Heidelberg Athletics Hall of Fame
Paul A. Baetz is still on the playing field today, but in a much different capacity.
This year's inductee is considered to be one of the best officials in the National Football League and has already been called upon for two Super Bowl games.
In addition, he is a professional speaker, successful entrepreneur, education and business consultant.
Baetz is also the founder and C.E.O. of Baetz Management Enterprises, Inc. in Barrington, Illinois.
Before receiving his bachelor of arts degree as Cum Laude Academic in 1959 he compiled a long list of achievements on and off the field at Heidelberg.
His basketball talents were exceptional as he lettered three seasons with the Student Princes and in the process was honorable mention All-Ohio Athletic Conference during the 1956-57 season before earning first team OAC honors for his performance during the 1957-58 campaign.
Quick, with outstanding speed, Baetz found the range for 17 points a game during the 1957-58 season, the same year he served as captain and received the Most Valuable Player Award.
Baetz was a magician with the basketball and was often lauded for his ball handling. During his senior season he scored 29 points in a game and was averaging 25 a game after 16 contests.
But he also took his athletic talents to the football field where he was a member of the Tricolor for three seasons, including the 1955 undefeated squad. In 1956 Heidelberg brought home the Ohio Athletic Conference championship.
Off the field Baetz was a member of the Heidelberg Honor Society. He was third ranked in his graduating class, received the Edward Lamb Foundation Prize in Business Administration for highest scholastic average of a graduating business major, and received the Wellington and Anna Miller Memorial Prize for highest academic grade average in his senior class.
He received his Master's of Business Administration in 1961 at the University of Pennsylvania and earned his Certified Financial Planners Degree in 1985 at the College of Financial Planning in Colorado. Currently the president of Baetz Management Enterprises, Inc., and Granite Asset Management, Inc., Baetz is a veteran of the NFL officiating society.
Beginning his duties in the NFL in 1977, he has officiated several playoff games. He also officiated in the Eastern Association of Intercollegiate Football Officials from 1962-74 and the Tri-State Football Officials from 1974 to 1977.
(This profile appeared in the 1993 Hall of Fame Banquet program. Paul passed away in 2022.)
