Al Jury is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL) from 1978 to 2004. He started as a back judge, then switched to field judge after the league swapped position names in 1998. Over the course of his NFL career, Jury was selected to officiate in a record-tying five Super Bowls: XX in 1986, XXII in 1988, XXIV in 1990, XXVIII in 1994 and XXXIV in 2000. On the field, Jury wore uniform number 106 for the majority of his career and is most recognizable for the prescription goggles he wore. Outside of the NFL, Jury was also a California Highway Patrol officer for 28 years starting in 1969.
At the age of 18, Jury started officiating high school games after graduating from Pacific High School, in San Bernardino, California, where he was a four-sport athlete, in 1959. One of the reasons Jury got into officiating was to earn extra money while attending San Bernardino Valley College.
While officiating, Jury was also a letter carrier for the United States Postal Service for seven years after which he joined the California Highway Patrol in 1969.
Jury moved up to junior college and then college football, joining the Pac-8 Conference in 1972 before being hired by the NFL in 1978, at the age of 35. He thought about seeking a promotion to referee (crew chief) early in his career, but chose the excitement of the back judge/field judge position over the higher paycheck of the referee.
Jury was forced to retire in 2004 after breaking his leg during a game. He now serves as an Assistant Supervisor for the NFL.
Famous quotes containing the word jury:
“Critics generally come to be critics not by reason of their fitness for this, but of their unfitness for anything else. Books should be tried by a judge and jury as though they were a crime, and counsel should be heard on both sides.”
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)