Despite press
reports that said otherwise, Louisiana State's acting
women's basketball coach said he was unaware of any improper
conduct that would have caused Pokey Chatman to
abruptly resign as head coach from a program she had
coached to 90 victories during the past three seasons.
Bob Starkey said he could not explain the timing of
Chatman's decision.
A day after she announced she would resign after
the NCAA tournament, Chatman said Thursday she was
leaving the team immediately. "There's been 20 to 25
things that are just floating out there, and I think she
thought if she just stepped away from it she could eliminate
that from even multiplying," Starkey said. "She has
her reasons, and hopefully, soon she'll address that
herself."
The Times-Picayune of New Orleans reported on its
Web site Thursday that the resignation was prompted by
the school's discovery of alleged inappropriate conduct
between the 37-year-old Chatman and one or more
players. Later, ESPN.com reported LSU had found out
about an alleged improper sexual relationship between
Chatman and a former player.
LSU spokesman
Michael Bonnette said athletic director Skip Bertman was
not available to comment.
The Times-Picayune offered few details, citing
university sources who said it was unclear when the
alleged improper conduct took place. Bertman told the
newspaper no formal investigation had taken place but
that an informal investigation "might have happened."
Chatman hasn't
been available to take questions since initially saying in
a written statement Wednesday that she was leaving LSU after
the NCAA tournament to pursue other career
opportunities. On Thursday, she announced she had
decided to leave immediately.
"My
resignation...has prompted speculation and rumors that far
exceeded my expectations, and it is clear that my presence
would be a great distraction during the NCAA
Tournament," Chatman said in a statement.
Starkey said
Chatman did venture onto the LSU campus Thursday to tell the
team of her decision. "Certainly the kids were disappointed
to get the news. Pokey recruited all of those kids
either as head coach or as an assistant," said
Starkey, who added he didn't believe Chatman was
forced to resign. "These are not just good basketball
players, they're good kids, and I think they're very
close, and I think that will help us to try and move
forward with it."
Players have been
off-limits to the media since the announcement.
The Lady Tigers
(26-7), ranked 10th nationally, last week upset the
University of Tennessee, who were then number 2 in the
nation, in the Southeastern Conference tournament
before falling to Vanderbilt in Sunday's tournament
final.
Chatman was 90-14
as LSU's head coach. Before that, she was 15-5 as
acting head coach during the latter stages of the
2003-04 season, when longtime coach Sue Gunter
left the team because of lung disease. That included a
trip to the Final Four in New Orleans, where the Lady Tigers
fell in the semifinals to Tennessee.
LSU advanced to
the Final Four in her first two seasons as head coach in
2005 and 2006, winning the SEC regular-season titles along
the way.
Chatman, a
Louisiana native, has been at LSU as both a player and coach
for nearly 20 years. A guard, she was one of LSU's career
assist and steals leaders. After her playing career
ended in 1991, she spent one season as a student
assistant coach and then 12 seasons as associate coach
under Gunter.
In 2005, Chatman
received a four-year contract extension that pays her
close to $400,000 a year plus postseason bonuses ranging
from $15,000 for making the NCAA tournament to $70,000
for winning a national title. The highest-paid coaches
in women's college basketball, Pat Summitt of
Tennessee and Geno Auriemma of the University of
Connecticut, both earn more than $1 million per year.
(Brett Martel, AP)
