Assignments
Referee assignments for Divisional round: Blakeman, Cheffers, McAulay, Morelli
Clete Blakeman, Carl Cheffers, Terry McAulay, and Pete Morelli are the referees in the Divisional Playoffs.
Updated Friday, Jan. 10Â to include full crews
Football Zebras has confirmed the officiating crews for the Divisional Playoffs. Officials are listed with their uniform number, years experience (including this season), the crew each official worked with in the regular season (by the referee’s name), college, and outside occupation.
All times are Eastern.
Three alternates are assigned to each game: one is designated for the offensive backfield (a referee or umpire), one is on the line of scrimmage (head linesman or line judge), and one is a deep position (side judge, field judge, or back judge).
The prior playoff experience listed for the crew chief includes his service as an NFL official, including as referee and any other crew position (excluding alternate assignments).
The eventual Super Bowl officials will be working in the divisional playoffs, but it is not known at this time who is on that crew.
Saturday, Jan. 11
NFC Divisional Playoff: Saints at Seahawks, 4:30 p.m. (Fox)
Terry McAulay is the referee, who is in his 16th year and 13th as referee. This is McAulay’s 13th postseason assignment (2 wild card playoffs, 2 divisional playoffs, 7 conference championships, and Super Bowls XXXIX and XLIII). His Super Bowl assignments were both as a referee.
| Â | Â | Â | Yr. | Crew | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 77 | Terry McAulay | 16 | Â | Louisiana State | college officiating coordinator |
| U | 124 | Carl Paganelli | 14 | Winter | Michigan State | retired federal probation officer |
| HL | 37 | Jim Howey | 15 | Winter | Erskine College | director of adult education |
| LJ | 84 | Mark Steinkerchner | 20 | McAulay | Akron | vice-president |
| FJ | 60 | Gary Cavaletto | 11 | Corrente | Hancock | general manager, agricultural operations |
| SJ | 73 | Joe Larrew | 12 | Parry | St Louis | attorney |
| BJ | 111 | Terrence Miles | 6 | Blakeman | Arizona State | quality control manager |
- Alternates: Bruce Stritesky (backfield), Adrian Hill (linesman), Keith Washington (deep)
- Replay official: Earnie Frantz
- Replay assistant: Brian Matoren
AFC Divisional Playoff: Colts at Patriots, 8:15 p.m. (CBS)
Pete Morelli is the referee, who is in his 17th year and 12th as referee. This is Morelli’s 14th postseason assignment (6 wild card playoffs, 5 divisional playoffs, 2 conference championships, and Super Bowl XXXVI). His Super Bowl assignment was as a field judge.
| Â | Â | Â | Yr. | Crew | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 135 | Pete Morelli | 17 | Â | St Mary’s | high school principal |
| U | 53 | Garth DeFelice | 16 | Blakeman | San Diego State | distribution center manager, beverage company |
| HL | 106 | Wayne Mackie | 7 | Steratore | Colgate | director of operations, housing |
| LJ | 101 | Carl Johnson | 10 | Morelli | Nicholls State | full-time official |
| FJ | 89 | Jon Lucivansky | 5 | Morelli | Minnesota | college educator |
| SJ | 15 | Rick Patterson | 18 | Coleman | Wofford | banker |
| BJ | 30 | Todd Prukop | 5 | Cheffers | Cal State-Fullerton | medical sales representative |
- Alternates: (not confirmed)
- Replay official: Jim Lampetina
- Replay assistant: Jim Pearson
- Supervisor: Ed Coukart
Sunday, Jan. 12
NFC Divisional Playoff: 49ers at Panthers, 1 p.m. (Fox)
Carl Cheffers is the referee, who is in his 14th season and 6th as referee. This is Cheffers’ 8th postseason assignment (3 wild card playoffs, 3 divisional playoffs, 2 conference championships).
| Â | Â | Â | Yr. | Crew | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 51 | Carl Cheffers | 14 | Â | California-Irvine | sales manager |
| U | 71 | Ruben Fowler | 8 | Leavy | Huston-Tillotson | retired firefighter |
| HL | 54 | George Hayward | 23 | Corrente | Missouri Western | vice-president and manager, warehouse company |
| LJ | 100 | Tom Symonette | 10 | Cheffers | Florida | certified public accountant |
| FJ | 88 | Scott Steenson | 23 | Winter | North Texas | commercial real estate developer |
| SJ | 62 | Ronald Torbert | 4 | Corrente | Michigan State | attorney |
| BJ | 133 | Steve Freeman | 13 | Triplette | Mississippi State | custom home builder |
- Â Alternates: (not confirmed)
- Replay official: Charles Stewart
- Replay assistant: Jimmy Oldham
AFC Divisional Playoff: Chargers at Broncos, 4:30 p.m. (CBS)
Clete Blakeman is the referee, who is in his 6th season and 4th as referee. This is Blakeman’s 3rd postseason assignment (2 wild card playoffs, first divisional playoffs). Blakeman missed the playoffs last season; because he could not earn a playoff assignment in his first year as an official or as a referee, it was the only season in his NFL career that he did not qualify.
| Â | Â | Â | Yr. | Crew | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 34 | Clete Blakeman | 6 | Â | Nebraska | attorney |
| U | 11 | Fred Bryan | 5 | Corrente | Northern Iowa | superintendent, juvenile correctional facility |
| HL | 48 | Jim Mello | 10 | Vinovich | Northeastern | facilities manager |
| LJ | 45 | Jeff Seeman | 12 | Steratore | Minnesota | brokerage sales |
| FJ | 25 | Bob Waggoner | 17 | Steratore | Juniata College | retired probation officer |
| SJ | 16 | David Wyant | 23 | Triplette | Virginia | consulting engineer |
| BJ | 105 | Dino Paganelli | 8 | Steratore | Aquinas College | educator |
- Alternates: Tony Michalek (umpire), Tom Stephan (line judge), Allen Baynes (side judge)
- Replay official: Mark Burns
- Replay assistant: Ted Campbell
