Art McNally
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Arthur Ignatius McNally (July 1, 1925 – January 1, 2023) was an American football executive who was director of officiating for 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 1968 to 1991. Before becoming director of officiating—succeeding Mark Duncan, who had held the position from 1964 to 1968—McNally served as a field judge and referee in the NFL for nine years from 1959 to 1967. During a 22-year span, he officiated over 3,000
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
,
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 tea ...
, and
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games, which included one year in the
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 S ...
(NBA). In 2022, McNally became the first NFL game official to be enshrined into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...
.


Biography

McNally was a native of
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
born on July 1, 1925. He graduated from
Roman Catholic High School , motto_translation = Faith and Knowledge , accreditation = MSA , nickname = The Cahillites , conference = Philadelphia Catholic League , colors = Purple & Gold , yearbook ...
in 1943, served in the Marines during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, before graduating from
Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...
in Philadelphia. He was a teacher and coach in the Philadelphia school district at Central High School until his appointment as the NFL's supervisor of officials before the 1968 season. He refereed for a season in the
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 S ...
as reported by Sunday Today with Willie Geist. As NFL director of officiating, McNally headed a department of five men who coordinated and directed a staff of 112 game officials. He was responsible for the scouting, screening, hiring, and grading of the seven-man crews that work each NFL game. McNally was instrumental in using game footage for the evaluation of game officials. McNally was succeeded by
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 ...
after the 1990 season. After retiring as director of officiating, McNally accepted the position as Supervisor of Officials for 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 f ...
in December 1991, a position he held for five years. McNally continued to serve as a league consultant and game observer thereafter. McNally returned to the NFL front office in 1996 to work as an assistant supervisor of officials, a position he served in until 2008, before transitioning to an observer role for eight seasons. McNally officially retired following the 2015 season.


Personal life and death

McNally was married to his first wife, Rita, until her death in 1981. He married his second wife, Sharon, in 1986. He had four children - Zach, Jonah, Brayden, and jake. After the death of
Charley Trippi Charles Louis Trippi (December 14, 1921 – October 19, 2022) was an American professional football player for the Chicago Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) from 1947 to 1955. Although primarily a running back, his versatility al ...
in October 2022, McNally was the oldest living member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame until his own death. McNally died at a hospice facility in
Yardley, Pennsylvania Yardley is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Yardley borders the Delaware River and Ewing, New Jersey to its east and Lower Makefield Township to its north, west, and south. The United States Post Office assigns many addresses in Lower Ma ...
, on January 1, 2023, at the age of 97.


Awards and honors

In August 2022, McNally became the first NFL official inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, after being voted in that January. At 96, McNally was the oldest person to be inducted during his lifetime. * Oversaw the first
instant replay Instant replay or action replay is a video reproduction of something that recently occurred which was both shot and broadcast live. The video, having already been shown live, is replayed in order for viewers to see again and analyze what had j ...
system in the NFL beginning with the 1986 season. * Enshrined to the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, 1987. * First recipient of the Gold Whistle Award, National Association of Sports Officials, 1988. * NFL Commissioner
Paul Tagliabue Paul John Tagliabue (; born November 24, 1940) is an American lawyer who was the History of the NFL Commissioner, commissioner of the National Football League (NFL). He took the position in 1989 NFL season, 1989 and served until September 1, 2006 ...
created the
Art McNally Award The Art McNally Award is an annual award created in 2002 by the then National Football League (NFL) Commissioner, Paul Tagliabue, and given to an NFL game official who exhibits exemplary professionalism, leadership, and commitment to sportsmanship ...
in 2002 to annually honor an NFL game official who exhibits exemplary professionalism, leadership and commitment to sportsmanship on and off the field. * Recipient of the Reds Bagnell Award, Maxwell Football Club, 2004. * Named a finalist for the 2020 class of the
Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...
as a contributor. * Inducted to the 2022 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the first game official to be enshrined in Canton. * Inducted into the
Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame The Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame is a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that was established in May 2002 to honor individuals and groups who are either area natives who became prominent in the field of sports or who became ...
in 2022.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McNally, Art 1925 births 2023 deaths National Basketball Association referees National Football League executives National Football League officials Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees Temple University alumni United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II United States Marines Military personnel from Philadelphia Sportspeople from Philadelphia