Former LSU president defends fired AD Scott Woodward

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Former LSU president William Tate went on The Pivot, a show hosted by ESPN analyst and former LSU safety Ryan Clark, and gave his insight on his former school parting ways with athletic director Scott Woodward.

“I think Scott is one of the best athletic directors in the United States of America,” Tate said. “The real question you ask yourself, if you were going in the market, are there people who are better than him? You’re not going to have a list of people who are readily available and of that standing.”

Tate pointed out that the football team went under .500 then improved quickly after the hiring of head football coach Brian Kelly, who was fired just a few days before Woodward’s exit.

“I think we barely had enough players for the bowl game,” Tate said. “Yes, it was tough. I respected those men who went out there and did that. We had to make a decision on a hire. I think the process was excellent. It was not a lot of noise with it. It was really well done and aligned. When we announced it, what did we expect? We expected that we would get nine to 10 wins and be able to compete. [We] didn’t expect the Heisman Trophy winner, but we got one.”

In 2023, LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels won the Heisman by leading the nation’s top offense alongside receivers Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas during Kelly’s third year at the helm. But the athletic department’s success under Woodward didn’t stop there, according to Tate.

Woodward hired women’s basketball head coach Kim Mulkey, baseball head coach Jay Johnson and gymnastics coach Jay Clark. All three won national championships within their first three years.

“[We] didn’t expect to see that Kim Mulkey was going to turn around a sub-500 program, and in the second year of her tenure, win a national championship,” Tate said. “[We] did not expect it, but we got it because we hired an outstanding coach. In the four years that I was president of LSU, we won two national championships in baseball. [I] didn’t necessarily expect that the gymnastics team would pull off one of the most spectacular and memorable moments in my life. When I saw that balance beam with Aleah Finnegan and that crew, that was unreal. If you were there and you love sports, that’s what sports are about.”

With Woodward out, LSU promoted longtime athletics administrator and deputy AD Verge Ausberry into the full-time role. Ausberry will lead LSU’s search for a new football coach.

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: Former LSU president defends fired AD Scott Woodward

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