CARROLLTON, Ga. – The man who led West Georgia to a national title on the hardwood has been elected to the Class of 2020 of the Small College Basketball National Hall of Fame. Roger Kaiser was named to the Hall by the Small College Basketball and the National Hall of Fame Committee.
Kaiser came to West Georgia as the school's athletic director in 1969. A year later he took over as head men's basketball coach. He led the Braves to the 1974 NAIA National Championship, the first ever national basketball title for any school in the state of Georgia. A year later, after the program moved to NCAA Division II, Kaiser had his team back in the national tournament.
Kaiser left West Georgia in 1990, moving to Life University in Marietta where he launched that school's basketball program. His teams won the NAIA National Championships in 1997, 1999, and 2000, and he led Life to two additional appearances in the National Championship game. Kaiser was the NAIA National Coach of the Year in 1997 and 2000, and was selected to the NAIA's 75
th Anniversary Team, one of only 15 coaches.
Kaiser was a 1998 inductee into the University of West Georgia Athletic Hall of Fame. He is also a member of other halls of fame, including the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, the Indiana Basketball Hall Fame, and the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame. Kaiser was a two-sport star at Tech, was a two-time All-America selection in basketball, and was the 1961 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year.
The 2020 National Hall of Fame Class was selected by the distinguished Hall of Fame Committee including: Steve Knight, Don Landry, Mike Lightfoot, Danny Miles, Greg Moore, Jim Nelson, Doug Palm, Roy Pickerill, Gary Pine, Jim Poteet, Butch Raymond, John Rinka, Gary Stewart and Rick Zvosec.
