Mike Carey Will Be First African-American Referee in Super Bowl History.

It never occurred to me that there has never been a black ref in Super Bowl history ... especially since Carey is one of the best in the league. He was the alternate ref for Super Bowl XXXVI.

Last year, the Indianapolis Colts' Tony Dungy became the first African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl. Twenty years ago, Doug Williams of the Washington Redskins became the first African-American quarterback to win a Super Bowl.

This year, Mike Carey will become the first African-American to referee a Super Bowl.

Carey, in his 18th year as an official, was notified by the NFL office this week he had the assignment for the Feb. 3 game in Glendale, Ariz. The NFL will not officially announce the assignments until the week of the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl officials are chosen on merit, with the highest ranked at each position getting the assignment. Carey, who runs a skiing accessories company, has been among the NFL's top crew chiefs for a decade and has been a Super Bowl alternate, but has never been the referee.

Of all active referees, Carey has ejected the most players ... most notably the late Sean Taylor in the Redskins playoff victory over the Buccaneers in 2006. Taylor spit in the face of Bucs running back Michael Pittman.