced touching, and kick catch interference

Rules review video: Targeting, replay tools, and an experiment with the kickoff line

Rules review video: Illegal forward pass, illegal touching, and simulated kneeldowns

Rules review video: Defensive pass interference, coaches on the field, and defense re-establishing in bounds

Rules review video: Safeties, replay calling penalties, and kicks over the uprights

‘Exceptional situational awareness’ highlights the Call of the Week

Rules review video: Intentional grounding, targeting, and horse-collar tackles

Replacement referees for opening MLS matches include youth, college, lower division officials

The Athletic has obtained the list of referee assignments for this weekend’s Major League Soccer games, which includes officials with widely varying degrees of experience.

While some have been involved extensively in matches in the second and third divisions of the U.S. Soccer pyramid, others are making the leap from the uppermost levels of youth soccer. Some of the assistant referees have largely worked college games.

Advertisement

MLS has been forced to play games with replacement officials after the Professional Referees Organization (PRO) could not come to terms with the Professional Soccer Referees Association (PSRA) on a new collective bargaining agreement. With the season fast approaching, PRO locked its referees out and assembled a collection of officials to replace them. PRO and PSRA are meeting on Wednesday to continue negotiations, according to a source briefed on the situation.

Explained: Why the new MLS season will start with stand-in refs

The Athletic is not identifying the officials by name. PRO has expressed concern that replacement referees might be targeted. On Friday, it declined to comment on the list of officials but said it would release match assignments on Saturday and Sunday, in accordance with its policies.

Referees who call professional matches in the United States are subject to licensing by the U.S. Soccer Federation, which has its own criteria for certification at several different levels.

Of the referees assigned to MLS action on Saturday, 24 of them hold the federation’s basic “referee” license, while 19 have met the criteria for a regional license, U.S. Soccer’s intermediate license. Seventeen of those involved are USSF-certified “national” referees, the highest certification available via the federation.

A basic “referee” license is available to anybody above the age of 13 who completes the certification requirements, which include several hours of online or in-person training and (if above the age of 18) a background check. Some of the officials who’ve achieved only the basic level of certification do have professional experience. PRO has foreign officials to work games who are based in the U.S., and those officials achieved the base level of certification as a requirement to work MLS games.

The “regional” license goes to referees who are at least 18 and have been working as officials for at least two years. Certification as a regional referee involves completing at least 25 games as a referee and 15 games as an assistant referee at the adult amateur level along with a host of other training requirements and a fitness test. They’re also subject to multiple “match evaluations,” real-life examinations of their performance at the adult amateur and U-18 or U-19 youth level. Adult amateur games are matches with a center referee and at least two assistant referees.

U.S. Soccer’s highest level of certification is the “national” license. National referees are 21 and older, chosen via an application process and hold regional licenses for at least two consecutive years. They’ve been a part of at least 65 games at the adult amateur level and have to complete extensive training in-person. They also have to meet FIFA’s fitness requirements and have their own, more stringent in-person performance evaluations.

The jump in pressure and stakes for some of these officials is significant. Some have recently been involved in college matches attended by very few fans. Over the weekend, they will call matches in sold-out stadiums and under intense scrutiny.

The 2024 season kicked off earlier this week with Inter Miami’s 2-0 win against Real Salt Lake , f eaturing the return of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez ’s debut. From an officiating standpoint, Wednesday’s match largely went off without incident. A broader test will come this weekend when PRO’s collection of replacements will call the week’s remaining 14 games.

The center referees officiating this weekend’s matches have disparate experience levels. Many have officiated extensively in the USL Championship, USL League One, MLS Next Pro and the now-defunct North American Soccer League. Others have experience calling U.S. Open Cup matches and a handful have even served in some capacity in MLS and NWSL matches.

(Photo: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports)

Get all-access to exclusive stories.

Subscribe to The Athletic for in-depth coverage of your favorite players, teams, leagues and clubs. Try a week on us.