Officials Selected To State Hall Of Fame
Brian Michelotti, executive director of the Montana High School Association, has recently announced that Jim Foran of Hilger, Suzette Harkin of Bozeman, Bryan Larson of Missoula and Bob “Rollo” Rowling of Butte will be inducted into the Montana Officials’ Association Hall of Fame for 2023.
Foran began his refereeing career in college at Montana State-Northen where he officiated college intramural basketball. After college he continued to officiate basketball at the grade school and middle school levels as well as junior varsity at Winifred High School. After eight years of coaching and “yelling at the refs,” Foran and his friend, Mark Heggem, joined the MOA in the fall of 1989 with the hopes of one day working a district tournament.
Foran feels fortunate to have officiated during the 1990s when, he believes, was the time of the greatest basketball players in Montana history. The relationships he made with his fellow officials, players, coaches, and administrators throughout the state were priceless.
Harkin was one of the first high school volleyball officials in the state of Montana when girls’ volleyball was introduced in the early 1980s. Her coaching background as an assistant with college and Olympic volleyball teams made her an essential source of knowledge for officials and coaches. Harkin led clinics throughout the state for potential officials and coaches. In the Gallatin Valley, she led the volleyball officials pool for many years. She was a mentor, teacher, encourager, and friend to everyone. Harkin corrected with kindness and always wanted what was best for the athletes. Her professionalism was evident in her officiating and in the training she provided for everyone in the official pool.
Larson, from Missoula, officiated high school basketball as a member of the MOA for 35 years. He also officiated high school football for three years. During his time in the MOA, Larson served his local Missoula Pool for 25 years as a member of the assignment committee. He presented and helped run the study clubs for multiple years. Larson officiated in numerous district and divisional tournaments. He worked at 15 state boys’ basketball tournaments and seven state girls’ basketball tournaments. his duties went far beyond his time with the MOA. Larson officiated American Legion baseball for 40 years and spent 10 years as an umpire fill in for the Pioneer League. He officiated Little League Baseball for 15 years and Little Grizzly Football for five years. He officiated basketball at the NAIA level for 20 years including numerous post-season contests and the NAIA National Basketball Tournament twice. He coached Little League Baseball for 20 years and Little Grizzly Football for 18 years.
Bob “Rollo” Rowling was the Butte Parks and Recreation director for 45 years and a sports official for 35 years. Rollo, as he was commonly called, began officiating in 1961-62 for Butte Silver Bow County. He officially joined the Montana Officials Association in 1964, where he officiated all-class championships in both football and basketball. He officiated many playoffs each year, worked five East/West Shrine Games and B/C All-Star Games. In 1985, Rowling became the Region 3 regional director for the MOA/MHSA and continued that role for 30 years. In 1968 he became an official in the Frontier Conference officiating football for 12 years (leaving due to conflicts with the Big Sky Conference), participated in four NAIA playoffs and officiated for 20 years in basketball. In 1976 Rowling began officiating for the Big Sky Conference. He was selected to officiate the NCAA 1-AA National Championship in 1985, 1986, 1987 and in 1988. He worked over 300 games, 50 playoff games, three Bobcat/ Grizzley games, served on the Big Sky board of directors from 1990-1997, and was the president of the Big Sky Officials Association in 1994 and 1995. He was inducted into the Big Sky Officials Hall of Fame in 2006 and was honored by the Montana Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame on April 17, 2010, for his contribution to amateur football.
