Minnesota Vikings COO Kevin Warren was introduced Tuesday at a news conference as the next commissioner of the Big Ten Conference.
Warren, 55, becomes the first black commissioner of a Power 5 conference.
He will replace longtime Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany, who in March announced his plans to retire in 2020 after 30 years with the league.In March, the Sun Belt Conference hired former Atlantic 10 executive associate commissioner Keith Gill, who became the first black commissioner of a Football Bowl Subdivision conference.
Warren has spent 21 seasons working in the NFL, including the past 14 with the Vikings. He is the highest-ranking black executive working on the business side of an NFL franchise.