Ron Botchan
Brooklyn, New York | |
Died: | January 28, 2021 California | (aged 85)
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Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
Weight: | 238 lb (108 kg) |
Career information | |
College: | Occidental |
Career history | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
Career NFL statistics | |
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
Ronald Leslie Botchan (February 15, 1935 – January 28, 2021) was an
High school and college years
Botchan played
Professional career
NFL player
Botchan was drafted by the
Coaching
After his playing days ended, Botchan took up coaching football. From 1966 to 1972, Ron built the Los Angeles City College team into a winning program that included several league championships.
NFL official
Botchan's officiating career began in 1972 after moving away from coaching and until 1976 was working high school and junior college football games. He was assigned two games as an umpire in the
In 1980, Botchan joined the NFL as a
His last game was a National Football Conference (NFC) Championship Game between the Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Rams on January 27, 2002, and his final appearance was at Super Bowl XXXVI on February 3, 2002, as an alternate official. Botchan served as an assistant supervisor of officials for the NFL.
Notable events
- Botchan five Super Bowls is tied with NFL officials Tom Kelleher, Jack Fette, and Al Jury.
- Worked The Tackle".
- During a game in the late 1990s, Botchan was knocked to the ground and suffered a cut to his head. He continued without missing a single play of the game, but later required eight stitches.
- Botchan once proposed a helmet designed to look like an officials' hat worn by the umpire to protect against head injuries.
- Was a mentor to Fox Sportsto television viewers. The "Ump Cam" was a small camera placed on the bill of the official's cap to bring the action closer to the television audience.
- Botchan was the umpire during a 1988 NFL season game on December 31 between the Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears at Soldier Field played under heavy fog. This game became known in NFL lore as the "Fog Bowl".
- In 1997 he was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.[2]
See also
References
- ^ "Occidental Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
- ^ "Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame Home".