Ferris State Alum Named Super Bowl Head Referee

The Super Bowl is one of the biggest football games of the year as it not only puts a close on the NFL season but really the football season as a whole. Everyone makes a big deal out of the commercials, the national anthem singer, the halftime show, and everything else as this is the most watching football game every year.

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If there are two things that belong together in a sentence as if they were peanut butter and jelly, it would be Ferris State University and football. The Bulldogs have won multiple national championships and have won 4 of the last 5, including the 2025 National Championship. There are a handful of former Ferris State Bulldogs who are playing in the NFL.

One of the most scrutinized parts of not just football but sports in general is officiating. A lot of coaches, sports fans, players, and parents give referees a hard time for missing calls, not calling the game fairly, or even for cheating. Often times, they forget that referees are just humans and will make errors or miss things, it doesn't mean they can't be better. Ferris State will have their eyes on a specific official during this year's Super Bowl as he is a Bulldog himself.

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The Ferris State University official website reports:

Ferris State University alum Shawn Smith will be in the center of one of the largest sporting events in the world, serving as the lead on-field official for Super Bowl LX next month. The NFL announced on Tuesday its officiating crew for the Feb. 8 game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California with Smith as referee. Football Zebras, a news website that focuses on NFL officials, reports that Smith was the alternate referee for Super Bowls LV and LVIII, but the 2026 game will be his first on-field appearance at the championship. Smith graduated from Ferris State in 1994 with a bachelor’s degree in accountancy.

Smith is in his 11th season as an NFL official and this is his 11th postseason assignment which is an honor reserved for the best officials during each individual season. He has worked 5 wild card matchups, 3 divisional round games, and 2 conference championships.