Tom Stabile, a 1968 Slippery Rock graduate and 1997 inductee into the University's Athletic Hall of Fame, will serve as Head Linesman for the game between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants.

Stabile, a resident of Natrona Heights, earned the prestigious honor by being selected as one of the top three head linesmen in the NFL. He will be part of an “all-star” crew of officials led by Head Referee John Parry, a 12-year NFL official.

Working championship events is nothing new for Stabile, who has worked one Pro Bowl game, one NFL conference championship game, three divisional playoff games and five wild-card playoff games during his 17-year NFL officiating career. A year ago, he officiated in the Pro Bowl.

Stabile prepared for Sunday's prime-time event by being part of a crew headed by Head Referee Scott Green that officiated two Sunday Night Football games telecast by NBC-TV and one Monday Night Football game televised by ESPN.

Prior to becoming an NFL official in 1995, Stabile worked numerous Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) championship games in football, basketball and baseball.

Stabile was a 2010 inductee into the WPIAL Hall of Fame in recognition of his long involvement in the league as a student-athlete, coach, teacher, administrator and contest official.

Officials in NFL playoff games, particularly the conference championship games and the Super Bowl, must pass a stringent test of their ability.

According to the Web Site www.footballzebras.com, every official is graded during the season on every call they make. “An incorrect call or a missed call is calculated in an overall average score of accuracy. Officials are also graded on written tests of mock plays. The written tests and game accuracy are the objective criteria for ranking the officials.”

“Separately, each official and the crews as a whole are evaluated in other areas,” the Web Site reports. “These subjective factors include the pace of the game (placing an emphasis on getting the right call without game-delaying conferences), professionalism and decisiveness. Injuries, particularly late-season ones, can be a consideration as well.”

The Web Site goes on to say the top eight crews, or roughly half of the officiating staff, will be assigned a game in the wild card or divisional playoff rounds. The top three officials at each position will officiate the conference championship games and the Super Bowl.

To work a conference championship game or Super Bowl, an official must have been selected to a playoff game in a previous season and have five seasons' experience to qualify. In addition, to work the Super Bowl he must have also officiated a conference championship game.