SEC’s 1st black athletic director
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — David Williams II, the first black athletic director in the Southeastern Conference and an “incomparable leader” at Vanderbilt, died Friday, hours before his retirement party. He was 71.
He died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the university said. The cause was not disclosed. His last day as athletic director was Jan. 31.
“David Williams stood tall on this campus, in this city and in college athletics nationally as an incomparable leader, role model and dear friend to me and so many others,” chancellor Nicholas Zeppos said in a statement.
Mr. Williams was nicknamed the Goldfather — the school colors are black and gold — for his success at the school. He had been the SEC’s second-longest-tenured athletic director behind Kentucky’s Mitch Barnhart when he announced his retirement last September. Malcolm Turner took over Feb. 1; Mr. Williams stayed on as a full-time law professor. He also was establishing a Sports, Law & Society program at Vanderbilt Law School.
Mr. Williams was vice chancellor of student affairs and a tenured law professor, general counsel and university secretary in 2003 when then-chancellor Gordon Gee dissolved the Vanderbilt athletic department in 2003. Mr. Williams’ job overseeing student affairs put him in charge of athletics, which he had worked in while at Ohio State.
He took the athletic director title in 2012. During his stay, Vanderbilt won four national championships and enjoyed its biggest football success in nearly a century.