Returning to Utah, Cazier became a professor of history at Utah State University in 1960, where he was the Teacher of the Year for 1966. In 1967 he was awarded a Ford Foundation Fellowship by New York University's Academic Administration. During this time he was also an administrative intern and Assistant to the President of New York University. Before completing his Ph.D. dissertation, Jan Shipps was one of Cazier's students at USU in 1960–1961 for a Civil War class. However, Cazier focused mostly on the Utah War, much like others at USU who taught Mormon issues in their classes and influenced Shipps to become a historian of Mormonism. While at Utah State University, he later served as assistant to the president and vice-provost.
University president
In July 1971, Cazier replaced Lew D. Oliver as president of Chico State College in northern California. On June 1, 1972, Cazier brought Chico State College into the California State University system, renaming it California State University, Chico. He also oversaw campus expansion, including construction of some larger buildings on campus and the remodeling of the auditorium and administration buildings. During his presidency, the faculty expanded and unionized. As university president, Cazier confronted issues at the school during the period between the political unrest of the 1960s and the community disruption of the 1980s. In late 1975 and early 1976, student protesters occupied the administration building while upset about the arming of campus security personnel. Cazier also experienced continual budget problems at the university. At his departure in 1979, the school suffered through a state budget crisis, potential budget cuts and continued student political protests. Despite the problems, Cazier was admired by student leaders, faculty, staff, and system-wide officials as an accessible leader and supporter of the academic community. In 1979, Cazier began a new position as president of Utah State University. He would serve in this position until his retirement in 1992. In 1998, Utah State University named the Cazier Science and Technology Library in his honor. In 2005, the library and another were replaced by a larger consolidated facility named the Merrill-Cazier Library. Cazier remained a full-time professor at Utah State University until 1997 and continued to teach occasional classes as professor emeritus.
Personal struggles
At the end of Cazier's tenure at USU, his wife Shirley developed Parkinson's disease, coupled with dementia. In November 1998, his son Paul developed glial blastoma, an inoperable, 100 percent fatal brain cancer. A week later, Cazier's sister was killed in an automobile accident while traveling to help care for Shirley, who would also die three months later. Amidst this loss, a newspaper article quoted USU's research vice president, Peter Gerity, who said Cazier left the university with debts of three million dollars. In a telephone conversation, Cazier heatedly argued with and challenged Gerity to meet him to "help him get a clearer focus on the truth," to which Gerity called the campus police. After this, Cazier worked to rebuild his life by volunteering with Meals on Wheels, nursing home reading and ESL students. In his retirement, Cazier also obtained a commercial driver's license to begin driving a Semi-trailer truck.
Mormon studies
Cazier has participated in several Mormon studies ventures. He was a member of the Editorial Board of during 1966, the inaugural year of the periodical, and was on the editorial board of BYU Studies from 1969–1974. He was published in Dialogue and presented to a Sunstone Symposium in 1981. As an associate of Leonard J. Arrington and other Mormon historians, Cazier was also involved in the organizing of the Mormon History Association.
