News
Brad Rogers to fill newest white hat vacancy
Field judge Brad Rogers has been promoted to the referee position, to replace retiree and three-time Super Bowl official John Parry.
Field judge Brad Rogers, who will be entering his third season as an NFL official, has been promoted to the referee position, to replace retiree and three-time Super Bowl official John Parry, who retired on April 1. He will be the third rookie white hat for the 2019 season, joining Adrian Hill and Scott Novak, who were promoted in late February.
Rogers completed his second season as a field judge in 2018, as a member of Shawn Smith’s crew; Smith was a first-year crew chief that year. He was the field judge on Pete Morelli’s crew during his rookie season. He worked the Divisional Playoff game in New England between the Chargers and Patriots this postseason, his first year eligible.
Previously he worked in the Southeastern Conference and Conference USA as a referee. Rogers got his start officiating in high school football in Texas in 1991, and one of his high school crews featured officials who all eventually worked Division I college football.
Rogers worked at the referee position in a preseason tryout this past season, pictured above, following his first year in the NFL. This means he was on the officiating department’s radar very early, and has now assumed his new role as a white hat.
Outside of the NFL, Rogers is an educator in the business department at Lubbock Christian University in Lubbock, Texas.
There are now seven new white hats over the past two seasons, the most since the AFL-NFL merger. However, with still some time before May 15, the end of the “dark period” for officials, there may be some more turnover in the roster — not only at the referee position — to keep an eye out for.
Leaving the field
| Â | Â | Â | Yrs | Retired | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 42 | Jeff Triplette | 22 | 2018, to ESPN | Wake Forest | restructuring consultant |
| R | 77 | Terry McAulay | 20 | 2018, to NBC | Louisiana State | college officiating coordinator |
| R | 85 | Ed Hochuli | 28 | 2018, to officiating consultant | Texas-El Paso | attorney |
| R | 114 | Gene Steratore | 15 | 2018, to CBS | Kent State | co-owner, supply company |
| R | 65 | Walt Coleman | 30 | 2019 | Arkansas | dairy processor manager |
| R | 132 | John Parry | 19 | 2019, to ESPN | Purdue | financial advisor |
| R | 135 | Pete Morelli | 22 | 2019 | St. Mary’s | retired high school principal |
Promoted to referee
| Â | Â | Â | Yrs* | Replaces | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 55 | Alex Kemp | 6 | 2018, Triplette | Central Michigan | insurance agent |
| R | 83 | Shawn Hochuli | 6 | 2018, Ed Hochuli | Claremont | financial advisor |
| R | 14 | Shawn Smith | 5 | 2018, McAulay | Ferris State | internal auditor |
| R | 19 | Clay Martin | 5 | 2018, Steratore | Oklahoma Baptist | high school basketball coach |
| R | 29 | Adrian Hill | 10 | 2019, Coleman/Morelli | Buffalo | software engineer |
| R | 1 | Scott Novak | 6 | 2019, Coleman/Morelli | Phoenix | sales manager |
| R | 126 | Brad Rogers | 3 | 2019, Parry | Lubbock Christian | college professor |
*includes 2019 season
