Fans of football tend to say that their coaches are irreplaceable. They claim that the sport would not be the same without their coach, and that without this play or that moment, the game and their team would be unrecognizable.
For fans of Washington State, Texas Tech, Kentucky and Mississippi State, that claim might as well be written in granite.
Mike Leach, the head coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs, passed away at 61 at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson on Monday. He was one of the great unsung heroes of the game, with notable disciples, contributions and hilarious press moments following his 21-year head coaching career.
Leach was not a typical SEC head coach. His press conferences were eccentric, his plays were unconventional and his story is more than unlikely.
As an American Studies major at Brigham Young University, in the days of LaVell Edwards, Leach loved the team and followed them religiously.
Names like Andy Reid, Norm Chow, Steve Young and Jim McMahon were connected to the program during Leach’s time there, and all have influenced his play design, offensive philosophy and attitude surrounding the game since his days in undergrad.
After obtaining his masters and law degrees, Leach chose to follow his passions on the gridiron, rather than the courtroom. Along with Hal Mumme, Leach set out on a career that would take him from small, private universities in Iowa and Georgia to Lexington, Kentucky, where the “air-raid” offense, named for its spread out, full-throttle style (and an actually air-raid siren, used to celebrate a score at Valdosta State during Leach’s time at the school) came into prominence.
After launching the career of Tim Couch as his offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach (who set the SEC record for passing yards and was drafted first overall by the Cleveland Browns), Leach eventually found his first head coaching job at Texas Tech.
During 10 seasons with the Red Raiders, Leach accumulated four-straight seasons leading the NCAA in passing yards. He kicked off Kliff Kingsbury’s career, starting him for three seasons.
Lincoln Riley also worked and played under Leach for six years and said in a tweet following the death of his old mentor: “You changed the course of my life and so many others.”
During his tenure, Leach posted an 11-win season in 2008, three more 9-win seasons and put up 70L points against Nebraska, a record for points scored on the Cornhuskers that still stands today.
In 2012, Leach was hired as the head coach at Washington State.
After returning the Cougars to bowl eligibility for the first time in a decade, Leach went on to revitalize quarterback Gardner Minshew’s collegiate career, and tied the school record for wins in a season with 10 wins.
Leach gave memorable press conferences throughout his time as a coach, one of which went viral in 2019 during his time at Wazoo, where a reporter asked which Pac-12 mascot would win in a fight. Leach’s answer was as unique as it was hilarious, and it gives a perspective to the outside-the-box, unique thinker that he was.
“Well first of all, what kind of mythical powers does the Sun Devil have?…The Trojan, does he have a horse or is he on foot? Does he have a bow and arrow or just his sword?” Leach said about which mascot would win during a press conference in 2019.
Leach has been involved with some of the great minds of modern football, both learning from and teaching many of them, in ways we won’t be able to fully appreciate for decades after his death.
His energy, coaching philosophy and impact will be missed beyond words and can be appreciated by any fan of the game.
Leach ended his career with a win over Ole Miss, which hurts any true Rebel fan to admit. But it was only the last in a long line of victories that may never have happened, if Leach had been like any other coach we have ever known.
