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‘Father of Modern Officiating’: NFL referee Art McNally dies

Art McNally was considered the “Father of Modern Officiating.” He was the first on-field official named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

McNally died Sunday at the age of 97, according to the Hall of Fame and the NFL.

He died of natural causes at a hospital near his home in Pennsylvania, CNN reported.

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Hall of Fame President Jim Porter said McNally “was a quiet, honest man of integrity. To see Art’s decades of service recognized with his enshrinement as part of the Class of 2022 was a special moment for the Hall.”

“His legacy as a strong leader who helped usher in the advanced training of officials and the technology necessary to keep up with a faster and more complicated game will be preserved forever in Canton,” Porter said in the statement released Monday.

McNally started as an NFL field judge in 1959, a referee from 1960 to 1967 and NFL Supervisor of Officials from 1967 until he retired in 1991. He came back in 1995 as assistant supervisor to officials, retiring for the last time in 2007.

McNally helped evolve the game of pro football, changing the rulebook several times, including moving the hash marks, introducing illegal contact and moving the goalposts from the goal line to the back of the end zone, the NFL said.

He is also considered the “father of instant replay” after introducing it to the league, CNN reported.

McNally even has an award named in his honor given to current or former officials who “embody professionalism, leadership and sportsmanship.”

The NFL game day officiating command center in New York is named after McNally — the Art McNally GameDay Central.

McNally was in the press box when one of the biggest plays in football history happened 50 years ago — the Immaculate Reception, USA Today reported in 2012 during the 40th anniversary of the play.

He was the official who made the final call on whether the catch by Pittsburgh Steeler Franco Harris was legal. The field ref called McNally asking what to do and McNally asked the referee what his crew saw; the ref said that Oakland Raiders defensive back Jack Tatum was the last to touch the ball before it landed in Harris’ hands, leading to the running back scoring the winning touchdown.

“Once he said that, everything is fine. They made the decision. And what I said to him was, ‘Okay, you’re fine. Go ahead and go.’ That was the extent of the conversation between Fred Swearingen and myself,” McNally told USA Today.

The Steelers won the game 13-7.

Harris died days before the Steelers celebrated the Immaculate Reception last month and retired his number 32 jersey.