Kimmel joined the Austin Peay staff as an athletic trainer in 1981 and at the time was the department's only full-time health professional (and only second athletic trainer hired by the University). While building one of the most respected athletic training programs, Kimmel also became a national leader in sports medicine. Certified by the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA), he served as the Tennessee Athletic Trainers' Society (TATS) President from 1989-93 and was named the TATS College Athletic Trainer of the Year in 1991. In 2001 Kimmel was elected into the TATS Hall of Fame.
In 1994 when the OVC moved its basketball tournament to Nashville, Kimmel served as the volunteer host athletic trainer for 14 years. He also served in the same capacity as the NCAA basketball tournament hosted by the OVC and held in Nashville.
In summer 2003, Kimmel was elected to his profession's highest office, NATA President, and served a four-year term. In spring 1995 he was selected to work two weeks at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. He retired from Austin Peay in Dec. 2006 after spending 25 years at the school, including the final 16 in the position of as assistant athletics director. He was inducted into the Austin Peay Hall of Fame in 2006.
A native of Frankfort, Ky., Kimmel attended the University of Kentucky, graduating in 1976. He received his master's degree from East Tennessee State in 1981 before moving onto Austin Peay.