Fannin County Recreation Department Athletic Coordinator Tim Towe is the first ever Tennessee Collegiate Umpire Association’s (TCUA) Most Valuable Umpire.
Towe received this title during TCUA’s end-of-the-year banquet at the University of Tennessee October 18.
“(I) have worked hard,” Towe said of his accomplishment.
Towe is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA); because of this, he was nominated for the title.
Although he played baseball as a kid, he said he never intended on umpiring.
“I was watching my dad play in a charity softball game between Tri-State EMC and Ellijay Telephone Company,” he said of how he got started umpiring. “Veteran umpire Terry Flowers picked me out of the crowed and wanted to know if I would help him umpire the bases. I told him he was crazy, but I did it anyways. Two hours later I fell in love with it, and it’s a huge passion of mine.”
Towe spent four seasons in the Minor League Umpire Development system where he learned the ropes of umpiring.
He has now umpired for Division 1 games in the Big South Conference Baseball Tournament, Southern Conference, NAIA and Division 3 playoff assignments. Additionally, he has umpired six regional games and six Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournaments and one USA South Championship all in the past six years.
Adding to his resume, Towe is a fill-in umpire for the Chattanooga Lookouts Minor League Baseball team and has mentored Blue Ridge native Kaleb Martin – who just umpired his first season in the Minor Leagues. Towe said Martin now officiates baseball along side him and mentoring him has been his “biggest accomplishment.”
Towe added, “The game of baseball has been very good to me,” and he is “blessed to still be able to umpire on the weekends” while working for the Recreation Department.