Be the Referee: Always Stay Registered
September 14, 2017
This week, MHSAA assistant director Mark Uyl relays a quick story of how a retired NFL official stepped in to give a pair of junior varsity teams a chance to play another game this season.
Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.
Below is this week's segment – Always Stay Registered - Listen
As Thursday night of Labor Day weekend arrived, with a full slate of football games having long been scheduled, a late junior varsity game was added at the last minute.
The problem was that most officiating crews had already been assigned to other games months in advance.
That’s when one of Michigan’s most decorated officials, retired NFL and three-time Super Bowl official Dean Look, stepped up to help out. Dean, along with four other area officials, put together a crew for that night, so these two junior varsity teams could play.
Many officials from our state who have moved up the ladder to the college and professional ranks have kept their MHSAA registration current to help out on nights like this at the last minute.
Past editions
September 7: Other Football Rules Changes - Listen
August 31: Pop-Up Onside Kicks - Listen
August 24: Blindside Blocks - Listen
In Memoriam: Haack, Locke, Newton
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
August 17, 2016
From time to time, we receive news of the passing of people who have played major roles in the near-century history of MHSAA athletics. Below are notes on a few who left us this summer but made major contributions.
Ray Haack, St. Joseph – Haack taught and coached at Reese High School before serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, then was employed by St. Joseph High School from 1946-86. According to his obituary, Haack built a 198-86 record coaching the Bears’ boys basketball team from 1951-66. He led the 1951 and 1953 teams to Class B championships. He died July 6 at the age of 96.
Ralph Locke, Albion – Locke was an MHSAA registered official for 38 years, for basketball during his entire tenure and for football beginning in 1986. He officiated a number of MHSAA tournament contests, mostly in football but also boys basketball, and worked Semifinal and the Class AA Final for football (Detroit Catholic Central 27, Rockford 23) in 1998. He died July 29 at age 61.
Bill Newton, Farmington – Newton led Farmington to an unexpected first MHSAA ice hockey championship in 2014, his first season as varsity coach, as his team upset reigning champion Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood in the Quarterfinal. His teams finished 44-33-4 over three seasons with a league title this past winter, and he resigned at the end of last season in part to continue his fight against cancer, according to a report by the Farmington Observer & Eccentric. Newton had previously coached as a varsity assistant for four years and junior varsity assistant for two, the report said. He died Aug. 6 at age 55.