Santa Clara University

SANTA CLARA, CA – NFL referee Mike Carey will be sending signals through words rather than gestures on Monday, Sept. 17, when he addresses Santa Clara University students during their first day of classes for the Fall 2007 quarter.

Tapped as keynote speaker for the university's annual Convocation, Carey, 58, brings to the podium 17 years of experience as an NFL official, along with fond memories of playing football for SCU as a varsity running back.

An alumnus from the Class of 1971, Carey earned a bachelor's degree in biology and played football for four years, until an ankle injury sidelined him. He maintained his ties to SCU by serving on the Board of Regents (1992-96) and he is presently on the Board of Trustees, where he chairs the Student Affairs Committee.

He said returning to the campus for Convocation means "coming full circle" for him. "The opportunity to speak to the students as they begin the next step of their life's education is a great opportunity for me to show what has happened to one Bronco who was once where they are today."

Carey began his officiating career 35 years ago, working Pop Warner football games in San Diego. In 1985, he joined the Western Athletic Conference, where he officiated at three Bowl games. He was hired by the NFL in 1990 as a side judge and, five years later, he was promoted to referee. At the time, Carey was only the second African-American NFL official to become a referee (following Johnny Grier in 1988).

Wearing No. 94 on the back of his zebra jersey, Carey is known throughout the NFL for his meticulous pre-game preparation, professionalism on the field, and unequivocal sense of fair play.

In addition to his accomplishments on the football field, Carey is also a successful entrepreneur, business owner, and inventor. With his wife Wendy (also a graduate of SCU), he founded Seirus Innovation, a privately held company that manufactures accessories for snow sports. He owns or shares eight patents for ski apparel and accessories.  

The Careys have two daughters, Drisana and Danica, and live in San Diego.

This year's Convocation begins at 4 p.m. in the university’s Leavey Center and marks the beginning of SCU's 157th academic year. The convocation, which honors staff, students, and faculty, caps two days of celebrations that welcome freshman students to SCU’s Mission campus.

About Santa Clara University

Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located 40 miles south of San Francisco in California’s Silicon Valley, offers its more than 8,337 students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, and engineering, plus master's and law degrees and engineering Ph.D.s. Distinguished nationally by one of the highest graduation rates among all U.S. master's universities, California’s oldest operating higher-education institution demonstrates faith-inspired values of ethics and social justice. For more information, see www.scu.edu.