NFL announces advanced training program officials

20 officials get the chance to audition for the NFL

The NFL has announced its third class of officials in the Advanced Development Program (ADP). These candidates are successful college and Arena Football League officials. The group will work preseason games. Once preseason is over, those officials will return to officiate their college schedule.

The NFL officiating department will scout the ADP officials and consider whether they have a future full-time in the pros. If the officials pass muster, they will be candidates once a roster spot opens up. The ADP officials are not members of the NFL Referees Association (the officials’ union) and they will not be called up mid-season to replace injured officials.

Side judge Jonah Monroe (from the American Athletic Conference) was originally slated to be on the ADP roster for a second season, but was hired as a permanent official late in the process. He is replacing James Coleman, who is sidelined with an Achilles injury suffered during a conditioning minicamp.

The 2015 Advanced Development Program officials (followed by conference affiliation) are listed below, with an asterisk indicating officials who have previously been in the ADP.

• Mike Carr (Big Ten)
• Maia Chaka* (Conference USA)
• Catherine “Cat” Conti (Mountain West)
• Ryan Dickson* (Pac-12)
• Alan Eck (Big 12)
• Matt Edwards (Big Ten)
• Marlow Fitzgerald (Mountain West)
• Ramon George (Conference USA)
• Quentin Givens (Big 12)
• Lark Jones* (Conference USA)
• Kevin Mar* (Big 12)
• Mike Morton (Atlantic Coast)
• Mike Moten (Conference USA)
• Larry Neal* (Conference USA)
• Lyndon Nixon* (Big 12)
• Jerod Phillips (Big 12)
• Mearl Robinson (Pac-12)
• Brad Rogers (Southeastern)
• Chris Snead* (Southeastern)
• Steve Woods (Big Ten)

There are two women on the list. Chaka is in her second year in the ADP, and this is Cat Conti’s first year officiating NFL preseason games.

We don’t yet know the officials’ positions or jersey numbers, but in the past the officials wore between 136-155.

Once we have more information about the ADP officials we will pass it along to you.