What's Right, Not Who's Right

4/3/2025

Basketball has always held a very special place in John Moreau’s heart.

When he was growing up in Charlotte, North Carolina, every chance he had he played pickup games on courts around his neighborhood, usually with his older brother Al.

He hoped to suit up one day for the Central High varsity, but he was also realistic about his talent and saw the writing on the wall.

“I loved basketball and loved the people I played with, but I wasn’t good enough to be one of the top 15,” he said. “They put up the list on the gym door. My name wasn’t on it. I sensed that was going to happen, so that was that.”

For then, at least. Though he watched from the stands his final two years of high school, he was hardly finished with the game he loved.

“I came to the University of Richmond,” he said. “I wasn’t a scholarship player. I wasn’t a walk-on. I was a fill-in on the freshman team. They needed three players to make 12 so they could practice. I just loved being part of the game that I knew I wasn’t going to be able to play all my life.”

So he became a referee.

After his freshman-team gig ended, Moreau began officiating intramural league games in UR’s Milhiser Gym. Those assignments led to an opportunity to call business league contests at Albert Hill and Binford, both junior high schools in Richmond.

When he was doing his student teaching in the early 60s, he began refereeing high school games, quickly earned the respect of coaches, players, athletic administrators, and other officials, and five years later accepted an invitation to sign on with the Atlantic Coast Conference.

For the next 32 years, Moreau officiated college games throughout the country in such high-profile leagues as the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, and Southwest Conference. He refereed in the NCAA tournament for 25 years, including five years in the Elite 8. He called an NCAA, Division II national championship game, and he was a stand-by official for one Division I Final Four.

It stands to reason, then, that as the college basketball season winds to conclusion this weekend, Moreau, who served in a variety of capacities during his 34 years at Collegiate, has fond memories of experiences that long ago became part of his persona.

One morning recently, he sat in a comfortable chair in his den and reflected upon his magnificent basketball journey.

As you think back, what memories are at the forefront?

Walking into an arena to referee a game and you look on one bench and there’s Coach K and you look on the other and there’s Dean Smith. You pinch yourself and say, “Do you realize where you are right now?” It’s unbelievable what that meant to me.

What did that mean to you?

Just being there. I was blessed that I was accepted from the get-go by coaches, supervisors, and commissioners. I was very blessed the way the media treated me. They enhanced my career. TV commentators and writers could have (severely criticized) me, but they didn’t. I was blessed to be able to referee college basketball for so long.

In an emotional game played by emotional players, coached by emotional coaches, and witnessed by emotional fan bases, how did you stay balanced and unemotional?

Referees are game administrators. We try to make sure the game progresses smoothly without interruption. My refereeing philosophy is “It’s not who’s right. It’s what’s right.”

I had the UCLA-Michigan game with the Fab Five in Arizona. There was a big discussion involving a play near the end of the game. The other two referees were dealing with the table getting the timing situation right. The coaches were there. I’m standing on the court with the players. Everybody was wondering what was going on. In the end, we got it right, but we had to take time to make sure how much time was left on the clock when the shot went in.

How did you block out the negative noise?

If any referee ever tells you they don’t hear that, they’re not telling the truth. You do hear it. You deal with it, but you can’t take it personally. Our daughter Lee (Collegiate class of ’85) tells the story of going to a University of Virginia game, and the people were really hollering at the referees, which goes on everywhere. Somebody nearby was hollering my name. She turned around — she was about four when that happened — and said, “That’s my daddy!” And the person stopped. I wish I’d seen that.

What makes someone a good referee?

Being invisible. Under the radar. Not in the newspaper. One spring, I helped out at a regional track meet and ran into the coach of a state championship basketball team who was also an assistant track coach at his school. He came up to me and said, “John, I sure did miss you this year. I wish you could have refereed one of my games.” You know which game I’d refereed? The championship game. That’s the greatest compliment you could be paid. He didn’t remember that. That’s why people hear me say I love being under the radar.

That said, you were something of a celebrity because you were on television many, many times.

It was obvious that people knew I refereed. A lot of people knew me that I did not know. I accepted that. I’ll say this: there were some people that needed [the attention]. I didn’t. I loved refereeing, but I’d rather people remember the games and the play by Michael Jordan or Shaquille O’Neal or Grant Hill than the referees. I don’t talk about it unless somebody asks me. I didn’t need that, but I sure do appreciate it.

Sounds like it was about doing the job well and fairly.

Of course.

Over the years and to this day, you’ve been a mentor for younger referees.

That was my responsibility. Whether it was with the referees school with the local board or the ACC camp during the summer, my job was to instill in them my philosophy and then be incognito. It’s been a blessing to be able to share a philosophy. We want to get it right. We want to make the experience better for players, coaches, and fans.

How does a ref, especially one calling high-profile games, keep his ego in check?

The pronoun is not “I”. It’s “we.” This will sound like I’m preaching, but how many officials do you start out refereeing with? Two?

I always worked three. Pause. What’d you say?

Yeah, the two on the court, and the man up above.

I feel so strongly that He was there to put me at peace. I think I had it in perspective. I thank God that my mind was clear when I went to referee, my purpose was clear, and my appreciation for where I was was clear.

Does the adrenaline flow for referees at tournament time as it does for players and coaches?

Absolutely. On Selection Sunday, my heart rate was always racing. I wasn’t worried about where the teams were going. I was just hoping that I got a phone call from some athletic director telling me, you’re going to be coming to, for example, Austin, Texas, to referee at the University of Texas, and you’ll be here for two days, which means you’ll be there not just for one game, but for two. That was so exciting.

Then the invitation to call high-profile games is really a validation of a ref’s professionalism, dedication, and excellence?

Of course. I’ve been to a couple of selection shows for the University of Richmond women. I’m sitting there watching on the big screen. The team knows it’s going to the NCAA tournament. When I was refereeing, I wasn’t positive I was going. When it happened, it was a blessing. It really was exciting.

Do you miss it?

I sure do. Ask me why.

Why?

I can’t be a part of the game the way I was. I’d like to be able to help new people coming along.

So, do I miss it? The answer’s yes.

~Weldon Bradshaw

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