Former Missouri athletics director and Southern Conference commissioner Dave Hart Sr. died March 14 from congestive heart failure. He was 83.

Hart, who served as athletics director at Louisville in the mid-1970s, was best known for holding the same position at Missouri from 1978 until 1986. During his tenure with the Tigers, Hart oversaw an expansion of Memorial Stadium and improvements at the Hearnes Center. He helped rejuvenate the athletics department by negotiating a long-term marketing contract with Missourinet Sports. He became went to the Southern Conference in 1987 and stayed through 1991.

Hart also coached football at Pittsburgh in the 1960s. In recent years, he had consulted with UNC Asheville’s athletics department since 1993, creating a golf event to benefit the school in 1996. The Dave Hart Scholarship Fund Tournament raised more than $300,000 for athletics aid to the university.

“This is a sad day for UNC Asheville and the entire collegiate athletic community,” said Janet Cone, athletics director at the school. “Dave Hart was an invaluable contributor to our athletics department and his work will be felt for generations to come with our student-athletes. I felt very fortunate to have him advise us and will miss him greatly. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his wife Earlyn and his family.”

His son, Dave Hart Jr., is athletics director at Alabama, and his grandson, Rich Hart, is athletics director at Chattanooga.