NJ high school football official suspended for assigning referee using fake names: Report

Prospective official failed background check, was assigned and paid, The Courier Post in New Jersey reports

A New Jersey high school football referee assignor was suspended in October after he was discovered to have fraudulently assigned an official under a made-up name on at least four occasions. 

The Courier Post reported Thursday morning that the New Jersey State Interscholastic Activities Association disciplined Harry McMichael in October for assigning an ineligible official who failed a background check to four different games between Aug. 27 and Sept. 8 under fabricated names. 

Harry McMichael, a New Jersey Football Officials Association South chapter varsity assignor, was alleged to have skirted NJSIAA bylaws.

The name of the fraudulent official and the reason they failed the background check were not included in a letter from the NJSIAA obtained by The Courier Post, which the newspaper says was signed by NJSIAA executive director Colleen Maguire. A motive was not immediately outlined.

A shortage of officials has become a nationwide issue in high school athletics in recent years, particularly football. A survey by the National Federation of State High School Associations found that 50,000 high school officials across sports stopped officiating between 2018-2020, an issue exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The NFHS, the governing body for state high school associations, said it reached a "crisis level" and matches were being canceled, citing "unsportsmanlike behavior by students, coaches, parents and other fans," among other factors.

The semifinal round of the NJSIAA state football playoffs takes place this weekend.

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-- Andy Buhler | andy@scorebooklive.com | @sblivesports