When the final horn sounded Saturday at Gillette Stadium and Army’s 17-11 victory against Navy was final, George Liotus and the rest of the officiating crew dipped into the locker room to grab their coats and returned to watch both service academies gather to sing their respective alma maters.
It was an emotional moment for everyone in Foxborough, Mass., the end of one of the country’s best rivalries and most iconic games. But that wasn’t the only thing worth celebrating.
“The whole atmosphere was phenomenal,” Liotus said. “I almost teared up several times, just because of the kids, especially during the alma maters. It was a great tribute ... to the end of a mediocre career.”
A lifelong Pittsburgher with a quick wit and ample humility, Saturday also marked the end of Liotus’ 26-year career as a football official, the majority of that spent as a side judge.
In fact, when Liotus was grabbing his coat, he also happened to check his phone. As CBS returned from commercial with 10:54 left in the fourth quarter, it showed Liotus hugging Navy coach Brian Newberry, and the broadcasters gave the 1975 Keystone Oaks graduate a shoutout on national TV.
“I had like 250 text messages,” Liotus said. “My first thought was, ‘Oh, no. Is my house on fire?’ It was nuts. I never expected that.”
Liotus, 66, wasn’t expecting much when he filled in for a friend working the sticks at Baldwin High School in the late 1990s. Though he was undersized as a kid, Liotus played plenty of football and understood the game’s complex rules.
“I saw these officials, and I thought, ‘I think I can do this,’ ” Liotus said.
That started a chain of events: a state certification test, then working midget and high school games; a move to small colleges in the early 2000s; then the Big East when Terry McAulay took over as head of officiating later that decade.
After starting out as a referee, Liotus became a side judge at the behest of one of his mentors, longtime NFL official Tony Steratore.
The officiating route has taken Liotus, who has been running his own auto body business since 1978, to some incredible places. The Rose Bowl. A national semifinal between LSU and Oklahoma. Oregon and Georgia to start the 2022 season. Notre Dame and Navy this season in Dublin, Ireland. Army-Navy twice.
There have been too many bowl games to count, as well as handling all scrimmages, spring and fall, at Notre Dame.
“I did it for the love of the game,” Liotus said. “And the aggravation. I must just love getting yelled at.”
In a way, that’s sort of true. As a side judge, nobody has more contact with coaches than Liotus, who jokes that he developed some thick skin over the years.
He has also learned a few things. While NCAA Division I coaches might pop off for a second or two, it’s much worse at the lower levels of college football. Liotus tells younger officials not to take anything personally and operate with a sense of empathy.
“You have to communicate with these guys and put yourself in their shoes,” Liotus said. “If things go poorly, they might lose their job, they have to move, and it disrupts their family. You have to be understanding, but sometimes they can be out of control.”
The back-and-forth is what Liotus will miss the most in retirement. That and the school pride and dwindling sense of amateurism that exists in college football.
Although probably not as funny in the moment, there have been some humorous exchanges over the years. Like a couple years ago, at a bowl game right before Christmas, when a burly strength coach followed Liotus and kept screaming that he was there to intimidate him.
“I said, ‘Dude, here’s the deal. You have a better chance of seeing Santa Claus come down your chimney than intimidating me,’ ” Liotus said. “He left me alone at that point.”
Another time, shortly after Jimbo Fisher started at Texas A&M, he was wearing out Liotus over a fumble at the goal line. Liotus called it a touchback. Fisher disagreed. When the replay concluded and Liotus’ call stood, Fisher was even more irate.
“I looked right at him and say, ‘Coach, they’re your replay guys, not mine,’ ” Liotus said. “He just turned away and laughed. There was nothing he could do.”
Those exchanges, deftly handled, are why Liotus doesn’t plan on completely retiring. After accepting a job with the American Conference this season, one where he mentored younger officials, Liotus plans to continue that after hanging up the pinstripes.
In addition to traveling to games every couple weeks, Liotus will meet with younger officials and address specific plays or emerging trends.
“I really enjoy that sort of stuff,” Liotus said.
There’s been plenty Liotus has been able to enjoy over the years, starting with marrying his wife, Linda, in 1983. They have two kids, Zach and Ashley, and one granddaughter, Sydney. George and Linda Liotus moved from Whitehall to Venetia in 2018.
George Liotus said he felt it was time to retire now because “officiating has become a young man’s game.” The schedule can also be difficult: travel every weekend throughout football season, plus a grading process, video review and scouting that occupies a considerable amount of time Monday through Thursday.
Spending more time at home will be nice, Liotus said. He also won’t miss the travel. But as someone who’s been home for Thanksgiving just once in the past 20 years, he doesn’t want to linger too much.
“My wife doesn’t want me home every weekend in the fall,” Liotus said. “She would divorce me, believe me.”
As for the next generation of officials, Liotus has a couple wishes. They both link back to personal experience, too.
When Liotus was younger, Tony Steratore offered sage advice for those rising through the ranks: It’s better to be a year late than a year early.
“The other thing Tony would tell me is, ‘I can get you there, but I can’t keep you there,’ ” Liotus said.
Which is why Liotus wants to see a slower pace for officials. They need time to perfect their craft and learn the sideline dynamic, the legacy Liotus will leave behind and the type of thing he owned for so many years.
“I loved my interactions with coaches, but you can’t be intimidated by ‘em,” Liotus said. “I think I was probably a better communicator than official.”
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG
First Published: December 11, 2023, 4:00 p.m.
Updated: December 12, 2023, 4:40 a.m.
