Johnson recalls climb to top for chamber

Thibodaux-native Carl Johnson arrives in an NFL town the day before each game and begins his preparations by watching three game films from his hotel room.

On game day, the eight-year NFL veteran meets the booth and sideline reporters and everyone affiliated with the television coverage in the waning morning hours before heading off to the locker room to get into his uniform.

Next is a quick visit with the home team’s coaches.

There, he gets a run down of trick plays and other unique wrinkles the coach may be planning to get a better feel for the game.

By kickoff, Johnson and the rest of the officiating crew go to work. For the next three hours, they make pivotal decisions that, in part, determine who excels in the multi-billion dollar industry.

As Line Judge No. 101, it’s his routine during football season.

Being an NFL official has given Johnson opportunities he never imagined. Through refereeing, he’s been able to travel to London, work the 1996 National Championship game between Florida and Florida State, the Rose Bowl, three playoff games and even Super Bowl XLII between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots.

To reach that pinnacle, the 27-year-veteran referee has had to do what any employee does, work his way up the ladder.

That was Johnson’s keynote message to members of the Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce at their annual awards ceremony last week.

Johnson started out refereeing 9 and 10 year olds in Terrebonne Parish. He eventually worked his way to the junior-high and high-school circuit before taking a job as a then-Divison I AA official. That would lead to officiating major college games and, eventually, a job with the Arena Football League.

From there, Johnson went to NFL Europe and then his ultimate destination – the NFL – two years after that.

“Football was always a part of my life at a young age, but I found out very quickly that I wasn’t big enough, fast enough, strong enough or mean enough,” Johnson told a room full of business leaders at the Thibodaux Chamber’s banquet. “The athletes are very good, and I see why I wasn’t cut out to be one.”

In high school, Johnson excelled at both football and baseball for the Thibodaux High Tigers. His successes on the baseball field earned him a college scholarship with the Nicholls State Colonels.

Following graduation, he accepted a distribution manager job with Coca-Cola of Thibodaux, where he can be found every non-football or off-season day.

Johnson said being in the NFL is very similar to being in any other business.

“For three hours on Sunday, I get to manage a billion dollar industry, that’s pretty cool,” he said. “Just like as a kid my dad would toss me the keys to the car and say ‘Just don’t drive it into a tree.’ We do make mistakes in the NFL but, fortunately, instant replay will correct those mistakes.

“And when we make mistakes, we only have 40 seconds to get over that mistake because a new play is coming in,” he added. “In business, you’re given time to correct your mistake.”

Johnson is the first to admit he has made his mistakes. He recalled a 2002 playoff game between the Giants and the San Francisco 49ers that ended with a controversial “no call.”

Johnson was a member of the crew that declared there was only one penalty following a botched field goal attempt for the win. A Giants’ lineman was down the field illegally, while another was tackled before the ball even got to him.

There should have been two flags on the play, one on each team, but the crew didn’t realize the player who was interfered with wasn’t the same guy illegally down the field.

The Giants should have been given another chance to try the field goal, but weren’t.

“We had a great football game for 59:54,” Johnson recalled. “We were high fiving each other at every timeout. We screwed it up in six seconds, just that quick. The Giants go home, 49ers move on and the New York media were all over us. We were blasted all summer long.”

It’s a good lesson for any profession, he said. “Just when you think the game is over, stay focused until the end. That’s what that mistake taught all of us.”

Johnson recovered from his mistake that day, and six years later he earned the right to referee in the Super Bowl.

The NFL grades its officials with accuracy rating. The top officials with the highest ratings determine who gets to work Super Sunday. Johnson scored a 99 – higher than any other line judge.

“We call 2,300 to 2,500 plays in a season,” he said, “roughly 160 plays a game. There is a certain minimum requirement that we have to meet. Our goal is 97.5 (percent correctly called). If you make a 97.5, you’ll be invited back next year. I was very fortunate to grade a 99 percent. I don’t like to brag, but that’s pretty impressive.”

While he can’t work two Super Bowls in a row, Johnson recently returned from a trip to Pittsburgh, where he worked the Ravens and Steelers playoff game.

Now that the season is done, Johnson said he will stay around Thibodaux until next year. He said he is very fortunate to have such a rewarding hobby.

“It’s enjoyable, it’s a great gig,” he said. “I am very fortunate, very blessed to work for two great companies. My boss allows me the time off to participate in football. Both he and the company are very cooperative. And I really enjoy working the National Football League and experience the things I have.”