The college football world is in shock after the announcement of the sudden death of Mississippi State football Head Coach Mike Leach. Leach, 61, who had just finished his 3rd season as head coach of the Mississippi State football team and was in the process of preparing the Bulldogs for their Bowl Game, was admitted to the hospital late Monday evening after suffering a heart attack. News of his death was made public on Tuesday. Leach, known for his air raid offensive schemes, was a beloved figure in the college football world. In addition to his recent stint with Mississippi State, Leach was the head coach at Washington State, and Texas Tech prior to that. He spent a total of 21 seasons as a college football head coach.
Mike Leach got his first head coaching job at Texas Tech in 2000. He led the Red Raiders to a 7-5 record and an appearance in the Galleryfurniture.com bowl. Texas Tech lost to Eastern Carolina in the bowl game and finished with an overall record of 7-6 in Leach’s first season. The Red Raiders went 7-4 in 2001 and qualified for the Alamo Bowl where they lost to Iowa and finished the season with a 7-5 record. The Red Raiders won three straight bowl games from 2002 to 2004. Leach led Texas Tech to the Cotton Bowl in 2005, but they lost to Alabama. Texas Tech won 11 games in 2008 and once again made it to the Cotton Bowl, but lost to Ole Miss. The Red Raiders went 8-4 in 2009, and secured an appearance in the Alamo Bowl. Leach did not coach in the bowl game. The Red Raiders finished the season inside the AP top 25 five times under the direction of Mike Leach. The Red Raiders also went to a bowl game every season with Leach as head coach. Leach compiled an 84-33 overall record at Texas Tech from 2000 to 2009. He went 47-33 against the Big 12.
In 2012, Mike Leach was hired by Washington State to be their head coach. The Cougars went 3-9 in his first season. This was the first time a Mike Leach coached team did not make a bowl game. The Cougars went 6-6 in 2013, but they lost in the New Mexico Bowl. They went 3-9 in 2014. This was the second and final time that a Mike Leach coached team missed out on a bowl game. Washington State made it to a bowl game every season from 2015 to 2019. This included a 10-2 season in 2018. They lost to rival Washington at the end of the 2018 season, which denied them the opportunity to play in the Pac-12 Championship Game. Mike Leach was the head coach at Washington State from 2012 to 2019 and compiled a 55-47 record. He went 36-36 against the Pac-12.
Mike Leach departed Washington State after the 2019 season to take the head coaching job at Mississippi State in 2020. The Bulldogs went 3-7 in his first season. Despite the record, the Bulldogs were given an invitation to the Armed Forces Bowl. Mississippi State beat Tulsa and finished the season 4-7. The Bulldogs went 6-6 in 2021 and qualified for the Liberty Bowl. They lost to Leach’s former team Texas Tech. Mississippi State went 8-4 in the 2022 season and qualified for the ReliaQuest Bowl. Unfortunately, Leach passed away at the age of 61. Leach had a 19-17 record in three seasons at Mississippi State. He was 11-15 against the SEC.
At the time of his passing, Mike Leach finished with an overall record of 158-107 in 21 seasons as a college football head coach. He took his teams to bowl games in 19 of those 21 seasons.
Mississippi State announced that it still plans on playing its bowl game. They will play Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl on January 2.
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