Roy Kramer Passes Away At 96 – Vanderbilt Athletics

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Roy Kramer, who served as the sixth commissioner of the Southeastern Conference as well as athletic director at Vanderbilt University, passed away Thursday at the age of 96. Kramer was a pioneer in the world of college athletics whose vision and leadership helped shape a new era for college sports. Among his many accomplishments, he was the architect of the first conference championship game in NCAA Division I-A history, after the SEC expanded to 12 teams in 1992. Kramer died two days before the SEC is to play the 34th game in the history of that championship event. Born on Oct. 30, 1929, in Maryville, Tennessee, Kramer’s lifelong devotion to the game of football began early and carried him from high-school sidelines to the highest echelons of collegiate sports leadership. Kramer graduated from Maryville (Tenn.) College, and he was a standout lineman on the football team as well as a wrestler. He played in the inaugural Tangerine Bowl (now the Citrus Bowl) on Jan. 1, 1947, as a freshman for Maryville. During his senior year at Maryville, he was called to serve during the Korean War, delaying his graduation. After his service and graduation from Maryville in
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