By Rubin E. Grant
Steve Newton didn’t have any plans to become a referee when he was a graduate student at Auburn University.
But that all changed when one of his civil engineering professors asked him if he liked football.
Of course, Newton answered yes, and what followed changed the course of his life.
The professor told Newton he would be officiating high school football games with him and his crew.
“That’s how and where I got started,” Newton said.
It was the fall of 1975, and for the next 46 years, Newton was a football official at the high school, college and professional levels.
On Aug. 3, he was one of 10 individuals who were inducted into the Alabama Sports Officials Foundation Hall of Fame class for 2024 during a banquet at the Oxford Civic Center.
The group included two former Alabama mayors, former president of the Amateur Softball Association, professional football officials, college supervisors of officials, SEC officials and Alabama High School Athletic Association district directors. Each of the 10 worked multiple AHSAA sports championships.
“It means the world to me,” Newton said. “It’s one of those coveted awards because you’re being recognized by your peers, fellow officials. Nothing could be better that.
“I was surprised and humbled when I found out.”
Newton, 71, retired from officiating in 2021. He was a part of the Fox 6 Sideline Show for five years, providing a segment on high school rules, and was a referee state camp instructor with the AHSAA for many years.
Fellow camp instructor and current inductee Don English stole one of Newton’s teaching quotes that he used in each of his pre-game meetings, “Do not officiate air!”
Newton served on the initial mechanics manual committee when the AHSAA developed its own manual and held many administrative positions with the Birmingham Football Officials Association.
‘It was one of those type of journeys where it was not always smooth,” Newton said. “I remember the first flag I threw was in a B-team game and the flag went into the boy’s facemask. So, my flag, the ball and the player scored a touchdown.
“I officiated all of the OTM football teams for many years.”
In 1996, Newton received the Dick Burleson Outstanding Member Award, which is named for ASOF Hall of Fame inaugural class member Dick Burleson. The award recognizes an official who has demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities, good moral and ethical character, and a high level of service.
“One of the things I always encouraged my crews to do is to be a good example to young players,” he said.
Newton worked numerous state championship games, as well as several games televised on ESPN. He also was a referee at the collegiate level in the Gulf South Conference and Southland Conference, and he worked as a replacement official in the National Football League in 2001.
“The only regular season NFL game I officiated was Detroit against Green Bay,” Newton said. “The higher the caliber of play the easier it is to officiate.”
Watching From a Distance
Newton attended Edgewater High School in Orlando, Florida, and Auburn. He and his wife, Dottie, live in Vestavia Hills and have three adult children and eight grandchildren.
One of those grandchildren, John David Livingston, is a three-year starter on the offensive line for Vestavia Hills. Newton’s son John Newton also played for the Rebels.
Getting a chance to watch his grandson on Friday nights is one reason Newton retired from officiating in 2021.
“I’ve gone through knee surgery, shoulder surgery and getting a pacemaker, so I knew it was time,” he said. “One of the real benefits is I’ve been able to watch my grandson. Me and (my) wife enjoy watching him play.”
Newton still has a day job, working as a senior civil engineer and Birmingham office manager at TTL Inc., a full-service consulting engineering firm.
“It’s something I still enjoy so that’s why I continue doing it,” he said.
Reflecting on his career as a referee, Newton said, “Officiating was pretty much my life. I’m an engineer by trade, but I’ve got so many stories I tell from officiating and I really enjoy my friendships with other officials.”
