Mike Leach Passes Away At The Age Of 61

Mississippi State head football coach Mike Leach died late Monday night at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Oxford, MS at the age of 61.

He suffered what was called "a personal health issue" at his home in Starkville, MS on Sunday and was admitted to the hospital that night.

Get our free mobile app

Leach (pictured above) was just finishing up his third season at Mississippi State in 2022.  He led the Bulldogs to an 8-4 record this, and he had started preparing his team for the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa, Florida against Illinois on January 2nd.

"The Pirate", as he was called, had been a head coach previously at Texas Tech from 2000-09.  After being fired in Lubbock, Texas, he was out of coaching until 2012.  That's when he became the head coach at Washington State.  While in Pullman, Washington, he was named National Coach of the Year in 2018.  He led the Cougars through the 2019 season when Mississippi State came calling.

His final game coached, as it turns out, was the Thanksgiving night victory over Ole Miss in the Egg Bowl game in Oxford, MS.  His Bulldogs outlasted the Rebels 24-22.

Leach was outspoken on many different subjects outside of football and actually wrote a book about the famous Native American leader Geronimo.

His career record in 21 seasons as a head coach was 158-107.  And led his teams to 19 bowl appearances in those 21 years.  He was known for his passing offense known as the "Air Raid" offense.  He went to college at Brigham Young University, and got his law degree at Pepperdine University.

Mike Leach was just 61 years old.