Rory Bernard took a moment to salute military veterans prior to his first on-mic announcement at the Celebration Bowl in Atlanta. He did so just seconds before announcing a personal foul for unnecessary roughness.
It was a really cool (but random) gesture that came with very funny timing.
Bernard, a member of the Conference USA officiating crew, was on assignment for Saturday’s college football game between Jackson State and South Carolina State. The Celebration Bowl pits the winner of the MEAC against the winner of the SWAC and essentially serves as the HBCU National Championship.
I cannot figure out whether Bernard has any prior experience in the military. He currently works as a referee for CUSA and the chapter secretary for the Dallas Football Officials Association as well as the Assistant Vice President at Core Specialty Insurance Holdings, Inc. His LinkedIn profile does not indicate any kind of background in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard.
Even though it does not seem like Bernard previously served in the military, his form during the impromptu salute to veterans was impeccable. So was the timing— for the wrong reasons, perhaps.
The referee gave a salute to military veterans before making the penalty call 🫡 pic.twitter.com/BjOVuxSknK
— ESPN (@espn) December 14, 2024
As soon as Rory Bernard finished his commendable (but unusual) address to those who serve, he announced a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on Jackson State that took a touchdown off of the board. Travis Terrell Jr. went 81 yards on a punt return and capped it off with a celebratory flip into the end zone. The personal foul immediately wiped all of his hard work from existence. Never happened!
For Bernard to offer a salute to veterans before his first penalty of the game was pretty cool. Especially on the Saturday of America’s Game between Army and Navy. For Bernard to offer his salute just seconds before he revoked six points from the Tigers was equally as unfortunate as humorous.
We salute you, veterans!