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Thomas could become first female ref
National Football League
spt ap female official
Sarah Thomas, a female trainee in the NFLs officials program, works at the New Orleans Saints training camp at the teams training facility on Thursday in Metairie. La. - photo by The Associated Press

METAIRIE, La. — A woman who could become the NFL’s first female official is training at New Orleans Saints training camp this week.
Sarah Thomas, who lives near Jackson, Miss., is a former college basketball player who started officiating high school games at age 23 and says she never dreamed then that she could become a candidate to officiate NFL games.
Now 40-years old and with three children, she has been officiating college football in Conference USA since 2007, is a member of the NFL’s Officiating Development Program and a finalist to become a permanent NFL official. She arrived at Saints camp Thursday and will train there Friday and during Saturday’s scrimmage.
She has trained at Saints camp in previous years, and Saints coach Sean Payton says she does “a great job.”