LIMA, Ohio — By day, you can find Hanna Keller advising students at Rhodes State College in Lima, but every Friday night in the fall you can find her on a football field in different parts of the state. She’s a referee for the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA).
Keller, 28, loves sports and grew up watching her dad referee games. At 16 years old, she joined him and became licensed to officiate basketball. Two years later, she added football to her repertoire.
“I love football, but basketball is my favorite sport by far,” Keller said.
She takes her position seriously. She studies the game, the rule books, and constantly analyzes film.
“As long as we're doing our best and doing what's best for the game, that's what's most important,” Keller said.
And her hard work is paying off. This year she’s making history as the first woman to officiate an OHSAA state finals football game. There are more than 3,000 football referees in the state, according to OHSAA, and Keller will join five others in officiating Perry vs. Liberty Center at the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton on Dec. 2.
In 2018, Keller became the first female to officiate any level of an OHSAA football playoff game when she refereed the regional quarterfinal between Troy High School and Harrison High School. Since 2018, she's been the first female officiating Ohio football playoff games as she progresses through each playoff round.
“It's a humbling,” Keller said. “There's a lot of people that want to be in this position, and I have the opportunity to represent them. So I always want to make sure that I do a good job, right, number one and number two also represent what it means to be an official in the state of Ohio, following our mechanics and just being ethical and doing the best that I can for the game.”
Keller said she doesn’t officiate to make a statement about the capabilities of women as referees, she referees because she loves the game and she loves the challenge.
“I love being able to, you know, give back to the student-athletes,” Keller said. “I also, you know, have a little bit of a competitive nature in me. So I enjoy the competitiveness that comes with that, you know, wanting to be the best that you can be.”
However, she said she hopes that by her being out there on the field, she’s a visual reminder of all that is possible for young girls everywhere.
“I think about, you know, women that I've seen that have trailblazed before in different aspects of my career or in officiating, and I'm reminded of that, right, when I get opportunities like this, that there was someone before me,” Keller said. “And I may be recognized in this specific moment, but I'm thankful for all the women that chose to step out before me and have helped provide these types of opportunities.”
Keller said she would love to see more people of all genders get involved in officiating as there is a need for more referees in Ohio.
“We can't push quality of officiating without quantity, so we need more people to get involved that way we can continue to enjoy the sports we love,” Keller said.
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