He proved me wrong
Former Salem resident—and law school classmate of departed Coach Mike Leach—shares his thoughts on the man
The premature death of colorful Mississippi State University football coach Mike Leach caught much of the nation’s gridiron fan base off guard. The 61-year old Leach—known for creative offensive schemes, and his off-the-cuff, humorous, and sometimes irreverent comments about football and other subjects—died overnight Monday due to complications from an ongoing heart issue.
Leach was widely praised by many individuals from across the country, including an Oregon-based writer who chatted with Leach several times during his stint at Washington State University in the Pac-12. Former Oregon prep players also posted thoughts and photos they took with Leach. All of the words shared were heartfelt about a man who didn’t exactly have universal appeal, but was lovable in many ways.
Closer to home, there were some insights shared by a longtime Salem resident who is now a Southern California lawyer, and knew Mike Leach personally. Craig French was actually a classmate of mine—well, a year behind me—at Leslie Jr. High.
Craig graduated from South Salem High School in 1979, and then moved on to become a lawyer—attending law school at Pepperdine University. Another student in the law school at that time was a young Mike Leach, who did obtain his law degree in three years, just one year behind Craig.
Although Craig decided not to answer any additional questions, his comments on Facebook about the coach were still revealing.
“He (Mike) was an enigma during school,” stated French matter-of-factly.
“Mike didn’t enjoy ‘the law,’ and didn’t want to be a lawyer. He wanted to be a football coach, which seemed crazy since he never played college football.”
The lack of college football experience did not stop Leach.
After playing Rugby at Brigham Young University and then obtaining his law degree, Mike began his slow climb through the coaching ranks, serving first as an assistant at the junior college and lower level four-year colleges. Cal-Poly, College of the Desert, the Pori Bears of Finland, Iowa Wesleyan—the list of schools stretched over a dozen years.
In 2000, Leach finally got a head coaching position—using his offensive coordinator success at Kentucky and Oklahoma to land his first gig as head man at Texas Tech—a team not known for its winning ways. But Coach Mike changed all that gradually. Leach started with a pair of seasons of just over .500, but kept growing the win totals, peaking in 2008 with a record of 11-2, including 7-1 in the Big 12 Conference. That conference crown yielded a nice stack of coach of the year honors—and the legend of Leach was born. The sly speaking coach with a pass-happy offensive approach.
After ten years at Tech, and a school-best 84 victories, Leach dealt with controversy—when he was accused of mistreating a player with a concussion. He denied the allegations and sued the school after being fired because of the charges. Leach moved on to Pullman, and Washington State.
Leach and his coaches built the Cougar program, compiling winning records and 62 total wins, earning six bowl games in eight seasons.
From there, Leach took the head job at Mississippi State, getting the team above .500 in his second season, and wrapping up this past year with eight wins against four losses and a bid to play in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois on January second.
The MSU players have voted to play the game, despite losing their coach. It seemed to be the right way to honor Coach Mike. Leach did pursue his dream, and was ultimately successful.
Says law school classmate Craig French: “He finished law school, got his degree, and proved me wrong when I said he was crazy to attempt to be a football coach after 3 years of law school.”
In his 21 years as a head coach, Coach Mike won nearly 60 percent of his games with less than stellar programs to start each time. 158 wins out of 265 games played.
By the way, Leach still managed to use his lawyering tools while coaching—arguing his conservative-leaning politics on Twitter. He urged others to join in the debate on the future of government in America.
His wry sense of humor got him in a little bit of hot water at times. For example, during the COVID pandemic, Leach posted a meme that upset a few people already a bit stressed out by the lockdown of the country.
Some found the humor of the visual image to be just what was needed in a time of extreme emotions, and said so. The post was pulled down, and Leach was suspended for a time. He did apologize for the timing of his post.
Leach was also known as a coach who cared deeply about his players, and despite the problems at Texas Tech—showed it with both praise for players, and criticism when it was needed.
Craig French is right—Mike Leach was an enigma, but also a man who practiced what he preached.
“As I grew older,” says French, “I began to understand his advice, which is to always pursue your passion.”
Oh, that we could all do likewise.
Thanks for being a positive force in the college football community, Mike Leach.
Warts and all.