Remembering Mike Leach – Mississippi State Head Coach Dead at 61

mike leach

College football won’t quite be the same anymore. One of the sport’s largest characters, Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach has died at the age of 61, the school announced on social media on Tuesday. Leach was flown to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson on Monday with a health emergency. Leach finally succumbed to complications of a heart condition on Monday night. He is survived by his wife Sharon and his four children, Janeen, Kimberly, Cody and Kiersten.

A legend on and off the field

Mike Leach will be remembered for being more than a football coach. It was mainly his quirky off-the-field antics that made him so dearly beloved by the college football community. On Monday night, Leach died at the age of 61, Mississippi State Football announced.

“Mississippi State University Head Football Coach Michael Charles “Mike” Leach passed away last night (Monday, Dec. 12) at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi, following complications from a heart condition,” the university said in a statement.

“Mike was a giving and attentive husband, father and grandfather,” a statement from Leach’s family read. “He was able to participate in organ donation at UMMC as a final act of charity. We are supported and uplifted by the outpouring of love and prayers from family, friends, Mississippi State University, the hospital staff, and football fans around the world. Thank you for sharing in the joy of our beloved husband and father’s life.”

Whether it was his appearance in Friday Night Lights and his talk of the ‘inner pirate’, or his rant about weddings, or his deciphering of a mascot rumble, everybody has a favorite Mike Leach moment. However, Leach was also a great football mind.

Leach took an early version of the ‘Air Raid’ offense and adapted it to such a point that it is now widely used in college football and the NFL alike.

Coaching career

Mike Leach never played the game of football at a high level. He played rugby for BYU in college and earned a law degree. But he eventually decided it was a football life for him and in 1987 he became the offensive line coach at Cal Poly.

He worked his way up before eventually landing his first head coaching gig at Texas Tech in 2000. Leach never had a losing season with the Red Raiders and managed to make it to a bowl game every year. He finished his time at Texas Tech with a record of 84-43.

In 2012, Leach was hired by the Washingon State Cougars. His version of the ‘Air Raid’ offense was once again successful and he went 55-47 with the school before heading to Mississippi State in 2020. In his three seasons with the SEC team, Leach went 19-17 giving him a winning record at every school where he was the head coach.

“Coach Mike Leach cast a tremendous shadow not just over Mississippi State University, but over the entire college football landscape,” Mississippi State president, Mark E. Keenum said. “His innovative “Air Raid” offense changed the game. Mike’s keen intellect and unvarnished candor made him one of the nation’s true coaching legends. His passing brings great sadness to our university, to the Southeastern Conference, and to all who loved college football. I will miss Mike’s profound curiosity, his honesty, and his wide-open approach to pursuing excellence in all things.”

Leach won the 2008 Big 12 Coach of the Year, 2015 Pac-12 Coach of the Year and 2018 Pac-12 Coach of the Year during his career.

Classic Leach

It was likely his off-the-field personality and quirky antics that endeared him to fans around the country.

Leach was a huge fan of pirates and in a nod to that, he appeared in an episode of Friday Night Lights where he tells a coach to “swing your sword” and “find your inner pirate.”

Several of his press conferences and interviews included some of the best all-time rants and answers that can only be described as ‘Classic Leach’. We will leave you with a few of our favorites as we say RIP, Pirate.

Mike Leach on weddings:

Mike Leach on who would win a Pac-12 mascot brawl:

“Dinosaur hands” by Mike Leach:

Mike Leach on coffee:

“Fat little girlfriends” by Mike Leach:

Coach Leach on Trevor’s wedding plans:

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