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GREENSBORO — On any given night in the ACC, a clinical psychologist and an insurance agent and a high school administrator gather to mete out justice on the basketball court in a pressure-packed part-time job.

No one is satisfied with what they do. Ever.

Their decisions are second-guessed. Always.

They run hard, work up a sweat, and now they’re even being criticized for working too often, calling too many games.

The fruits of their labor? Ridicule. Scorn. Personal attacks.

Why would anybody want to be a referee?

“Coaches are a different breed, and referees are a different breed,” ACC referee Roger Ayers said. “Both are a little crazy.”

Ayers, 44, an administrator with the Virginia High School Athletic Association, has been an ACC referee for 10 years. For four months of the year, he’s away from his Roanoke home and family more often than he’s there.

He’s on the road almost constantly, traveling from city to city, arena to arena. All to be the best at a job most people just don’t get.

His boss does. John Clougherty, the ACC’s supervisor of officials, was a referee for 30 years, working 12 Final Fours.

It’s Clougherty who makes the assignments and grades the officials in the ACC.

“If they were doing it for the money, it wouldn’t take long to get out of it,” Clougherty said. “You have to have a passion for officiating. You have to. Because most of what you hear — from fans, from coaches, from me — is negative.”

The money and the road

Officials earn about $1,000 a game, plus expenses, a New York Times report says. Clougherty wouldn’t disclose what ACC officials are paid.

“The ACC game fee is equal to or better than any other BCS conference,” he said. “The guys working for me earn every penny they make.”

Ayers, who worked Friday’s game between Virginia Tech and Miami at the ACC tournament, says the games are the easy part. The road is tough.

Since Nov. 1, he’s worked 78 games in 14 states, covering thousands of miles by air and car.

“The travel is the hardest part of officiating,” Ayers said. “ ... Because if you’re in Boston on a Saturday night, and you’ve got a Sunday game in Miami and it’s pouring snow at Logan International Airport, you’ve got to figure out how to get out of there in the morning. That adds a lot of stress to the job.”

Referees are independent contractors, and can work for more than one league. Ayers officiates mostly ACC and Colonial Athletic Association games. He gets assignments for the season in October.

From there he plans his schedule, and makes his own travel arrangements. Ayers said Clougherty tries to “regionalize” assignments as much as possible.

“If I’m at Georgia Tech on a Saturday and Clemson has a game on Sunday, that’s perfect because I can just drive and don’t have to get on a plane,” Ayers said.

Working hard

Ayers said he exercises six days a week in the offseason to stay in the shape required to be a high-level official. The good referees, he said, are all in great shape..

“I want to run harder tonight than I did last night,” Ayers said. “That’s just the way refs have to think. Especially if you work an ACC game tonight, and tomorrow night you’re working in a mid-major (game). Those coaches saw you on ESPN working last night. You have to work harder for them, so they know you’re busting your tail for them.”

Ayers is one of 14 officials hand-picked by Clougherty to work the ACC tournament. In his judgment, they’re the best in the league.

And they work a lot.

“What do I think?” Clougherty asked. “I think they work too much. But what’s the solution? These guys are independent contractors, and the best guys are in demand. If I don’t assign them somewhere, someone in the SEC or Big East or Southern Conference is going to assign them because they’re good referees.”

A few officials, according to StatSheet.com, work 70 or more games a season. Beyond their normal in-game complaints, coaches have questioned the quality of their work, the New York Times reports.

“They can’t work the nights they’re working and give you the best they can give you,” Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun told the Times.

John W. Adams, the NCAA’s coordinator of officials, is watching the issue.

“When you get above 80 games, then you are getting to a point where I’m not sure you are getting enough rest and you have injuries and you might not be mentally sharp,” Adams told the Times. “For me, it’s a physical and mental challenge to be at the top of your game given the travel schedules some of these guys try and follow.”

Contact Jeff Mills at 373-7024 or jeff.mills@news-record.com