I am a football official. I have officiated from little league to Jr. College but I love doing high school football. I started officiating in junior high school doing intramural basketball for our football and P.E. coach, Bernie Yoacham. He was the guy that started me on my road to officiating. (That's Bernie on the picture above on the right). I didn't really like having to call games with guys that I had to sit next to in another class later on in the day, but it taught me a lot of lessons that one can only learn from having been put in that situation. Life is tough. Tough calls sometimes go for you but for the most part they go against you. Learning to live with it was what he taught us.Just before our last 9th grade football game of the season, Bernie took the 9th graders aside in the cafeteria and told us that for a lot of us, it would be the last time we would ever suit up in football gear again. Some might go on to college, but he was honest in saying it would be a miracle if even 1 made it to a pro team. (He was right, no one ever did. In fact only a few played college ball at all from a team that was undefeated that season.) He told us if we loved sports and wanted to stay close to the game, to start officiating. It was only later, that I would learn to appreciate those words. Now, as a man of 47 with 15 years of football officiating experience, I can see not only the wisdom, but the honesty in those words. I do love the game of football and I am glad to be a part of it today.
