Al Conway

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Al Conway (born 1930 in North Kansas City, Missouri) was an American football official in the National Football League (NFL) for 28 seasons from 1969 to 1996. Over the course of his career in the NFL, Conway officiated 31 playoff games, including four Super Bowls—Super Bowl IX in 1975, Super Bowl XIV in 1980, Super Bowl XVI in 1982, and Super Bowl XXII in 1988. On the field, he wore uniform number 27.

As a student at North Kansas City High School, Conway excelled in football, track and field, basketball, and baseball. Upon graduating, Conway was considered by many to be the best running back in football in the Kansas City metropolitan area and perhaps in the entire state as a senior and one of the best athletes of all time to hail from Missouri. After high school, Conway was recruited to play for coach Colonel Red Blaik at the United States Military Academy to play football and participated in track and field as well, but finished his final year of college at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri.

After finishing college, Conway was a number one draft pick by the Philadelphia Eagles, but had his career ended early due to a string of injuries. Staying close to the sport he enjoyed the most, Conway took up officiating and joined the NFL in 1969 as an umpire, where he worked several seasons on the crew of highly regarded referee Pat Haggerty. After retiring as an official following the 1996 NFL season, Conway became involved in training newly hired umpires and also serves as an observer for the NFL.

He and his wife, Bev, reside in Branson, Missouri and have five children, Mike, Susie, Jim, Patty, and David.