US EditionRoy Kramer, Creator of SEC Championship, Dies at 96
Kramer expanded the SEC to 12 teams, created the first Division I-A championship game, and led the Bowl Championship Series, shaping college football's modern era.
- The SEC announced Friday that Roy Kramer, former Southeastern Conference commissioner, died at age 96 in Vonore, Tennessee.
- From 1990 to 2002, Kramer served as SEC commissioner after 12 years as Vanderbilt University athletic director and expanded the SEC to 12 teams in 1992, creating the first Division I-A championship game.
- Kramer negotiated a ground-breaking broadcast deal with CBS and helped create the SEC’s first title game, boosting distributions to $95.7 million by 2002 and $808.4 million in 2023-24.
- Two days before the SEC title game, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey praised Kramer’s resolve and innovation, while colleges and colleagues said his foundations will resonate for generations.
- Kramer helped design the precursor to today’s playoff, the BCS, which he chaired as founding architect before it was replaced by a four-team playoff in 2014 and expanded to 12 teams last season.
46 Articles
46 Articles
Ex-SEC Commissioner Roy Kramer, Whose Vision Paved the Way for College Football Playoffs, Dies at 96
Roy Kramer, who as commissioner of the Southeastern Conference helped transform the league into a national power while reshaping the entire sport of college football with a precursor to today’s playoff system, has died. He was 96.
The Morning Sun
Former national championship-winning CMU football coach and AD, SEC commissioner Roy Kramer dies at 96
Roy Kramer, the one-time national championship-winning head coach at Central Michigan University (1967-77) who became an athletic director at Vanderbilt, then, eventually, commissioner of the Southeastern Conference where he reshaped an industry to reflect the billion-dollar business it would become, died Thursday. He was 96.
Roy Kramer, East TN native who revamped college football as SEC commissioner and BCS architect, dies
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Roy Kramer, an East Tennessee native who served as Southeastern Conference commissioner and founding chairman of the Bowl Championship Series, died Thursday. He was 96 years old. The SEC announced Kramer's death on Friday, calling him "a pioneer in the world of college athletics whose vision and leadership helped shape a [...]
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