At halftime, under Riveron's supervision, two alternate game officials (Clete
Blakeman and Dyrol Prioleau) tested eleven Patriots game balls and four Colts
game balls. The Patriots ball intercepted by the Colts was not among the eleven
Patriots balls tested. Each official used a separate air pressure gauge provided by
referee Anderson that Anderson had brought with him to the game, one of which
also had been used by Anderson for his pre-game inspection. Each of the eleven
Patriots balls tested at halftime measured below the minimum 12.5 psi level
established by the Playing Rules on both gauges. Each of the four Colts balls
tested measured within the permissible 12.5 to 13.5 psi range on at least one of
the gauges. The measurements were recorded in writing by Richard Farley, an
NFL security official who has been assigned to the Patriots and Gillette Stadium
for approximately twelve years. Only four Colts balls were tested because the
officials were running out of time before the start of the second half.
Farley recorded the halftime pressure measurements taken by the game officials
as follows:
Patriots Ball Blakeman Prioleau
1 11.50 11.80
2 10.85 11.20
3 11.15 11.50
4 10.70 11.00
5 11.10 11.45
6 11.60 11.95
7 11.85 12.30
8 11.10 11.55
9 10.95 11.35
10 10.50 10.90
11 10.90 11.35
Colts Ball Blakeman Prioleau
1 12.70 12.35
2 12.75 12.30
3 12.50 12.95
4 12.55 12.15
Before halftime ended, all eleven Patriots balls were inflated and set to a
permissible pressure level. The four Colts balls tested were not inflated because
they measured within the permissible range on at least one of the gauges used at
halftime. The fifteen footballs tested, and the balance of the Colts balls collected
at halftime, were returned to the field for use in the second half.
The pressure of the Patriots ball that had been intercepted by the Colts was
separately tested three times, and the measurements, all of which were below 12.5
psi, were written on athletic tape that had been placed on the ball for
identification. The intercepted ball was retained by the NFL and not returned to
the field for use in the second half.
