hiː wʌz ɐsˈaɪnd tˈuː ɡˈeɪmz æz ɐn ˈʌmpaɪɚɹ ɪnðə pˈæk tˈɛn bᵻtwˌiːn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti sˈɪks ænd nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti nˈaɪn bᵻfˌoːɹ ɐplˈaɪɪŋ ænd bˌiːɪŋ ɐksˈɛptᵻd tə ðɪ ˌɛnˌɛfˈɛl ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd ˈeɪɾi.
He was assigned two games as an umpire in the Pac-10 between 1976 and 1979 before applying and being accepted to the NFL in 1980.