Bill Vinovich is the referee for Super Bowl XLIX.
The NFL has announced today that Vinovich will lead the seven-man officiating crew, which also features Bill Schuster (umpire), Dana McKenzie (head linesman), Mark Perlman (line judge), Bob Waggoner (field judge), Tom Hill (side judge) and Terrence Miles (back judge).
Vinovich was the referee for the Patriots-Ravens divisional round game, which became controversial when Ravens coach John Harbaugh complained that Vinovich didn’t do a good enough job of informing his team about the Patriots’ declaration of an ordinarily eligible receiver as ineligible.
The officials who work the Super Bowl aren’t necessarily the ones who graded out as the best over the course of the season, but the NFL does require that they be rated at the top tier of their position and that they have at least five years of NFL experience, including at least one year of working the postseason.