Illinois head coach Bob Starkell has left the Fighting Illini women's gymnastics program for personal reasons, according to a suburban Chicago newspaper. The University of Illinois has appointed associate head coach Kim Landrus to fill Starkell's spot for the near future.
Starkell has been with the Illinois program for 17 years, 11 of them as head coach. Under Starkell, Illinois made its first ever NCAA Championships appearance as a team in 2009. The Fighting Illini did not advance from the NCAA Regional meet to the NCAA Championships in 2010.
Starkell did not release a statement to the media about his departure, but he did express his admiration for the 2010 Illinois team in "Illini Ink," an online journal penned by Illinois gymnasts and coaches throughout the season.
On May 30 Starkell wrote: "After having a month to reflect on the season, I have realized how very proud I am of my team and staff this past year. I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to work with and along the side of them. Each one carries on the responsibility of being a great ambassador to the university with pride. It's a excellent feeling to watch our seniors graduate after having developed life skills over the past four years that will lead them to success outside the gym. "
Starkell's resignation is the latest in an NCAA coaching shuffle that began with Penn State's Steve Shephard's resignation earlier this summer. Shephard was replaced at Penn State by Auburn head coach Jeff Thompson, who vacated his coaching job with the Tigers of Alabama in order to take the job at PSU.
Auburn hired Utah assistant coach Jeff Graba for its head coaching job last month.
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