Report: American Conference commissioner Tim Pernetti among finalists for NFLPA executive director

The NFL Players Association is down to a group of finalists for its next executive director, ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Kalyn Kahler reported. American Conference commissioner Tim Pernetti is one of them.

Pernetti is one of the finalists, along with interim NFLPA executive director David White and former union chief strategy officer JC Tretter, according to ESPN. A vote is set for next month at the NFLPA’s annual meeting in San Diego.

The group of candidates is part of a “comprehensive search,” NFLPA president Jalen Reeves-Maybin said in a statement to ESPN. He said the union is looking at “a strong pool of highly qualified candidates. Out of respect for the integrity of the process and those involved, we will not comment on or disclose individual names.”

The NFLPA has been searching for a new executive director after Lloyd Howell announced his resignation in July 2025. His announcement came in light of an ESPN report about the hiring process when he took the role and whether or not NFLPA members knew about a 2011 lawsuit.

While neither the NFLPA or Pernetti have confirmed his candidacy, East Carolina athletics director Philip Rogers released a statement to Yahoo! Sports’ Ross Dellenger about the report. Rogers – who also serves as chair of the American Conference Board – praised Pernetti’s efforts as commissioner, as well as the league’s reputation for developing talent.

“Media reports about Commissioner Tim Pernetti and the NFLPA executive director search underscore what we see every day: The American Conference continues to be a deep pool of talented member institutions, athletic directors, coaches, and leadership that the biggest brands in and beyond college athletics work to recruit,” Rogers’ statement read. “Under Tim’s leadership, we have made meaningful forward progress in alignment, commercialization, and competitive strength.

“Interest in Tim comes as no surprise. He remains a transparent, tireless advocate for our members and fully focused on advancing the American.”

A look at Tim Pernetti’s resume

Tim Pernetti, a former college football player at Rutgers, worked for ABC Sports from 1994-2003 before joining CSTV as vice president of programming and talent. When CBS acquired CSTV in 2006, he worked closely with content strategy for CBS College Sports Network and broadcasted for Rutgers football from 2001-09.

In 2009, Pernetti became the athletics director at his alma mater and served in the role until 2013. From there, he joined the MLS’ New York City FC as chief business officer when the franchise joined as an expansion team. In 2015, he became the president of IMG College and helped lead its merger with Learfield in 2019.

After a year as the executive vice president at Endeavor from 2019-20, Pernetti took over as the COO of Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy and moved up to president in 2022. He then replaced Mike Aresco as American commissioner in 2024 as the conference underwent a wave of change.