U.S. District Court Judge Tilman “Tripp” Self, who denied Georgia baseball player Dylan Goldstein’s request for a preliminary injunction against the NCAA on Friday, is a longtime college football referee.
Goldstein, a former junior college player, had sued the NCAA over its five-year eligibility restrictions and sought to play another season of college baseball, but the judge wouldn’t allow it. Self’s ruling served as a rare legal victory for the embattled governing body.
This ruling is far from Self’s first involvement with intercollegiate athletics. In addition to his judicial career, Self has long moonlighted as a college football referee, primarily officiating for the Southern Conference (SoCon). He is also a graduate of the University of Georgia’s law school.
While Self’s second career as a referee is not widely known, it is hardly a secret, raising questions about whether Goldstein’s legal team flagged it as a potential conflict of interest. A request for comment emailed to Goldstein’s lead attorney went unanswered.
An active X account that appears to belong to Self identifies him as an “NCAA Football Official,” alongside his other roles as a husband, father, federal judge and “turkey hunter.”
In January 2017, while serving on the Georgia State Court of Appeals, Self officiated the NCAA FCS Championship game between James Madison and Youngstown State. He later listed this distinction as one of the “honors and awards” in the questionnaire submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation process.
During Self’s confirmation hearing, then-U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), speaking as a football fan, highlighted the judge’s refereeing career as testimony of “his ability to call balls and strikes on the field.” In a lighthearted moment, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) quipped, “If you can be a ref in the SEC, this’ll be a piece of cake being a judge,” seemingly conflating the Southern Conference with the Southeastern Conference.
A spokesperson for the SoCon did not respond to an inquiry about Self’s ongoing status as a league referee. Self appears to have worked a game as recently as November, when he served as replay official in a late-season contest between Tennessee Tech and Samford.
Last October, Self presided over the criminal trial of Ahkil Crumpton, a former Georgia football player who was convicted of crimes in connection to a deadly gas station robbery. Crumpton was later sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.
Based on available court records, it does not appear that Goldstein’s attorneys asked Self to recuse himself from the case. Although the reassignment of cases from one judge to another is not unusual and occurs when there is a potential conflict or scheduling issues, judges have substantial discretion in deciding whether they are conflicted.
It’s possible Goldstein’s attorneys, mindful of judicial discretion on whether to step aside, decided against such a request. The litigation began on Feb. 18, giving Goldstein limited time to secure an order that allows him to play this spring, and any delay in the proceedings caused by the assignment of a new judge could have been a problem. Also, given that Self does not appear to have been an employee of the NCAA, the attorneys might have believed there is not a sufficient conflict.
Now that Self has ruled against Goldstein in a case that has been going on for 10 days, the best opportunity to challenge Self’s assignment has likely passed. While there is instant replay in law, just like in college football, that review only happens at the appellate level.
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