After spending 50 years as a football official and coordinator in the Southeastern Conference, Bobby Gaston has announced his retirement. He will be replaced by C. Rogers Redding, who served as an official in the Southwest Conference from 1987 to 1993 and the SEC from 1994 to 2003.

In his 25 years as an on-field official, Gaston was ranked as the league’s top lineman 16 times. After his retirement from the field in 1981, Gaston became an SEC observer until he was appointed to his current position of SEC coordi-nator of football officials in 1988. 

Most recently, Gaston has been integral in the development of instant replay for the SEC. He also pioneered the use of video training tapes for officials and led the drive for referees to announce penalties in stadiums during games.

Gaston lettered in football and basketball at Georgia Tech from 1944 to 1948 and played in the 1944 Sugar Bowl. He was a lieutenant (junior grade) in the U.S. Navy during World War II and served in the Pacific as a boat group commander. He will be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame on May 20 in Macon.