[ . l ll l S on I l °‘ ’ I Top NFL Official Hails from UK ' Dao 0 0s es { jim p ul Tak . Student Avocation tt.t i t · x? I T0 The Pinnacle { { f I ’ re V} { ‘ [ V_ i Next time you cheer or jeer the offi- ``: ' V "‘j ` V ;~ ,| cials of the National Football League, ( \ l V · ’ = · you’ll have a Kentucky man to thank. @A V } V` ·‘ * Q . V _jim Daopoulos, a 1972 graduate and , WSJ v:~e_ . V V V, Qt V‘r¤· j former director of intramurals for the V 1 ° '-fgx 4 5 N A ` ` _ E University of Kentucky, became the V . _ ggliw = , g_;;;_ gi . NFL’s top official july 1. As supervisor V K] , . i ‘~’` V,/ V_ VJ i of officials, Daopoulos now oversees V , VL"l , ` ’V' VV ( V V 2;* § _§ the hiring, training and assigning ofV V ,- `• Q j G ` V . é . football oflrcrals. He rs also responsible 4 _ .. for reviewing and assisting the league i =-= —~ Q"“?i‘_ V__V ·; gg ` gi with game rules and policy. IT" QYYV 1 Q? f V: l j "\X/hen I officiated the Super Bowl ,. . VV _ V \ f , f 5 ‘ l two years ago, I thought I'd reached the ~. fw ~· i " I V . ‘ »· ` pinnacle as an official. That is the ulti— _, i ° ’? l ji I mate experience an official can have," K . . ‘ ‘ Daopoulos said. "But, being the super- _- —i ' ·. Q "' , . visor of officials is one step higher." -~ ’ " ‘ * . Z V Daopoulos was approached by the ¤., .,_.,.ei , — . league in january about becoming the , n . V official supervisor. He took nearly six ,?, _ , . __..- .- , `I *~ ·"‘ ‘ " l , months to accept the offer. The job { i y- ___, _ V el V would move his family to New York, * -»——· -· »~· · · ·`·* ·1··nV_ ”' ‘ and would take him off the field after _ ew V 1I years of NFL officiating. ' ‘ Ml Wils WW WPPY uml €9mf01T¤l)l€ jim Daopoulos 72 calls Szzpe¢BowlXXX1I1 in 1999. This plum assigrzmenr is the in my lllbfl ll€ Simi "I ih0U§%hl I WOUl€l reward/or outslaiulmg ogiciafivrg in the National Football League. . be on the field _ ze fel. 10 years gan during his years as an undergradu- ence for seven years. Then he was I l mole I WMM ate at the University of Kentucky. Trans- called up to the NFL. i i`i lr in Sure if I was ferring to UK from junior college where "Early on, I’d set the goal of officiat- · { is "? ready [O leave he played sports, Daopoulos began ing in the NFL," he said. “But I never T { 1* V ° the j·iejCj_·· playing, and then officiating, intramur— thought I would get there." . . `f{V;, ‘ VV -' V_ ' 2 , In Mjdj[i(mV als. "I’d just gotten married, and we Over the years, Daopoulos has re- ` ¤ ‘t ’ ‘ V ` Djmpeujos WM needed the money," he said. "Initially, I mained active with UK, as an instructor l ‘ . _V,jV »_tjVV* ,1 Sueeessfuj ,.ep_ officiated to supplement our income? and as the namesake of a new award . V? ,.eSemmVe {O,. F he avocatron 1Ved to a vocatron.VHe given annually by UK Intramurals — ,VV _ ~ Nom, Amerieim earned a bachelors degree in physical the jim Daopoulos Outstanding Intra- 5 ‘»· ’ ‘` I I Mmmuge in Ci,} education in 1970 and his rnaster’s in mural Official Award. j ei,.m,mV He and his wife Lmzjui 2, Seheej recreation administration in 1972. From He said he will miss teaching at the V teacher, had lived in Kentucky for more 1972 [O 1977· hs S€w€Cl as