NCC Crew To Officiate NCAA Division II Football Championship
The North Central Conference football officiating crew of Justin Ingalls, Pete Hansen, Chad Gordon, Cary Radisewitz, Jim Johnston, Steve Krier and Mike Mudder as been selected to officiate the NCAA Division II Football Championship game between Grand Valley State and Northwest Missouri State in Florence, Alabama on Saturday.
The selection, made by the NCAA Division II Football Committee, was made following the second round of the playoffs where the crew worked the West Texas A&M at Chadron State game.
"It is really an honor for us to be selected," said Ingalls, the crew's referee, "we have been working hard to prepare for this game over the last couple of weeks."
"We want thank Colin Kapitan, our supervisor of officials for his help and also Buck Timmins, the former referee from this crew, who taught us how to be professional officials," said Ingalls.
It is the first time since the early 1990s that an NCC crew has been selected to work the national championship game.
"It is always an honor to have one of the crews from your league selected to work at this level," said NCC Commissioner Roger Thomas. "Despite some of the things I might have accused them of when I was working the sideline as a coach, these men put a lot of time and effort into being the best they can be and we are extremely proud of them. This crew and this honor really represents the level of officiating we have had in the conference for many years."
While the game will be the first national football championship for the crew, Ingalls and Hansen have each worked national championships in other sports. Ingalls worked the 2004 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship in Bakersfield, Calif. and Hansen has worked the 1992 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship and several NAIA Baseball Championships.
The crew has a combined 83 years of NCAA Division II football experience and has worked a combined 41 NCAA Division II playoff games.
Saturday's game will be carried live on ESPN2 at 11 a.m. central time and features a rematch of the 2005 title game where Grand Valley State claimed the crown. The Lakers has won three of the last four national titles while Northwest Missouri State won back-to-back titles in 1998 and 1999.
Ingalls and Krier are from Sioux Falls, S.D., Hansen is from Orange City, Iowa, Gordon is from Yankton, S.D., Radisewitz is from Luverne, Minn., Johnston is from Mitchell, S.D. and Mudder hails from Avon, S.D.