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Before he even answered his phone, Aaron Santi knew the call he was about take on April 2 could be a major one. “When I look down at the phone and see that 212 area code, you know that’s coming from New York,” said the 40-year-old Talent Middle School principal, whose other job as a college football referee took him around the nation. “There aren’t many reasons for people to call from New York.” Indeed, the news was big. On the other end of the line was NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino, who informed Santi that he had been picked as one of eight new officials. Sarah Thomas, who will be the league’s first full-time female official, is also part of the historic rookie class. Santi has worked in the Pac-12 Conference the past 12 years. He applied for an NFL position two years ago and was eventually selected for its Advanced Development Program last season. Santi interviewed for a spot in the program in New York last February and was accepted a few months later. After completing an orientation clinic last April, he worked the Seattle Seahawks’ organized team activities and minicamp and then attended a four-day officials clinic in Dallas. He was assigned the Denver Broncos’ training camp that summer and officiated the San Diego Chargers’ preseason contest at Seattle on Aug. 15. Santi then continued officiating as a side judge in the Pac-12 as NFL officials further evaluated him. Following the regular season, he officiated the TaxSlayer Bowl featuring Tennessee and Iowa in Jacksonville, Fla., on Jan. 2, and then worked the Medal of Honor Bowl in Charleston, S.C., on Jan. 11. The NFL has developed a regional network of 92 officiating scouts to canvass the country in search of officials, according to NFL.com. A couple thousand hopefuls applied for the league’s Officiating Development Program, but only 21 were invited to join the Advanced Development Program. The NFL liked what it saw in Santi and seven others, leading to the phone call from Blandino. “I’ve been an NFL fan since I was 5 years old and ever since I started officiating it was my ultimate goal, and it’s absolutely a realization of a longtime goal,” Santi said. “It’s just really exciting and rewarding to have the honor to do it.” He’s now a member of a groundbreaking class of referees headlined by line judge Thomas. The Mississippi native — who worked eight years with Conference USA — was assigned the New Orleans Saints’ training camp and she later officiated the Seahawks/Chargers preseason contest with Santi. “Knowing that the journey an official goes through,” Thomas said in a sit-down interview with NFL Media’s Judy Battista, “pee-wee, high school, if you’re fortunate enough to even go to the junior college level, small college, Division I, then of course the National Football League. But you never dream that this would really come true.” She also did the Medal of Honor Bowl with Santi. “Obviously having Sarah as part of the group of rookies coming in has raised the awareness level in the country of officials entering the NFL,” Santi said. “It has cast more of a spotlight on the situation than would ordinarily be the case. … I had a chance to get to know her a little bit and she is a really strong official. I think she’ll do a good job.” Santi will continue to work as a side judge at the next level nearly every weekend (crews typically get one to two weeks off every season, he said). With four officials from last season retiring, four of the new ones will not be assigned a certain crew, the Los Angeles Times reported. During the 2012 season, the NFL and the NFL Referees Association agreed to terms of an eight-year collective bargaining agreement after replacement referees were used through Week 3 following a labor dispute. Game officials’ compensation was estimated to increase from an average of $149,000 a year in 2011 to $173,000 in 2013 and $205,000 by 2019, according to NFL.com. Retirement benefits will be provided for new hires beginning in 2017. Along with Santi and Thomas, the other NFL rookies are line judge Kevin Codey from the American Athletic Conference; head linesmen Hugo Cruz (Conference USA) and Bart Longson (Pac-12); umpire Clay Martin (Conference USA); side judge Jabir Walker (SEC); and field judge Shawn Smith (Big Ten). Santi will next attend an orientation clinic and have a physical examination done in New Jersey in May. Until then, he’ll work hard in the gym to ready himself for the pro game. “I go to the gym four to five times a week, trying to do cardio and weight training to keep myself in shape,” he said. “I guess (refereeing at the highest level) is a good thing because it encourages me to stay in shape and stay active. It’s a good incentive.” Tomorrow is never promised in the NFL, he said. “Nothing in this business is guaranteed,” Santi said. “The level of scrutiny is extremely high and the level of accountability is extremely high.” Away from the field, Santi is in his third year as principal at the middle school after serving in the same capacity at Talent Elementary School for five years. Just like when he refereed college, he said he’ll continue to take on busy weekends of officiating before returning to his duties at school in the fall. Santi graduated from Mount Shasta High in 1993. He began officiating local high school games when he was 18 and worked his way up. He’s since worked some of college’s biggest contests, including the 2013 BCS championship. Reach reporter Dan Jones at 541-776-4499, or email [email protected]. Find him online at twitter.com/danjonesmt