Anderson leads Super officiating crew

Super Bowl XLV: Steelers vs. Packers

Here are the officiating assignments for Super Bowl XLV in Dallas, listed with the head referee they worked under  in the regular season:

• R — #66 Walt Anderson (15th year, 8th as referee)
• U — #31 Chad Brown (19th year, Ed Hochuli)
• HL — #79 Kent Payne (7th year, Carl Cheffers)
• LJ — #35 John Hussey (9th year, Pete Morelli)
• FJ — #67 Doug Rosenbaum (10th year, Jerome Boger)
• SJ — #116 Mike Weatherford (9th year, Gene Steratore)
• BJ — #93 Scott Helverson (8th year, Scott Green)
• Replay Assistant — Tommy Moore (Mike Carey)
• Video Operator —Bud Alexander (Carey)
• Alternates — Jerome Boger (R), Rich Hall (U), Tom Symonette  (LJ), Gary Cavaletto (FJ), Dino Paganelli (BJ)

This is Anderson’s second Super Bowl. After the 2000 season, he officiated in Super Bowl XXXV as a line judge. This will be Anderson’s 14th postseason assignment; in addition to the two Super Bowls , he has worked three conference championships, two divisional playoffs, and seven wild cards.

This is the second Super Bowl for Brown (who officiated with Anderson in XXXV) and Helverson (XLII, 2007 season).

This postseason, Hussey and Weatherford officiated in the wild card round, and Brown officiated a divisional playoff. Of the alternates, Symonette and Paganelli officiated the AFC championship, Cavaletto in the divisional playoffs, and Rich Hall in the wild card. Boger is the only alternate not to have a postseason assignment.

To receive a Super Bowl assignment, officials must be the highest rated at their position and must have worked a conference title game. (In order to be a conference title official, one must be ranked in the top 3 in their position, have five years’ NFL experience, and have worked a postseason game in a prior year.)

In our coverage this year, Hussey was part of the infamous 9-yard first down the Steelers were awarded against the Jets in Week 15.

File photo of Anderson from 2009 courtesy of Life.