Robert Griffin III has spent his career around high-profile coaches, front-office executives, media personnel, and officials, but a Thursday-night high school game in Missouri just tested his patience. The Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback, who now hosts the show “Outta Pocket with RGIII,” shared a viral clip on X that had football fans asking the same thing: What was that referee thinking?
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The clip shows a referee grabbing Glendale High School senior Joelle Rover during Glendale’s 35-6 win over Kickapoo in Springfield, Missouri, on Thursday, October 8. The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) confirmed Friday that the official has been suspended indefinitely. Griffin’s reaction was blunt.
“This referee done lost his DAMN MIND PUTTING HIS HANDS ON A HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYER FOR NO REASON,” Griffin wrote on X.
The video picks up after a 47-yard Rover touchdown. Rover celebrated the score with teammates before the official grabbed hold of his jersey and held it for several seconds while speaking to him. The referee put his hands on the senior and forcibly turned him around, then got in his face until another official came over and pulled him away.
Glendale head coach Frank Tristan can be heard in the same video, furious on the sideline.
“He doesn’t need to be touching our player. You talk to me, that’s ridiculous. He needs to grow up,” Tristan yelled.
As for why it happened, no one has said. MSHSAA hasn’t explained the referee’s reasoning; however, they confirmed that they have suspended the football referee. Tristan later said that the Falcons had been penalized for excessive celebration earlier in the game, and he wondered whether that played a part.
“We had some touchdown celebrations earlier in the game that were flagged. I wonder if that was residual frustration on his part, I don’t know,” Tristan said.
Tristan was careful not to pin the night on the whole crew. He told the News-Leader he thought the referees “did a fine job” overall, but that the incident “really tarnished the whole game.”
Nevertheless, MSHSAA’s response was short. Communications Director Andrew Kauffman sent a statement to the media.
“We were made aware of the situation, and the official in question has been suspended indefinitely,” Kauffman said.
The statement did not say how long the suspension will last or whether further discipline is coming. The game itself was never in doubt. Glendale cruised to the win, moving to 4-3 and extending a three-game winning streak in which it has scored at least 35 points every time.
It isn’t the first time a referee’s hands-on approach with a high school player has drawn state-level action. In September 2023, video from a Texas game between Whitney High and Dallas Madison appeared to show an official grabbing a Whitney player and ripping off his helmet. The University Interscholastic League worked with the Texas Association of Sports Officials to reverse the player’s ejection and removed the official from UIL games pending a thorough investigation.
The Missouri case also lands in a tense week for officiating. Days earlier, the NFL suspended line judge Jeff Seeman for two games and referee Adrian Hill for one, both for “unprofessional conduct toward a player.” In both cases, the focus was on how officials conduct themselves around players, not just how they call the game.
Tristan was unhappy with how the game ended up being discussed.
“We are now talking about an official, instead of the kids that played in the game,” Tristan said.
The referee has been suspended, but what made him grab Rover in the first place is still unclear. The video has drawn attention to the confrontation, turning what happened on the sideline into the main talking point from a high school game that ended with Glendale beating Kickapoo.