Ed Hochuli
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Edward G. Hochuli ( ; born December 25, 1950) is an American attorney and retired
American football official In gridiron football, an official is a person who has responsibility in enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. During professional and most college football games, seven officials operate on the field. Since 2015, Division ...
. He has served as an attorney at Jones, Skelton & Hochuli, P.L.C. since 1983, and was an official in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) from
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...
to
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; his uniform number was 85. Before becoming a football official, he played college football for four seasons at the
University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stud ...
(UTEP). Hochuli worked numerous
playoff The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
games including two Super Bowls. He is best known for his athletic/muscular physique (height: ; weight: ), and for explaining on-field rulings in a manner that is comprehensive yet also clear and concise. In a
poll Poll, polled, or polling may refer to: Figurative head counts * Poll, a formal election ** Election verification exit poll, a survey taken to verify election counts ** Polling, voting to make decisions or determine opinions ** Polling places o ...
conducted by
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in 2008, Hochuli tied fellow referee Mike Carey for "best referee" votes (eight each) among NFL
head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...
es. In his 28th season in the league and 26th as a referee (crew chief) with the
2017 NFL season The 2017 NFL season was the 98th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL) and the 52nd of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 7, 2017, with Kansas City defeating defending Super Bowl LI champion New England i ...
, Hochuli's officiating crew consisted of umpire Shawn Smith, down judge Greg Bradley, line judge Rusty Baynes, field judge Dale Shaw, side judge Alex Kemp, and back judge Scott Helverson. After the retirements of Gerald Austin and
Larry Nemmers Larry Nemmers (born July 12, 1943) is a retired educator and better known as a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL). Nemmers made his debut as an NFL official in the 1985 season and continued in this role until ...
following the 2007 season, Hochuli became the NFL's longest-tenured referee for the next decade. He announced his own retirement in March 2018. In 2019, his son Shawn Hochuli—previously a referee in the
Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
and a
back judge In gridiron football, an official is a person who has responsibility in enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. During professional and most college football games, seven officials operate on the field. Since 2015, Division ...
in the NFL—was promoted to referee.


Personal life


Early life

Hochuli was born on December 25, 1950, in
Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...
living there until age eight before his family moved to
Tucson, Arizona , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...
. He was the second child of six. He went to
Canyon del Oro High School Canyon del Oro High School (CDO) is a comprehensive public high school in Oro Valley, Arizona, located north of Tucson at the base of Pusch Ridge. Established in 1964, CDO is one of three high schools of Amphitheater Public Schools and serves ...
in the Tucson suburb of
Oro Valley, Arizona Oro Valley, incorporated in 1974, is a suburban town located north of Tucson, Arizona, United States, in Pima County. According to the 2020 census, the population of the town is 47,070, an increase from 29,700 in 2000. Dubbed the "Upscale Te ...
graduating in 1969. During his high school years, he participated in football (earning all-state honors twice),
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
,
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, 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." He earned a
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
degree Degree may refer to: As a unit of measurement * Degree (angle), a unit of angle measurement ** Degree of geographical latitude ** Degree of geographical longitude * Degree symbol (°), a notation used in science, engineering, and mathematics ...
with honors from the
University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stud ...
in 1972. While studying at UTEP, Hochuli played
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...
on the school's football team from 1969 to 1972. As a football player he earned All-
Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, and Texas. Due to mos ...
academic honors in 1972. His father, Walter Hochuli, was involved with law as a
wills Wills may refer to: * Will (law) A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the pr ...
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 University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law is the law school at the University of Arizona located in Tucson, Arizona and was the first law school founded in the State of Arizona, opening its doors in 1915. Also known as University of Ar ...
in 1976. While in law school, Hochuli served as a law clerk for two years under
United States District Judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...
Carl Muecke. After completing his education Hochuli was admitted to the
State Bar of Arizona The State Bar of Arizona is the integrated (mandatory) bar association of the U.S. state of Arizona. The Arizona Supreme Court licenses lawyers, while the State Bar administers the regulation of the practice of law. The State Bar, under the direct ...
.


Family

Hochuli resides in the
Phoenix metropolitan area The Phoenix Metropolitan Area – also the Valley of the Sun, the Salt River Valley, or Metro Phoenix (known by most locals simply as “the Valley”) – is the largest metropolitan area in the Southwestern United States, centered on the city ...
with his wife Cathie. They have six children and 10 grandchildren. Shawn Hochuli is one of his sons and played college football at Pitzer College. Shawn joined his father's profession as an official, working as a side judge in his first NFL season in 2014. Shawn Hochuli also worked in
Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
and
arenafootball2 The AF2 (often styled as af2, and short for arenafootball2) was the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like its parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football ru ...
games. On August 13, 2011, a day after his father refereed a preseason game between the New England Patriots and
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...
, Shawn was the head referee for
ArenaBowl XXIV ArenaBowl XXIV was the 24th edition of the championship in the Arena Football League (AFL). The American Conference champion, Jacksonville Sharks, defeated the National Conference champion, Arizona Rattlers, 73–70. It was played on August 12, ...
between the
Jacksonville Sharks The Jacksonville Sharks are a professional indoor football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, playing their home games at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. Beginning in 2017, the Sharks began play as charter members of the National Arena Leag ...
and Arizona Rattlers. Scott Hochuli, another of Ed Hochuli's sons, owns Hochuli Design & Remodeling Team which is a company in the Phoenix area that specializes in residential design and construction. He is married to Lorrie Hochuli and they have two daughters: Devan and Ryann. Scott Hochuli's brother, Daniel Hochuli, is the town attorney for
Sahuarita, Arizona Sahuarita is a town in Pima County, Arizona, United States. Sahuarita is located south of the Tohono O'odham Nation and abuts the north end of Green Valley, 15 miles (24 km) south of Tucson. The population was 34,134 at th2020 census His ...
, and his brother Peter is a judge at the Pima County Juvenile Court in
Tucson , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...
.


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 began with five partners and seven associates and has expanded to over 80 attorneys. He 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. He claims to be involved in 200 cases at any time. Hochuli finds interest in trying cases, calling it an "adrenaline rush" 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 The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...
. 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." He 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 Glenn Scobey Warner (April 5, 1871 – September 7, 1954), most commonly known as Pop Warner, was an American college football coach at various institutions who is responsible for several key aspects of the modern game. Included among his inn ...
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 Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
where he was a Little League Baseball
umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...
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 The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eig ...
and Pacific-10 Conference as a line judge during the 1980s.


NFL career

Hochuli was hired by the NFL in 1990 as a back judge after applying to the league before the
1989 NFL season The 1989 NFL season was the 70th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle announced his retirement. Paul Tagliabue was eventually chosen to succeed him, taking over on November 5. Due to ...
. His first game in the league was on August 11, 1990, at
Lambeau Field Lambeau Field is an outdoor athletic stadium in the north central United States, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The home field of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), it opened in 1957 as City Stadium, replacing ...
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 NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally ...
(WLAF), a spring developmental league, in 1991 and 1992. Using 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 Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most com ...
and forced to retire. Hochuli had worked a
pre-season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...
game that year in
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, as a back judge when he received a telephone call following the game from then-Senior Director of Officiating,
Jerry Seeman Jerry T. Seeman (March 11, 1936 − November 24, 2013) was an American football official in the National Football League (NFL) from 1975 to 1990 and was the NFL's Senior Director of Officiating from 1991 to 2001, succeeding Art McNally. In his 1 ...
. Seeman asked Hochuli to work as referee for the first time when the
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...
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 Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...
,
Jerry Markbreit Jerry Markbreit (born March 23, 1935) is a former American football referee in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons and became one of the most recognizable referees in the game. Markbreit officiated football games for 43 seasons. F ...
, a four-time Super Bowl referee, as the greatest influence on his career. In his second year as referee, he worked the 1993
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Day game between the
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...
and
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...
in Irving, Texas. During the final moments of the game, Miami placekicker
Pete Stoyanovich Peter Stoyanovich (born April 28, 1967) is an American football placekicker of Macedonian descent. His father Mijalce and his mother Slobodanka are from Ljubojno, North Macedonia. He played with the Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs and brief ...
had a field goal attempt blocked. The Cowboys'
Leon Lett Leon Lett Jr. (born October 12, 1968) is a former American football defensive tackle and coach who is the assistant defensive line coach for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). Lett previously played in the NFL for 11 seaso ...
inadvertently touched the loose ball before the Dolphins'
Jeff Dellenbach Jeffrey Alan Dellenbach (born February 14, 1963) is a former American football center in the National Football League (NFL) for the Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, Green Bay Packers, and the Philadelphia Eagles. He was a member of the Gr ...
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. Stoyanovich booted the ensuing winning field goal for the Miami win. Hochuli was a referee for the 1999 AFC Divisional Playoff game between the
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...
and
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...
; it was the final game for quarterback Dan Marino and coach Jimmy Johnson as the Jaguars won 62–7. Hochuli was a referee in the 2003 Divisional Playoff game between the Packers and the Eagles. 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 The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
in
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...
,
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
as part of the league's "
Fútbol Americano "Fútbol Americano" was the marketing name used for the first National Football League (NFL) regular season game held outside the United States. Played on October 2, 2005, at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, the Arizona Cardinals defeated the San ...
" 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. Jeff Bergman joined Hochuli for the wild card bout between the San Diego Chargers and New York Jets on January 8, 2005. Hochuli officiated the first regular season game at
University of Phoenix Stadium A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
on September 10, 2006, when the Cardinals hosted the 49ers. He was the referee for the game between the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers, played December 17, 2006, that included Green Bay
quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
Brett Favre Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ; born October 10, 1969) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 consecutive starts from 1992 to 201 ...
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 The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (commonly called the Metrodome) was a domed sports stadium located in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It opened in 1982 as a replacement for Metropolitan Stadium, the former home of the National Football League ...
in Minneapolis, Minnesota to break the record previously held by Dan Marino. He also reffed the Week 17 game in 2008 in which the Lions became the first of two NFL teams so far to go 0–16 in a season, with the other being the 2017 Browns. 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 A microphone, colloquially called a mic or mike (), is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and publ ...
, "There was no foul on the play. It was not a hold. The defender was just overpowered." On September 14, 2008, Hochuli officiated a game between the San Diego Chargers and the
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...
. He made an incorrect call with 1:17 left in the game, while Denver was in possession of the ball at the San Diego one-yard line and they were trailing the Chargers by seven points. On a second-down play, Denver quarterback
Jay Cutler Jay Christopher Cutler (born April 29, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the Van ...
fumbled the ball, and it was recovered by San Diego linebacker
Tim Dobbins Timothy Lance Dobbins (born December 10, 1982) is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL Draft. Dobbins played college football at Iowa State. Early years Dobbins atten ...
. Ed Hochuli blew his whistle during the play, signaling that the play was dead and ruling an
incomplete pass An incomplete pass is a term in gridiron football which means that a legal forward pass is not successfully caught by an eligible offensive player within the field of play. An incomplete pass can occur if (1) the ball hits the ground in the field ...
. Hochuli later wrote, "Affecting the outcome of a game is a devastating feeling. Officials strive for perfection – I failed miserably." The NFL passed a rule the following offseason allowing such plays to be reviewable under the instant replay rule for the
2009 NFL season The 2009 NFL season was the 90th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL). The 50th anniversary of the original eight charter members of the American Football League was celebrated during this season. The preseason started ...
. 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."


2001 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$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
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 60 percent immediate increase in salary, followed by an 85 percent salary increase in 2002, and a 100 percent increase in 2003. For the first time in league history, replacement officials were used during the regular season. Hochuli had distributed an
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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 Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...
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.


Celebrity

Hochuli's presence on the football field created a cult following. His rise in popularity is believed to have been started by
Phil Simms Phillip Martin Simms (born November 3, 1955) is an American former football quarterback who spent his entire 15-year professional career playing for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He is currently a television sport ...
, a former NFL quarterback and current
color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main ( play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and ...
for the ''
NFL on CBS The ''NFL on CBS'' is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that are produced by CBS Sports, the sports division of the CBS television network in the United States. The network has aired NFL game telecasts sin ...
'', who made reference to the size of Hochuli's arms during a telecast. There are internet websites that sell Hochuli merchandise as well as
blog A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order s ...
s with his
namesake A namesake is a person, geographic location, or other entity bearing the name of another. History The word is first attested around 1635, and probably comes from the phrase "for one's name's sake", which originates in English Bible translations ...
. He is often affectionately referred to as "Hochules", a
portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsHercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...
", 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 ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...
'' 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 extends to the streets, in airports, and in the courtroom. He has been approached by notable athletes such as former
National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
(NBA) player
Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "Chuck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons ...
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 NFL Network (occasionally abbreviated on-air as NFLN) is an American sports-oriented pay television network owned by the National Football League (NFL) and is part of NFL Media, which also includes NFL.com, NFL Films, NFL Mobile, NFL Now and NF ...
's ''Six Days to Sunday'' in 2005. The half-hour
television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
detailed the game preparations that Hochuli went through from Monday to Saturday during the season. The preparation work includes fifteen hours of video tape game review, a "couple hours" completing administrative tasks for the NFL, reading the
rulebook Sports The Laws of the Game may refer to the codified rules of a number of different sports: *Laws of the Game (association football) *Laws of Australian rules football *Bandy Playing Rules * Rules of chess *Laws of cricket * Laws of rugby leagu ...
, taking a weekly written
exam An examination (exam or evaluation) or test is an educational assessment intended to measure a test-taker's knowledge, skill, aptitude, physical fitness, or classification in many other topics (e.g., beliefs). A test may be administered verba ...
on
rules Rule or ruling may refer to: Education * Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE), a university in Cambodia Human activity * The exercise of political or personal control by someone with authority or power * Business rule, a rule pert ...
, and communicating with league supervisors. Hochuli's celebrity status off the field includes being mentioned on the " Top Ten List" during the edition of January 29, 2002 of the '' Late Show with David Letterman''. His likeness appears in the ''
Madden NFL ''Madden NFL'' (known as ''John Madden Football'' until 1993) is an American football video game series developed by EA Tiburon for EA Sports. It is named after Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and commentator John Madden and sold more than 130 m ...
''
video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
franchise beginning with ''
Madden NFL 06 ''Madden NFL 06'' is an American football video game which was released in 2005. It is also a launch game for the Xbox 360. It is the 16th installment of the Madden NFL series by EA Sports, named for noted color commentator John Madden. The produ ...
''. He appeared on the cover of the October 8, 2012 issue of ''Sports Illustrated''. In 2015, he became the subject of "Fallacy Ref", a series of Internet
memes A meme ( ) is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme. A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural i ...
about
logical fallacies In philosophy, a formal fallacy, deductive fallacy, logical fallacy or non sequitur (; Latin for " tdoes not follow") is a pattern of reasoning rendered invalid by a flaw in its logical structure that can neatly be expressed in a standard logic syst ...
.


References


Further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hochuli, Ed 1950 births Living people College football officials National Football League officials UTEP Miners football players Arizona lawyers James E. Rogers College of Law alumni Sportspeople from Milwaukee Sportspeople from Tucson, Arizona Players of American football from Arizona University of Texas at El Paso alumni