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TV Teddy Won’t Be Working The NCAA Tournament

A small story true but one that may have consequences

By JD King
/ new
NC State v Wake Forest
 WINSTON SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 28: Referee Ted Valentine waits for play to resume during the game between the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the North Carolina State Wolfpack at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum on January 28, 2023 in Winston Salem, North Carolina.
Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images

Ted Valentine - aka TV Teddy - has been a college referee for a long time. And once you get past the histrionics, he’s widely respected, most of all by coaches.

We know that a lot of people, perhaps especially in and around the Big Ten, aren’t crazy about him, but on a professional level, he’s very highly thought of.

Nonetheless, he won’t be working the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Why?

Because of an issue that came up in the bubble tournament.

Valentine and several other officials went out to eat in Indy and later one of them was diagnosed with Covid. So they were all removed due to an order from the Indiana Department of Health.

He’s asked to be reinstated this season but the NCAA said no. ACC coaches aren’t happy about it. Three are quoted here and they all think he’s an outstanding official and there’s a widespread sense that ACC officiating has gone downhill.

So it’s too bad that one of the best, despite his flair for the dramatic, won’t be there.

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