Alabama Sports Officials Foundation Hall of Fame to Induct 12 Exceptional Contest Officials

All selections were made from a special ASOF Hall of Fame committee based on the nominations submitted. Each above named individual has been recognized as an uncompromised leader and mentor at every level. This year’s event will be held at the Oxford Civic Center in Oxford, AL on August 6, 2022 at 6pm. A reception will be held prior to the program. Tickets can be purchased beginning July 10th on GoFan. Everyone is invited to attend. Finger food and drinks will be provided. Previous inductees will be recognized for each Class beginning with 2019, 2020, and then 2021.

Here is a preview for the Class of 2022:

Rusty Baynes has dedicated 26 years to officiating football, baseball and basketball in the high school, college and professional levels. He is recognized as being one of the best line- of-scrimmage officials in the country. He began his career in 1993, working National Intercollegiate Athletic Association baseball games. In 1995 he began officiating football games for the Alabama High School Athletic Association through the Central Alabama association. Baynes has officiated numerous State Playoff games. His college career began in 2001 with Conference USA as an on-field official. During his career he has worked the Big 12 Championship game and seven bowl games. He also served as a clinician for the Southwestern Athletic Conference, the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and the Southern Conference. At the professional level he has officiated three Super Bowls — XLIX (40), L (50), and LV (55) – and worked in four different leagues. For the National Football League, he worked three American Football Conference-National Football Conference Championship games as well as several divisional and wild card games. He spent three years with the NFL-Europe program. He officiated four years of Arena Football league and two years of Arena2 Football League games. He is one of five officiating family members of Hall of Fame official Ronnie Baynes.

Kyle Chambers’ 34-year basketball officiating career has included superlative performance at both the high school and college levels. His high school work began in 1986 and continued through 2020. He called Alabama High School Athletic Association state finals games in 2002 and from 2017 through 2020. In 1991 he entered collegiate officiating with the Alabama Junior College Conference, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, and the Southern Conference. In 1994 he began a16-year association with the Gulf South Conference in the NCAA Division II. Chambers officiated men’s Division II tournament from 1996-1998.His NCAA Division I work also began in 1994 with assignments in the Atlantic Sun Conference and the Ohio Valley Conference. He officiated conference semifinal games in both. He joined the Southeastern Conference in 1997. In 2008 he was selected to officiate the first two rounds of the NCAA March Madness tournament. He officiated the Men’s National Invitational Tournament from 1997 through 2009. From 2003-07 he called the San Juan Shootout tournaments in Puerto Rico. From 2017 to the present, he has been an Observer for the SEC Men’s Referee Development Team. During his career he has also served as Assignor, Instructor, Association Officer, and Program Coordinator. Former Birmingham-Southern College coach Duane Reboul said: “When Kyle Chambers walked out on the court as one of our officials, I immediately breathed a sigh of relief. I knew we were going to receive a well-officiated game. Kyle is extremely knowledgeable of the rules of the game, possesses the physical presence to enforce those rules, and has the personality to diffuse conflicts.”

Ron Collins has devoted 40 years to young people as a football, baseball, and basketball official in Alabama and Mississippi. He joined the ranks of the Alabama High School Athletic Association in 1978 and further honed his skills by attending the Harry Wendelstedt Umpire School, where he was ranked 15th in a class of 200 future umpires. He served as AHSAA Baseball District Director for 12 years and President of the Central Alabama Basketball Officials Association for 10 years. He was named Official of the Year by the Central Alabama Basketball Officials Association. In the words of a colleague, Collins was “always eager to help train new officials and also to help veteran officials improve their performance.” He was also an official on the college level, officiating basketball, football, and baseball in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. He was on the SWAC Basketball Instruction Staff. He has been a basketball official for the Alabama Junior College Conference. He worked the NCAA Division II World Series, Division IAA football playoffs, and the SWAC championships. His baseball career included the honor of being the first African American to umpire a Southeastern Conference game.

Al Ford’s officiating career spanned more than 35 years at the high school and college levels. After two years of officiating basketball and football in his native Texas, he moved to Birmingham where he continued those sports and added softball to his work. He officiated in Birmingham for seven years, then moved to Florence where he officiated in Shoals area for eight years. He joined the Gulf South Conference in 1974, officiating football for eight years and basketball for 12 years. In 1982 he joined the Southeastern Conference, refereeing football for 20 years and basketball for three years. During his SEC years he refereed all of the major rivalry games at least once, including the Iron Bowl four times. Ford’s post-season work includes the Blue-Gray Game, the Independence Bowl twice, Fiesta Bowl twice, Hall of Fame Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and Sun Bowl. He officiated the Southeastern Conference Championship Game two times and served as the SEC replay official for 14 years. He played baseball and basketball at Hallsville, Texas High School. He played basketball at Panola Junior College and was graduated from East Texas State University in 1964.

In a 32-year officiating career Lane Lawley has called games in football, softball, and basketball, but it is in volleyball that he found his niche and his passion. “When he is not officiating, Lane literally spends virtually every weekend in the gym helping officials,” said a colleague. At the high school level, he has served as Director of the Alabama High School Athletic Association Southwest Volleyball District. He is past president and Assignor of the North Baldwin Volleyball Association and has served as a camp instructor for the sport. He has been a USA Volleyball official for 26 years. He was Volleyball District Director from 2006-21. He formed the North Baldwin Volleyball Association in 1993 and served as president for 11 years, and as assignor for two additional years. He also officiated AHSAA softball, soccer, and basketball. He also officiated youth football, softball, and baseball from 1972-1997. He is president of the Emerald Coast Board of Officials and was president of the Baldwin County Softball Association for 10 years. Lawley is a state-rated college official, officiating in the following conference: Sunbelt, Gulf South, Panhandle, Atlantic-Sun, Peach Belt, and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association. He has officiated in the NAIA and all three divisions of the NCAA. He has worked a Regional and tournament finals. Lane was inducted into the Baldwin County Middle School Hall of Fame in 2007 and the Gulf Coast Hall of Fame in 2014, and received the Gulf Coast Region Robert L. Lindsay Meritorious Service award.

Pat Martin’s 43 years in volleyball is summarized this way by a colleague : “Pat best expressed her love of the sport and all of those involved in it by giving unselfishly of her time and knowledge and sharing the experiences that are gathered in a volleyball life well lived.” Martin, who died in 2016, devoted more than four decades to the sport at the high school and college levels. She fell in love with volleyball as a student at Gadsden High School. The team, with only six letter-winners, won the state championship in 1968. She went to play college and club volley. Beginning in 1970, she was involved in the sport continuously as a coach or official. With the Alabama High School Athletic Association, she served as Assignor, Instructor, Association Officer and Program Coordinator. With the Professional Association of Volleyball Officials, she served as Trainer and Rater, also regional and geographical Assigner. She was named District and State Official of the Year. She officiated both Division I and Division II with NCAA, including the national championship. She received an AHSAA Distinguished Service Award in 2007 and the USA Volleyball Robert L. Lindsay Meritorious Service Award in 2002. She was a 1920 inductee in the Alabama Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. She was inducted in the Etowah County Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. The City of Champions Volleyball Tournament in Gadsden was renamed the Pat Martin Memorial Volleyball Tournament after her death.

Mike Newman has devoted more than four decades to high school and college officiating in baseball, basketball, and football. With the Alabama High School Athletic Association, he has served as Assigner, Instructor, Association Official and Program Coordinator. Although he has continued to teach and coach in Fayette schools, his officiating career dates to 1973. In basketball, he has called 15 Final Fours, including the first 11 tournaments. He officiated the 1997 Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Basketball game in Florence, AL. He has been an Alabama High School Athletic Association Basketball Camp Instructor. He has served as President of the Northwest Basketball Officials Association for 30 years. He officiated college basketball from 1987-2017, working with several difference conferences and calling numerous Alabama Junior College Tournaments during that time. In football, he worked 7A game at the Super 7 state championship in 2019. He is currently District Director of the Football Officials of West Alabama. He has umpired and held administrative positions in baseball, also. In 2015 he received the Greg Brewer Distinguished Service Award for 41 years of service to high school athletics. He was the District Official of the Year in 2001-02.

Van Phillips Sr. has been not only an outstanding wrestling official for more than 25 years but also a person who introduced the sport to numerous students. He started the wrestling program in Birmingham City Schools in 2015. He began his devotion to the sport in 1984 when he became head coach at Fairfield High School. Later he coached at Hueytown. His combined 12-year dual match record was 117-46. Phillips was named State Wrestling Sectional Coach of the Year in 1988 and 1990. In 1992 he left coaching to go into administration as an assistant principal but continued his work as a wrestling official. He retired as Center Point High School principal in 2022. Since 1986, when he was the first African American to do so, he has officiated in every state championship wrestling tournament. He has also worked countless dual matches during that time. Phillips was named District Wrestling Official of the Year in 2000 and 2016. He was also named state official of the year in 2016. He has been on the Birmingham Wrestling Officials Board of Directors since 1983 and on the AHSAA Central Board since 2015. He attended Kentucky State University on a football scholarship, graduating on the Dean’s List in 1982.

Rusty Riley has devoted nearly half a century to officiating in the high school and college ranks, excelling as an on-field official and administrator. In addition to working countless high school and college games in basketball, softball and baseball, he also helped formulate and implement much needed training instructions for upcoming and future high school officials. He spent more than 40 years officiating and implementing programs for the Alabama High School Athletic Association and the Birmingham Basketball Officials Association (BBOA). Riley received the BBOA President’s Award in 1994 and 1995. He worked multiple basketball state tournaments and served on the first group of training instructors for the AHSAA. He officiated baseball for nine years and softball for eight years, working multiple state tournaments in both. He carried his desire for helping young officials to the next level, working with the Alabama Junior College Conference and the Gulf South Conference as an Evaluator and Instructor in both basketball and softball. He officiated the 2005 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics national tournament. Riley worked 18 years of Division II conference tournaments, including eight regionals and the 2009 national tournament. He worked all three divisions in NCAA softball.

Paul Stanton was there at the beginning when soccer became an officially sanctioned Alabama High School Athletic Association sport in 1991. He began refereeing soccer games in Alabama in the late 1970s. During his career, which ended only with his death in 2016, he devoted 20 years of on-field officiating for high school soccer, working the state championship semifinals and finals multiple times. He was AHSAA Soccer Official of the Year in 1999. He also served the sport through the AHSAA as District Director, Assignor, Instructor, Program Coordinator and Association Officer. He was president of the Greater Birmingham Soccer Officials Association. At the college level, he was an on-field official and Assignor for the Southwestern Athletic Conference, the Southeastern Conference, and the Gulf South Conference. He was also an Assignor for several other conferences as well as for the National Intercollegiate Soccer Officials Association. Nationally, he was a Regional Assessor with the United States Soccer Federation and with NISOA. He was acknowledged as one of the best soccer referee assessors in the Southeast. He received the Andy Stone Top Assessor Award for the United States Youth Soccer Association’s Region III tournament in 2001. He was an annual presenter at the USYSA Olympic Development Program. In addition to soccer, he was also an AHSAA certified official in track and field and basketball.

Max Wilkes devoted more than 40 years to promoting the game of softball as a player, an umpire, an instructor, and rules interpreter. He was elected the Amateur Softball Association Hall of Fame in 2009, culminating decades of extraordinary service. He officiated his first national tournament in 1976. In 1983 he was appointed Umpire-in-Chief for the ASA Southern Region. In that capacity, over the years. He made more than 9,000 umpire appointments to more than 400 national tournaments. Wilkes assigned more umpires to the ASA Nationals than any umpire in the history of the organization. He himself was Umpire-in-Chief for more than 70 national tournaments. He trained more than 20 State and Metro Umpires-in-Chief. He was inducted into the ASA Hall of Fame National Indicator Fraternity in 1986. Wilkes served three terms as president of the Alabama Amateur Softball Association. With the Alabama High School Athletic Association, he was a dedicated Assigner, State Camp Instructor, and State Rules interpreter. Beginning in 1960, Max officiated baseball, softball, basketball and football games, including finals in all four sports. He was coordinator of the state softball tournament for 20 years. He was also an officer in the local officials’ organizations. He served with Phenix City Umpire Association from 1968 until his death. In his hometown of Phenix City he served as City Manager, Parks and Recreation Director, Municipal Court Clerk, and City Councilman. He was President and Booking Agent for the Phenix City Softball Umpires Association. Max Wilkes died in 2012. The Max E. Wilkes Fellowship Hall at the Martin-Idle Hour Park Community Center was named in his honor in 2016.

Dr. Faye Wilson’s officiating career included 37 years at the high school and professional sports levels. She started with the Alabama High School Athletic Association officiating basketball and volleyball from 1995-2019. She was the first black female to officiate the finals of the State Basketball Tournament. She officiated the finals from 2001 through 2007. She officiated regional playoff games for 25 years and the Alabama-Mississippi All Star Games in 2004, 2005, 2008, and 2009. She served as a Rules Interpreter for several years and was involved in numerous training and administrative activities. As a college basketball official, she worked with the Ohio Valley Conference, Trans America Athletic Conference, Atlantic Sun Conference, Sun Belt Conference, Southwestern Athletic Conference, Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and Alabama Community College Conference. Dr. Wilson served as Supervisor of Officials for the Alabama Community College Conference. Her post-season work included call the SIAC and ACCC tournament finals multiple times. She officiated the NCAA Division II tournament and served as an AAU tournament official. She was involved in the National Women’s Basketball League from 2002-2006. She was an Assigner/Trainer with the league and also officiated the tournament finals each year. She is a graduate of Tuskegee University and also attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Columbia Commonwealth. She was inducted into the Central Alabama Softball Hall of Fame in 2014.