Tim Pernetti talks saving college sports, CFP expansion at American media days
· Yahoo Sports
The American Conference went beachside for its 2026 media days, shifting the event to the Hilton Bayfront in St. Petersburg, FL. The 14-team league, unaffected by conference realignment since 2024, is fresh off one of its most successful seasons in history. In 2025, the American champion produced its second-ever College Football Playoff participant, saw three teams ranked in the final AP Poll, had three teams reach 11 win or more wins, and sent a conference-record nine teams to bowl games.
Third-year American commissioner Tim Pernetti took the podium in St. Petersburg to weigh in on the state of the conference and opine on some of the most pressing issues in college football:
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Protect College Sports Act
One of the hottest topics in college football is the Protect College Sports Act, a bipartisan bill proposed by Senators Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell that would reshape several facets of college athletics. The bill, which is currently on the Senate floor, introduces changes including increased regulation on name, image, likeness (NIL) agreements, a one-time transfer policy, restrictions on in-season head coach movement, and the prevention of large superconferences.
Like most conference commissioners at media days, Pernetti expressed support for the legislation while acknowledging its imperfections.
“While this bill isn’t perfect, it addresses the core challenges facing the industry,” Pernetti said. “It demands that NIL deals have a legitimate business purpose. I promise you this, that will put an end to these sham pay-for-play deals that are turning recruiting into this unchecked auction.”
But unlike some of his commissioner counterparts, Pernetti has been at the forefront of conversations in the nation’s capital, positioning himself to potentially serve on a commission that oversees the future of college athletics. Pernetti credited Army and Navy’s membership in the American as his foot in the door in Washington, allowing him to elevate his conference’s voice in high-profile discussions.
“Army and Navy being in our conferences has been great for us, but their engagement enabled me to create engagement in Washington, D.C., which got me in the room as part of these committees for college sports,” Pernetti said. “Their national profile and the relationships they brought to the table has really enabled the American to get to the table, and now we’re in the group. So we have a national voice in all this change.”
Pernetti knows his role in D.C. can be that of a disruptor, having different priorities than commissioners of other conferences such as the SEC or Big Ten. But he believes the American’s perspective is essential to preserve the future of college football as the sport undergoes sweeping changes.
“The future of college sports has to work for every student-athlete across every sport, every school,” Pernetti said. “This is why all this work in Washington, D.C. really matters right now. Over the last several months, I’ve been up the halls in D.C. more than Frank Underwood did in House of Cards. The American has a seat at the table. We have a national respected voice. And I’m really hoping to be part of President Trump’s commission to save college sports. At times, I’ve been the only non-autonomy commissioner in that room. I know this about me. I know my voice is not popular sometimes. That’s fine. We’re not trying to win a popularity contest. We’re trying to modernize the greatest sustainable path forward.”
College Football Playoff
To expand or not to expand? That is the question presented to every conference commissioner this summer. After 10 years under the 4-team model, the College Football Playoff has now completed two seasons with a 12-team bracket. However, some conference commissioners, including the Big 12’s Brett Yormark, have called for another round of expansion beyond 12 teams. Other commissioners have refrained from providing a definitive answer.
Having seen the American benefit from the previous round of expansion to 12 teams, Pernetti advocated for an even larger bracket, mentioning a potential 24-team model several times during his press conference.
“The American’s position has been clear and consistent from the start,” Pernetti said. “We believe teams should have the opportunity to earn it on the field. And we’re supportive of an expanded playoff that provides more access for every conference.”
Pernetti understands that expansion to 24 isn’t an easy conversation. The College Football Playoff National Championship is slated to conclude later than ever this season on Jan. 25, and a 24-team playoff would inevitably extend the sport’s calendar later unless other changes are made. Some of the primary discussions involving expansion include the future of conference championship games, and Pernetti acknowledges such factors must be considered while he advocates for a 24-team field.
“If you’re gonna double size of the field on a guaranteed basis, why wouldn’t you double the size of the field with a ‘group of six?’ 51 percent of institutions that play college football are there. So what can we do? Make sure we put the game center of the table and protect the game and what’s best for the game. There are a lot of things to consider. It’s easy to say we’re going to 24. Where the hell are we playing all these games? You have to think about the count, you have to think about the schedule, you have to think about the access, you have to think about championship games, you have to think about the economics of those championship games. To me, I always try to be the objective broker in the room, and you’ve gotta get your numbers right, but it’s important that we land in the right place.”
Besides conference championships, another potential casualty of College Football Playoff expansion is especially close to Pernetti. The Army-Navy Game, which although not counted as a conference game in the standings, is one of the hallmarks of any season in the American Conference. Pernetti makes it his mission to ensure CFP expansion will not infringe on America’s Game, which has traditionally been preserved as a standalone game during the second Saturday of December.
“I will protect and defend the Army-Navy Game as the commissioner of this league. It’s that important to the conference. It’s very important this matters. The flip-side of everything going on in the CFP room, they’re not rumors. We’ve been talking about expansion. We met in Denver. We had great conversations about all the scenarios. We don’t know what media rights might look like for an expanded playoff. We don’t know how the calendar is gonna work. But at the top of the pile for every commissioner in that room is, we have to make sure we properly situate the Army-Navy Game.”
The American’s Biggest Challenge
Every conference faces its own unique challenges, but for the American, no issue looms larger than the transfer portal. The conference’s reigning Offensive Player of the Year and Coach of the Year are now at Oklahoma State. The Special Teams Player of the Year plays for Florida. And of the 16 First Team All-American Conference selections from last season currently on college rosters, only four remain in the American.
Pernetti hopes his league can see a more stable future.
“The top of the mountain for us on issues in the American is the transfer portal,” Pernetti said. “78 percent of our First and Second Team players in football transferred. Almost 300 over the last few years. Our coaches are doing an incredible job of developing talent. I want to keep them in the league longer. Anything that promotes more stability, still gives student-athletes the opportunity to transfer once without restrictions, but then beyond that, guardrails are important, because you know what happens? You lose on development and you don’t graduate. And that’s really our job, to make sure they deliver the education.”
The American deals with the difficult reality that success in the league is heavily correlated with coaching and roster turnover. In addition to a mass exodus of all-conference talent, the American saw four of its premier head coaches — Jon Sumrall, Eric Morris, Alex Golesh, and Ryan Silverfield — hired away by other programs this offseason. As other programs continue to poach the top personnel in the American, Pernetti sends a reminder of that the health of his conference benefits other conferences in the college football ecosystem.
“A healthy American Conference is good for college football, notably your autonomy conferences,” Pernetti said. “They compete with us on the field. They build their rosters with our student-athletes. They hire our coaches as their future leaders. This is why it’s so important that we all work together in the future.”