FILE - In this July 20, 2011, file photo, Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive talks with reporters during SEC media days in Hoover, Ala. Slive will retire next summer after 13 years leading the league and plans to begin treatment for a recurrence of prostate cancer. The 74-year-old Slive said his retirement will take effect July 31. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)
Mike Slive, the Southeastern Conference's seventh and arguably most successful commissioner, died in Birmingham on Wednesday, the conference announced.
He was 77.
Slive oversaw a remarkable era of success in the SEC while helping shape the landscape of college sports as a national leader in college sports.