The Seven On-Field Officials and What Each One Watches
Who the seven officials in the striped shirts are, where each one stands on every play, and which part of the game each is responsible for watching, from the line of scrimmage to the end zone.
Twenty-two players and a football move across a field that is 120 yards long including the end zones, and every one of them can commit a foul. The group that watches all of it is small: seven people in black-and-white stripes, spread around the field in a pattern that changes with every formation.
Fans tend to think of "the refs" as one blur. But a football crew is a team with assigned jobs, a lot like a defense: each member has an area, a set of players, and a set of fouls that belong to him or her first. Understanding who looks where explains why a flag comes from an official who seemed to be far from the play, and why two officials sometimes disagree about what they saw.
This guide walks through a standard seven-official crew, which is the norm in the NFL and in most major college football. It also covers how smaller crews work at the high school level, where a crew of seven is the exception.
The crew at a glance
The seven positions are the referee, the umpire, the down judge, the line judge, the field judge, the side judge and the back judge. The names sound similar, so here is a quick reference before the details.
| Position | Short name | Usual area | Main focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Referee | R | Behind the offense, off to one side of the quarterback | The quarterback, the backfield, the crew's final authority |
| Umpire | U | Middle of the field near the line, location varies by level | Interior line play, equipment, the area around the ball |
| Down judge | DJ | On the line of scrimmage, one sideline | Sideline, line play on that side, the chain crew |
| Line judge | LJ | On the line of scrimmage, opposite sideline | Sideline, line play on that side, the clock backup |
| Field judge | FJ | Deep, on the defensive side | Deep pass plays, receivers, kicks |
| Side judge | SJ | Deep, near a sideline | Deep sideline, receivers and runners |
| Back judge | BJ | Deep, middle of the field | Deep middle, tight ends, kicks |
Positions have been renamed and sometimes repositioned over the years. The down judge, for example, was long called the head linesman, and some older books and broadcasts still use that name. Leagues also experiment with where the umpire stands, so check the current manual for the level you watch.
The referee: the one with the white hat
The referee wears a white cap, and the other six wear black ones. That is the simplest way to find the crew leader on a crowded field.
On a typical play the referee lines up in the offensive backfield, behind the quarterback and to one side, roughly a dozen yards from the line. The side of the field depends on which hand the quarterback throws with, which the referee takes note of before the game. From there the referee watches the quarterback and the backs: the exchange of the snap, whether a pass is forward or backward, whether a quarterback was hit after throwing, and whether a fumble happens.
The referee also holds the crew's final authority. If two officials disagree about a ruling or a penalty, the referee makes the final decision, usually after a short conference. The referee is the one who walks to the center of the field, turns on the microphone where one is used and announces penalties. Where replay is used, the referee is also the crew's point of contact with the people reviewing the video.
Other referee duties typically include:
- Giving the ready-for-play signal that starts the play clock for the next snap.
- Keeping count of the offensive players, since the offense is the referee's side of the ball.
- Handling disputes and ejections, including a conversation with a head coach who is unhappy about a call.
- Explaining rulings to the head coaches and team captains when asked.
The umpire: the interior line
The umpire is the official most often found in the middle of the action. His or her job is the area inside the tackles: the blocking that happens between the offensive linemen and the defensive linemen.
That means holding by interior linemen, illegal use of hands, and illegal blocks in the middle. The umpire also keeps an eye on the offensive line's alignment and watches for false starts by linemen. Before the game, the umpire often inspects players' equipment to make sure pads and uniforms meet the rules for the level.
The umpire's location is one of the most debated details in officiating. For many decades the umpire stood in the defensive backfield, among the linebackers. In the interest of safety, the NFL has moved the umpire into the offensive backfield, beside the referee. Other levels may still use the older spot, and some conferences make their own choices. If you notice that the umpire is standing in a different place from the one you expect, you are probably looking at a different level or a different era of mechanics.
The down judge and the line judge: the two sidelines
The down judge and the line judge sit on opposite sidelines, each lined up on the line of scrimmage. They are the two officials most likely to be right next to the sideline, with their feet a few yards from the coaches' boxes.
Their shared jobs are the line of scrimmage and the sidelines:
- Offside and encroachment. Because they are standing on the line, they are the best-placed officials to see whether a defender crossed it before the snap.
- False starts and illegal formations. They count the players on the line and check that the offense has the required number of players there.
- Sideline plays. They rule on whether a runner stepped out of bounds, and whether a receiver got his feet in bounds near the sideline.
- Forward progress. They mark where a runner's progress stopped at the sideline, using the ball position as the guide.
- Clipping and blocks below the waist on their side of the field.
The two officials also split two special jobs.
The down judge (head linesman in older terminology) works with the chain crew. He or she stays in contact with the person holding the down box, so the box always shows the right down, and uses the chains when a measurement is needed. For more on that process, see our article on the chain gang and how the ball is measured.
The line judge is the crew's backup timekeeper. If the stadium clock fails or an operator makes a mistake, the line judge's time governs. The line judge also helps with tracking timeouts and the play clock, and, on kicks, watches the kicker for roughing and the formation for illegal alignments.
The deep officials: field judge, side judge and back judge
The remaining three officials stand deep in the secondary, beyond the linebackers, and they watch the action that moves downfield.
The field judge and the side judge each take one side of the deep field, close to a sideline, and the back judge stands in the deep middle. Which of the two is on which side depends on the level's mechanics and, in some crews, on the formation. Together the three cover the receivers and the defensive backs when the ball goes downfield.
Here is what they are looking for:
- Pass interference. The deep officials are the ones who see most of the contact between a defender and a receiver on deep passes. They have to decide, in a split second, whether the contact was legal, whether the ball was catchable and who made the contact.
- Catch or no catch. Whether a receiver had control, got two feet down and kept the ball through contact with the ground. The rules for that question are among the most discussed in football.
- Holding and illegal contact on the routes.
- Tackles by the defense in the secondary, including late hits, defenseless-player rules and horse-collar tackles.
- Goal line plays. Deep officials sit near the end zone to rule on touchdowns, touchbacks and receivers who are out of bounds.
On field goal and extra-point attempts, deep officials move to stand under the goalposts to judge whether the kick is good, and they signal with both arms raised. On punts and kickoffs, they track the coverage unit and the returner.
What changes at the high school level
Seven officials is the top of the ladder. High school football crews are usually smaller, and the number varies by state, by the game and by the budget.
- Three officials. Often used for sub-varsity and small-school games. Roles are combined: a referee, an umpire and a line judge or similar.
- Four officials. A common step up, adding a back judge or field judge.
- Five officials. Very common for varsity games in many states. Adds a second deep official.
- Six and seven officials. Used in some playoff games and in states with larger crews.
When a crew is small, each official covers more. A back judge might handle both deep pass coverage and the clock, and the umpire might help with the line of scrimmage. Smaller crews rely on strict mechanics: every official knows which areas are theirs and where to hand off a play. In practice, high school officials talk with one another before the game about who covers what, and they review it again at halftime.
If you are curious about the work itself, our guide on how to become a high school football official explains the usual path.
How the crew works together
Seven officials do not simply watch seven different parts of the field. They coordinate, and the best crews do it without anyone noticing.
Pre-game. The crew meets before kickoff to review responsibilities, signals, coverage for special plays like fakes and trick plays, and any local rules or league points of emphasis.
Pre-snap. Each official checks the formation and the number of players. The referee counts the offense, and other officials count the defense or the players on their side. The ball is not snapped until the crew has what it needs.
During the play. Every official has a primary zone but keeps a wider awareness. If an official sees something outside his zone, such as a late hit on a player after the whistle, he can still throw a flag. Flags are not only for the official whose zone it occurs in.
After the flag. Officials who saw a foul come together, with the referee in the center, to talk through what happened. They make sure they agree on the foul, the team, the enforcement spot and the number of the player. That conference is what you see when a group of officials huddles near the sideline.
On disagreements. If two officials saw different things, the crew works toward the right answer rather than a compromise. If one official saw the pass interference and another saw clean coverage, the position and angle of each is weighed, and the official with the best view usually has the stronger claim. The referee has the final say.
Common fan questions
Why did a flag come from an official who was so far away? Officials in the deep zones often have the best view of contact between receivers and defenders, even from 15 or 20 yards away. And officials near the line may have a better view of a foul in the backfield than someone nearby, because of the angle.
Why do they all gather in a huddle? To make sure everyone has the same facts before the penalty is announced. Reaching the right decision matters more than the few seconds it takes.
Can any official throw a flag for any foul? Yes. Zones decide who is expected to watch what, but all officials can call any foul they see.
Do officials wear numbers? Yes. Officials wear numbers on the back of their uniforms, and in many leagues a position abbreviation appears there as well. Whether a particular crew's shirts carry one is a league decision.
Why do some games feel like they have more flags? Crews have individual tendencies, leagues give points of emphasis each year, and the style of the two teams matters. Teams that line up with a lot of motion and a lot of downfield passing create more chances for contact and offside than teams that run the ball.
How to watch the officials
Next time you watch a game, try a different exercise: ignore the ball for one series and just watch the crew.
- Find the white hat behind the quarterback and notice how he or she moves with the pocket.
- Watch the down judge and line judge on the sidelines. They run along the line, staying even with the ball.
- Notice the deep officials backing up as receivers run downfield, always staying behind the play.
- Watch the umpire's position in the middle and how often he or she is close to the line, then compare it with what your league does.
When a flag drops, check which official threw it. You will begin to see the logic: a flag in the secondary comes from a deep official, a flag at the line from the down judge or line judge.
For the gestures the crew uses to communicate, see our guide to football referee signals. And to see how the league evaluates its crews, read about NFL officiating crews and how officials are graded. You can also follow any game on our scores page, check the schedule for the next one, or look for a local game through the high school directory, where a smaller crew is the norm.
The short version
- A standard crew has seven officials: referee, umpire, down judge, line judge, field judge, side judge and back judge.
- The referee wears the white cap, leads the crew and makes the final ruling when officials disagree.
- The umpire watches the interior line; the down judge and line judge work the line of scrimmage and the sidelines.
- The field judge, side judge and back judge cover the deep area, including pass interference and catches.
- High school crews often have three to five officials, so each one covers more ground.
- Any official can call any foul, but each has primary responsibility for a particular zone.