Ed Hochuli Edward G . Hochuli ( born December 25 , 1950 ) is an attorney for the firm of Jones , Skelton & Hochuli , P . L . C . since 1983 , and has been an American football official in the National Football League ( NFL ) since the 1990 NFL season . His uniform number is 85 . Prior to his officiating career , he played college football for four seasons at the University of Texas at El Paso ( UTEP ) . Hochuli is one of the most respected officials in the NFL , having worked numerous playoff games , including two Super Bowl s . He is also known for his athletic physique and explanations on the football field . In a poll conducted by ESPN in 2008 , Hochuli tied referee Mike Carey for " best referee " votes among NFL head coach es with eight . Beginning his twenty - second season in the league and twentieth as referee ( crew chief ) with the 2011 NFL season , Hochuli ' s officiating crew consists of umpire Rich Hall , head linesman Mark Hittner , line judge Adrian Hill , field judge Craig Wrolstad , side judge Ronald Torbert and back judge Don Carey . Personal . Early life . Hochuli was born on December 25 , 1950 in Milwaukee , Wisconsin , and lived there until age eight before his family moved to Tucson , Arizona . He was the second child born out of a total of six sibling s . During his childhood , he attended and later graduated from Canyon del Oro High School in the Tucson suburb of Oro Valley , Arizona in 1969 . During his high school years , he had an interest in sports as he participated in football ( earning all - state honors twice ) , basketball , wrestling , and track . He attributes his competitive nature to having an older brother , Chip Hochuli . Ed Hochuli told " Referee " in a 2004 interview , " I was somebody who wanted to be good and I wanted my brother to be proud of me , and I wanted my parents to be proud of me . " Following high school , he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from UTEP in 1972 . While at UTEP , Hochuli played linebacker on the school ' s football team from 1969 to 1972 . As a football player , he earned All - Western Athletic Conference academic honors in 1972 . His father , Walter Hochuli , was involved with law as a wills and estate planner , which influenced Ed Hochuli to pursue a career in law . He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Arizona Law School in 1976 . While in law school , Hochuli served as a law clerk for two years under United States District Judge Carl Muecke . Upon completion of his education , Hochuli was admitted to the State Bar of Arizona . Family . Hochuli resides in the Phoenix metropolitan area . He has a total of six children and ten grandchildren . He and his wife Cathie reside in Arizona . Of the six kids , Shawn Hochuli played college football at Pomona College and is following his father ' s profession as an official , currently working college football , Arena Football League , and arenafootball2 games - on August 13 , 2011 , a day after his father refereed a preseason game between the New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars , Shawn was head referee for ArenaBowl XXIV between the Jacksonville Sharks and Arizona Rattlers . Scott Hochuli owns Hochuli Construction Team L . L . C . , a company that specializes in residential construction in the Phoenix area . Two of Ed Hochuli ' s brothers are in law . Attorney . Hochuli is a trial lawyer and a partner in the Arizona law firm of Jones , Skelton and Hochuli , P . L . C . since it was founded in 1983 . The firm started with five partners and seven associates , and has expanded to over eighty attorneys . Hochuli specializes in civil litigation in the areas of Bad Faith and Extra - Contractual Liability , Complex Litigation , Insurance Coverage and Fraud , Legal Malpractice and Professional Liability , Product Liability Defense , Trucking and Transportation Industry Defense , and Wrongful Death and Personal Injury Defense , and claims to be involved in two hundred cases at any time . Hochuli finds interest in trying cases , calling it an " adrenaline rush " and adding , " You love that challenge - - the competition , if you will - - of it . It ' s a game . It ' s obviously a very important game to people , and I don ' t mean to diminish the importance of it . . . . You have to follow these rules , and there ' s a win - or - lose outcome . You ' re on a stage . " He is admitted to practice in Arizona state and federal courts and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit . His recognition as an attorney includes being named " Best Lawyers in America " since 2003 and " Southwest Super Lawyers " in 2007 . " Super Lawyers " includes only the top five percent of lawyers in a state based on point totals , as chosen by peers and through independent research by " Law & Politics " . Comparing his law and officiating professions , he says " A trial is nothing , pressure - wise , compared to the NFL . … I have that long [ " snaps his fingers " ] to make a decision with a million people watching and second - guessing ( by video ) in slow - motion . You ' ve got to be right or wrong . I love the satisfaction when you are right — and the agony when you are wrong . " Hochuli finds similarities between the football field and courtroom saying , " On the football field , people like that I ' m in charge and know what I ' m doing , but a lot of the time , it ' s just appearance . I ' m going to sell you on my decision . It ' s the same in the courtroom . You don ' t stand in front of a jury and say , ' I think my client is innocent . ' You say , ' We ' re right ! ' " Officiating career . Early years . Hochuli began officiating Pop Warner football games as a law student to earn additional income , which was suggested by one of his former high school coaches as " a way to stay in touch with the game " . His interest in officiating carried over into baseball , where he was a Little League Baseball umpire from 1970 to 1973 . Progressing to the high school level in 1973 , he focused on football , and officiated games in the Tucson area until 1985 . In addition to high school officiating , he worked college football games for the Big Sky Conference and Pacific - 10 Conference as a line judge during the 1980s . NFL career . Rise to refereedom . Hochuli was hired by the NFL in 1990 as a back judge after applying to the league before the 1989 NFL season . His first game in the league was on August 11 , 1990 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay , Wisconsin . During his first two years in the league , he was assigned to the officiating crew headed by referee Howard Roe . To gain additional experience as a back judge and eventually a referee , Hochuli participated in the NFL ' s partnership with the World League of American Football ( WLAF ) , a spring developmental league , in 1991 and 1992 . Utilizing his experience in the WLAF , as well as the organization , precision , and analytical skills he learned while working under Roe ' s guidance , Hochuli desired to become a crew chief in the NFL . He was promoted to referee in 1992 when longtime referee Stan Kemp was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig ' s Disease and forced to retire . Hochuli had worked a pre - season game that year in Tokyo , Japan as a back judge when he received a telephone call following the game from then - Senior Director of Officiating , Jerry Seeman . Seeman asked Hochuli to work as referee for the first time when the Denver Broncos hosted the Cincinnati Bengals in a pre - season game . Since becoming a referee , Hochuli headed the officiating crews for Super Bowl XXXII and Super Bowl XXXVIII , and he was selected as an alternate for Super Bowl XXXI , Super Bowl XXXVII , and Super Bowl XXXIX . In addition to working two Super Bowls , he has officiated five conference championship games as of the start of the 2007 NFL season . Every officiating game performance is graded by the league each week . These grades determine which officials are assigned playoff games , as well as the Super Bowl . Hochuli credits his mentor , Jerry Markbreit , a four - time Super Bowl referee , as the greatest influence on his career . Officials ' strike . Hochuli has served as the head of the NFL Referees Association , the union which represents NFL game officials . The union was responsible for negotiating a new contract for the officials prior to the 2001 NFL season . At the time , salaries ranged from a first - year official earning US $ 1 , 431 a game to a veteran official with twenty years of experience making $ 4 , 330 a game . Officials were looking for a 400 percent increase in salary while the league was offering just 40 percent . During the negotiations , Hochuli believed the issue in finding a resolution was to convince the league that officials are full - time employees . At the start of the season , officials had rejected a league offer of a sixty percent immediate increase in salary , followed by an eighty - five percent salary increase in 2002 , and a one - hundred percent increase in 2003 . For the first time in league history , replacement officials were used during the regular season . Hochuli had distributed an e - mail to 1 , 200 potential replacement officials warning them that " Working as a scab will actually hurt and likely kill any chances you would have of ever getting into the NFL . " He later regretted sending the letter to college football officials across the United States . The stalemate between the union and the league ended on September 19 , 2001 , when officials agreed to a six - year deal from the league with an immediate increase in salary of 50 percent with a raise each year . Officials had been locked out since the final week of pre - season games that year and returned to work on September 23 , 2001 when the league resumed games following the September 11 , 2001 attacks . Notable games . Hochuli has worked memorable games throughout his career . In his second year as referee , he worked the 1993 Thanksgiving Day game between the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins in Irving , Texas . During the final moments of the game , Miami placekicker Pete Stoyanovich had a field goal attempt blocked . The Cowboys ' Leon Lett inadvertently touched the loose ball before the Dolphins ' Jeff Dellenbach pounced on it . At the time , Hochuli had " no idea " what happened during the play and had to confer with three other officials to piece together the sequence of events . With the information gathered from the officials , he ruled that Miami retained possession of the football . On October 2 , 2005 , he officiated the first regular season NFL game played outside the United States when the Arizona Cardinals played the San Francisco 49ers in Mexico City , Mexico as part of the league ' s " Fútbol Americano " marketing campaign . On the first penalty announcement of the game , Hochuli gave the explanation in Spanish to pay respect to the host city and country . He was the referee for the game between the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers , played December 17 , 2006 , that included Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre becoming the all - time leader for pass completions among quarterbacks in the NFL . Favre was unaware that his 4 , 968 pass completions were a record until he was informed during the game by Hochuli . Hochuli was the referee again for another Favre record - breaking moment when Favre threw his 421st touchdown pass of his career on September 30 , 2007 at the Hubert H . Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis , Minnesota to break the record previously held by Dan Marino . One of Hochuli ' s notable explanations came during a 2007 regular season game between the San Diego Chargers and New England Patriots . While nullifying a holding infraction , he announced through his microphone , " There was no foul on the play . It was not a hold . The defender was just overpowered . " Controversial calls . On September 14 , 2008 , Hochuli officiated a now - infamous game between the San Diego Chargers and the Denver Broncos , which become notable for a highly controversial call near the end of regulation play . The call came with 1 : 17 left in the game , while Denver was in possession of the ball at the San Diego one - yard line , trailing the Chargers by seven points . On a second - down play , Denver quarterback Jay Cutler fumbled the ball , and it was recovered by San Diego linebacker Tim Dobbins . Ed Hochuli blew his whistle during the play , signaling that the play was dead and ruling an incomplete pass . Hochuli admitted his mistake and spotted the ball at the point of the fumble , but could not award possession to San Diego , and the play was not reviewable under then - current instant replay rules . Chargers head coach Norv Turner later said after the game , " Ed came over to me and said he blew it . And that to me is not acceptable . " Hochuli responded to the situation , writing , " Affecting the outcome of a game is a devastating feeling . Officials strive for perfection – I failed miserably . " Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was even fined $ 25 , 000 for publicly criticizing Hochuli . The NFL passed a rule the following offseason allowing such plays to be reviewable under the instant replay rule for the 2009 NFL season . Speaking to " Referee " in November 2009 , Hochuli told the magazine , " It was really an easy play . I ’ ve thought many times why I did what I did . The best explanation is it was almost like dyslexia . I realized it was a fumble and did the wrong thing . I realized I was wrong but there was nothing I could do about it . " On December 5 , 2010 at Ford Field in Detroit , Hochuli made a controversial call during a game between the Chicago Bears and the Detroit Lions . It came in the fourth quarter with 9 : 06 left , while the Bears had the ball at the Lions ' 22 - yard line , trailing 20 - 17 . On first down , Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler scrambled for an 8 - yard gain to the 14 , where he was hit by Detroit defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh , who applied a hard , two - handed shove to the upper back . The referee then flagged Suh for unnecessary roughness , ruling that Suh delivered an illegal forearm , " an unnecessary non - football act " . The Bears would then score the winning touchdown one play later . After the game , Lions coach Jim Schwartz disagreed with the call , questioning what else Suh could have done differently . Several Detroit players also disagreed with the call , with receiver Calvin Johnson saying that Suh " didn ’ t go to the elbow . It ’ s obviously a push , a push down . " Former NFL Vice President of Officiating and current Fox Sports analyst Mike Pereira wrote that , " It ' s a judgment call and one you have to live with . Player safety is [ currently ] a huge issue , and there will continue to be an emphasis by the officials to protect all players . " Rich McKay , President of the Atlanta Falcons and co - chairman of the NFL Competition Committee , acknowledged that , " At full speed , you can see where ( Hochuli ) saw at least what he saw . . . Player safety is always going to be at the forefront ( for ) these officials . I ' m not one that ' s going to sit here and say right call or wrong call . . . And what Ed Hochuli saw and what he called . . . he thought he saw it , and he called it that way . " The league fined Suh $ 15 , 000 for the hit , although he appealed that decision . Celebrity . Hochuli ' s presence on the football field has created a cult following . His rise in popularity is believed to have been started by Phil Simms , a former NFL quarterback and current color commentator for the " NFL on CBS " , who made reference to the size of Hochuli ' s arms during a telecast . On the Internet , websites that sell Hochuli merchandise as well as blog s with his namesake exist . He is often affectionately referred to as " Hochules " , a combination of his last name and " Hercules " , in homage to his large biceps . While he is aware of his celebrity status , Hochuli does not understand it . He said in a " USA Today " interview , " I get a kick out of the notoriety , because I ' m just a referee . I ' m not the players . The players are the game . They ' re what this is all about . I get notoriety because I explain things , and I get notoriety because I have a decent physique , which is funny because I ' m a shrimp , a peewee compared to those players . Neither one of those things has anything to do with whether I ' m a good referee . " His recognition stems to the streets , in airports , and in the courtroom . He has been approached by notable athletes such as former National Basketball Association ( NBA ) player Charles Barkley at the airport . " It never ceases to amaze me , " Hochuli told the " Arizona Daily Star " . " The number of people that will just come up to me and recognize me . " He appreciates the attention , saying , " I enjoy the fact that there are people who like me as a referee . I hear from a lot of people and I enjoy that . Like anybody , I like praise . Probably because of my personality , I thrive on that more than other people . " Hochuli ' s career as an NFL official has been chronicled on the NFL Network ' s " Six Days to Sunday " in 2005 . The half - hour television program detailed the game preparations that Hochuli goes through from Monday to Saturday during the season . This preparation work includes fifteen hours of video tape game review , a " couple hours " completing administrative tasks for the NFL , reading the rulebook , taking a weekly written exam on rules , and communicating with league supervisors . Hochuli ' s celebrity status off the field includes being mentioned on the " Top Ten List " during the January 29 , 2002 edition of the " Late Show with David Letterman " . His likeness appears in the " Madden NFL " video game franchise starting with " Madden NFL 06 " .