BATON ROUGE — Assistant Coach of Women's Basketball Bob Starkey said Kim Mulkey was 'heartbroken' over Athletic Director Scott Woodward parting ways with the university.

Kim Mulkey was absent from the Thursday night press conference after the LSU women's basketball exhibition game. 

"40 years of collegiate coaching, I've worked for two phenomenal athletic directors, one was Skip Bertman, the other one was Scott Woodward, Starkey said. "Scott has a deep love for coaches and student athletes, and the people that work for him, he works incredibly hard to make sure we have the resources. He has a passionate love for this university and about this state. And we, and me personally, are a whole lot better for him."

The announcement that Woodward would be parting ways with the university came on Thursday night, a day after Gov. Landry said Woodward would not be choosing the next Head Football Coach.

Starkey said this decision is a normal part of being in athletics. 

"He did a lot of things and helped the program be relevant," Starkey said.