In 1957 at the tender age of 16, Wilson Gosier came to Fort Valley State University as a three-sport athlete (Football, Basketball, Baseball) and left an indelible imprint on Wildcat Athletics as a student-athlete and later as Director of Athletics.
Gosier began his career as an official right here at FVSU, officiating intramural sports while he was a student, which led to a 30-year career as an official in football and basketball at every level in sports. He retired as an NFL official in 1984 and continued to officiate college football and basketball games until the early 1990’s.
In 1969, Gosier was named Assistant Dean of Students at Fort Valley and was reported to be the youngest Dean in the country at that time. After retiring from officiating full-time, the capstone of Dr. Gosier’s career was his appointment and outstanding tenure as Director of Athletics at his alma mater, Fort Valley State University. In 2009, upon the recommendation of a national search committee, he was appointed Director of Athletics. His vast participation, knowledge, experience, and achievements in professional, collegiate, and high school sports along with his academic and university administration background, made him a great fit for the Wildcat Athletics department.
Among his achievements as Director of Athletics, Dr. Gosier spearheaded fundraising for a $10 million dollar football stadium and millions for upgrades to all the institution’s NCAA Division II sports programs and facilities. Another one of his ventures was improving sports alumni relations. One initiative was the launch of the Fort Valley State University Hall of Fame with NFL Hall of Fame inductee Rayfield Wright and L.J. “Stan” Lomax as original inductees.
Current Director of Athletics, Dr. Renae Myles Payne, is familiar with Dr. Gosier because of her friendship with his nephew, Derek Horne, Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director at Temple University.
Derek commented “My family’s legacy runs through Fort Valley State University. It is very fitting for us to say farewell to my uncle on the campus grounds where we labored as a student-athlete, staff, and AD.
“All of the Athletic Directors who have been here before me, laid the groundwork for our success today. It’s like they are passing the baton to me to continue the work they started. I am grateful to follow in the footsteps of administrators like Dr. Gosier, and I thank Derek for introducing me to his legacy,” said Dr. Renae.
Dr. Gosier’s final encore will be held on Saturday, May 20 at 11:00am at the C.W. Pettigrew Center on the campus of Fort Valley State University.