'Grandma referee' Linda Bess hoping to inspire others to become football officials
BATTLE CREEK - Women working as a referee at a football game, that's something that is becoming more common.
In fact, Linda Bess saw several on TV and it gave her a pretty good idea.
She thought, not only can a woman be a football official, a grandma could be one, too.
Bess, a grandmother to four grandchildren, is in her first season as an official locally for football, working middle school games in the area.
Part of a big football family which spends a lot of weekends around the sport, the 67-year-old came up with the idea of becoming an official while watching football on TV earlier this year.
"I saw some women in the NFL as referees and I just said, 'I wish that was a thing when I was their age,'" Bess said. "Then I told Michael I wanted to referee and he was all for it. Next thing I knew, he was signing us up for games and registering us. A little later, I said, I'm not too sure about that football thing, and he just said, too late, you are signed up now."
Her son Michael Bess is a longtime high school official, who figured his mom would fit right in as part of his crew working 7th- and 8th-grade football on Wednesdays each week.
"As you know, we are always looking for officials," Michael Bess said. "As far back as I can remember, we have always talked football around the dinner table in our family. So my mom knows as much about football as anyone I know. I knew she would take it serious, get after it and probably enjoy it.
"The guy who assigns my crew was probably the most excited for it, because there is a shortage of officials right now at all levels."
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Linda Bess isn't just any grandma looking to be a football official. Like her son said, she has been around football her entire life - including being a wife of a high school football coach for over 40 years to former Battle Creek Central head coach Doug Bess.
"I grew up in a football family," Linda Bess said. "My dad had season tickets for the Lions when they were at Tiger Stadium so I started going when I was a kid. I have four brothers, Doug coached for 40 years. My son Michael is referee, my son Casey coaches, my grandson plays. Been around football my whole life.
"But I did ask Brayden if he thought he would be embarrassed by having his grandma out there as a referee and he said no, go for it," she added, regarding her grandson Brayden Bess, who plays tight end for Harper Creek this season.
Linda Bess began officiating with the start of the middle school football season two weeks ago and has 'been exceptional', according to Michael Bess, who works on the officiating crew with her.
She was a little bit tougher on herself however.
"I worked hard to get ready. I was watching a ton of YouTube videos and doing a lot of studying," Linda Bess said. "But it really takes experience being out there to get the feel for it.
"There was one spot where there was a touchback and I started to wave timeout, but wasn't sure if I was supposed to, and I was kind of hesitant, and it looked like I was signaling a touchdown. So that was bad."
But she hasn't been too worried about getting too many complaints from the coaches on the sidelines, because she knew most of them when they were just kids.
"That first game we did, that was a Battle Creek Central game. And those coaches, I knew them all when they first started playing, so they weren't going to say anything... they wouldn't dare," she commented with a chuckle.
Bess is committed to doing games throughout this season and wishes she had started sooner.
"It's as fun as I thought it would be," Bess said. "If I was a lot younger, I would love to continue doing this for years and eventually get to do some high school games. But, I'm not sure if I will have time to get there."
Bess is hoping her getting out there can inspire more women to become officials, because she knows there is a need. But she also hopes older people can be inspired to feel like they can jump in and contribute as well like she has.
"It's not so much about being a woman doing this... women have already done that. I saw women doing it and that inspired me," Bes said. "But the whole thing about being old... how old is a dirty word. Yeah, I am old. But, being old isn't anything bad. If I could still do it, I just wanted to try it. And, I'm loving it."
Bill Broderick can be reached at bbroderi@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on Twitter: @billbroderick.
This article originally appeared on Battle Creek Enquirer: Grandma referee hoping to inspire others to become football officials
