BATON ROUGE- Athletes at LSU are still processing the death of their friend and colleague, Wayde Sims. Just walking around the LSU campus Friday you could feel the sense of loss everyone there in a somber mood

"All the athletes that knew him are devastated. Like this can't be real, too soon, 20 years old," said LSU football player and friend of Sims, Eric Monroe. "He was my first friend that I met here."

The city knew him as an LSU basketball player, but his friends knew him as one of their own.

"Every time I saw Wayde he was always smiling, and he always welcomed me with open arms. And every time we chilled together it was as if I was his brother," LSU football player Kary Vincent Jr. said.

LSU athletes didn't know how to handle the news of losing their friend, who they saw just hours before he was gunned down.

"This has to be a dream, because I just saw him. We were in tutoring together, writing a paper. It's just crazy," Monroe said.

"I'm heartbroken, and still in shock, this is really crazy. I just saw him last night, so it's really crazy," football player Saahdiq Charles said.

They, along with their teammates, will remember Sims not only as a basketball player but for his leadership capabilities.

"He's going to be remembered you know, not just as a teammate but as a friend, as a role model, motivator, " Vincent said.

They also take this as a lesson to cherish every moment they have with each other.

"This has really just opened our eyes. And we try to appreciate each other much more and try to show each other that we love each other every day," Vincent said.