UNSCRIPTED: First (Full-Time) Female Official Shares Her Historic Journey to NFL!
Unscripted By Keith Edmonds
FWIS Contributing Writer
“Being the first isn’t the reason I did this, but if my story can positively impact anyone, that’s what matters to me. I don’t want to be on an island by myself as the first female official, but I love having the title, and I love what it means to other people, including my daughter ” ~Sara Thomas on being named as part of Super Bowl LV officiating crew.
On April 8, 2015, Sarah Thomas was added to the NFL officiating roster for the 2015 season, making her the first full-time female official for the NFL! This historic game happened on September 13, 2015, between the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans. Her hat, whistle, and flag from that game are now on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, but before I get too far ahead let me go back to how this all started in todays UNSCRIPTED!
I wasn’t sure what I was going to hear when I signed up for PFW Omnibus Lecture Series, and I saw that Sara Thomas was on the roster. As I sat and listened to her story that March evening, I found myself captivated by her character, passion for what she does, and her very humble beginnings into the officiating world of NFL football.
Sara Thomas started her journey to the NFL in 1996 by (oddly enough) attending an officiating meeting with her brother and becoming intrigued by the idea of being an official. After becoming licensed, she spent 10 years working various levels of youth football including high school, middle school, and junior varsity before being hired by Conference USA in 2007. That hire made her the first female official in major college football but was not something that she looked at as a milestone. “Being the first isn’t the reason I did this, but if my story can positively impact anyone, that’s what matters to me, I don’t want to be on an island by myself as the first female official. But I love having the title, and I love what it means to other people, including my daughter.”
To accomplish something like this means that you have a support system behind you and as I raised my hand to get my question answered (along with many others) at PFW that evening I learned that Sara’s support came primarily from her husband, 2 teenaged boys and her daughter who was 5 at the time. “I couldn’t do this without the support of my husband and my kids,” she said. It [refereeing] has been a part of my children’s lives ever since they’ve been here, so this is just what mom does.” That quote made me think “Why aren’t more women willing to do jobs that have been linked to the label MEN ONLY? Sara Thomas who again, never set out to be the first to do this, was only following her passion to stay connected to sports (after being a standout basketball player in high school and at the University of Mobile) and pursue this with the competitive fire that she’d always had growing up.
After working as a full-time pharmaceutical rep, along with her officiating duties she transitioned into the NFL after joining the league’s development program and after working a series of preseason games. She was then hired to be a full-time member of Pete Morelli’s crew though she is NOT the first woman to officiate an NFL game, (that honor belongs to Shannon Easton who worked during the strike-shortened season as an official in 2012) Sara has the distinction of being the first FULL-TIME female official which is something that is very humbling for her. “When I got started in this years ago, I had no idea that there weren’t any females officiating, I never set out to become the first female official in the NFL. I feel bad that there aren’t more of us doing this, I want to be judged just as a man would be judged, and hopefully, my credentials will move me along in this profession opening more doors for others to follow.”
When the question was asked, “What motivated you to do something like this, and what pushed you to succeed.” This writer found her response to be compelling when she replied, “If you can’t motivated YOURSELF then you need to check yourself at the door, be YOURSELF because everyone else is taken.” Wow! That hit home hard!
“I don’t get (or want) any special treatment while officiating NFL games, nor is that something I should expect in this profession. When I started getting cursed out by players and coaches, (just like the men) after being in this profession now for over 17 years it became like a rite of passage!” I’ve learned that when it comes to players and coaches, this is their profession. I want to be as professional as I can and continually try to get better at my craft and grow as the game has grown and try to carry myself as any other professional would.”
In 2019 after working hard and continuing to pursue the excellence of her craft, the call from NFL President of Operations came, and Sara became the first female official to work a playoff game and has received a postseason assignment every year since!
The pinnacle of her journey happened in 2021 when she was awarded the honor of working Super Bowl LV in Tampa. Florida. When asked what it meant to her this writer found her response to be apropos: “I understood the magnitude of that particular moment, but what made is MOST special for me is that I got to share it with my CHILDREN who’ve been with me on this journey since it’s inception. That’s when it really hit me and is something that I’ll always treasure!”
Note: Sara Thomas was recently named one of Sports Illustrated’s 100
Most Influential Figures of All Time!