Mike Leach wants a job, people. And he’s not exactly selective about where, either.
… Leach coached Tech to an 83-43 record and 10 bowl games in 10 years before he was fired Dec. 30. Leach and his family now live in Key West, Fla., where he’s waiting for someone to give him a chance to prove that he can turn around their program just like he did the program at Texas Tech.
“Really, I’m interested in all of them,” Leach said, when asked if he had any interest in succeeding Meyer.
I wonder what kind of magic he could work at Vanderbilt. Not that he’ll get the chance to do so, of course.
Get The Picture 
I could be wrong, but would be a bit surprised to see Foley pursue Leach. Foley values integrity and I think Leach has a few questions. If there is an interview and those questions get answered to Foley’s satisfaction, then I reserve the right to be wrong
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Foley values integrity. 🙂
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You’re so full of crap, Mike.
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I think Leach’s biggest problem at Florida would be his notorious lack of interest in kissing boosters’ asses. Can’t see how that would go over well with Bull Gators.
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Spurrier was famous for that, as apparently was Meyer to some extent. And Mullen pissed of many boosters when he was the Gator OC.
Foley seems to have these criteria when looking at coaches (Zook hire not-with-standing)
1.) Proven winner
2.) Relentless recruiter
3.) No hint of NCAA scandal or integrity issues
4.) Good spokesman for the University, both with boosters and with the press
With Zook, he got 2 and 3. With Meyer, he got 1, 2, 3. I think 3 might give Foley some pause with respect to Leach.
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With regard to booster relations, Leach is Spurrier on steroids.
As for your #3, there’s no NCAA scandal I’m aware of with regard to Leach. And the latest batch of discovery that’s come out of the lawsuit seems to indicate that the integrity issues are coming from the other side of the fence.
That being said, Foley’s in the enviable position of being able to pick and choose whom he wants. There are plenty of good coaches out there who won’t come with the attention that Leach would bring. It’s not a have-to move on Foley’s part.
On the other hand, it’s an opportunity for a school like Vandy to grab someone it ordinarily wouldn’t have a shot at, at an affordable price. And you’d think Leach’s admirable record on graduation rates would be right up their alley.
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I, for one, do not want to see Leach at Vandy – although it would be a great hire for them.
For Coach Leach to not have already been snatched up as a coach, wouldn’t there have to be some form of collusion amongst college presidents? I know Leach pitched a pretty big mutiny over James-Gate, but he’s an incredible coach AND was willing to take the perennially-thankless Minnesota job (I, an office-bound college football enthusiast would have reservations about that one).
Finally, for purposes of as many people seeing Craig James in action as possible, can you link “the latest batch of discovery that’s come out of the lawsuit?” I haven’t seen news like this in some time.
P.S. Not ordinarily a conspiracy guy – just with all things ESPN and Penn Wagers.
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Here you go.
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Yea, Leach never had any NCAA issues. But did the player abuse stories prove to be false? I know the one with the James kid was overblown, but I thought there were others?
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What player abuse stories besides Adam James’ are out there?
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I thought I read some, but am going by memory. Maybe there are none.
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Redraider alumn here..ML had 1 player complaint in 10 years….yes one….guess who?…that’s right the “little cancer” Adam James…all because ESPN bigshot daddy wasn’t happy the little cancer wasn’t playing and Leach refused to take anymore phone calls.
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Did you really say “Foley values integrity” with a straight face? Have you no idea of what behavior has been tolerated over the past few years under his. and corch’s, regime? Does the “time to die” punishment represent the benchmark of UF athletics? Aren’t there several more similar “events” of a serious nature that comes to everyone’s mind when thinking of Gator discipline? Good Lord man, you guys make Fulmer look tough. UF hasn’t been clean since Spurrier left.
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“Foley values integrity” – even Foley was laughing when he read that.
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I know you hate the man, but his integrity is unquestioned by all save rivals.
Just because he called time-outs on your team in the middle of a blow-out does not make him a bad man.
Just because you think he did not punish a particular player or players enough ( ut more than the law or SEC rules require) does not make him a bad man.
He did act badly toward a reporter, but that was a dick move, not a matter of integrity.
In any case, I wish Urban well and thank him for all he accomplished. I look forward to greeting another successful coach at my alma mater.
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That would be both awesome and horrible at the same time. I would not want to play a good Vandy team every year, but I would love to see Vandy be good.
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My thoughts exactly. I’d love to see what the Pirate could do at Vandy, but I sure wouldn’t want to face it every year.
I also agree there appears to be some sort of collusion against hiring Leach. He’s a proven coach, good on academics, but a little of a loose cannon (okay, a lot). However, some place must want a coach like that, plus think of the immediate exposure bump the school would take.
I’m still at a loss why Miami won’t hire him.
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Don’t you figure Leach’s ongoing soap opera/legal activity with Texas Tech make him a difficult hire?
If he gets a new head job somewhere, all the TT stuff goes to the new job with him.
And Craig James might be calling (???) his games.
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I think the bigger issue is Leach’s apparent behavior with his players.
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Leach has a team of lawyers that say his behavior is/was appropriate. And if the argument is over what Craig James says or what Leach says, I’ll pick Leach over James without a doubt.
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I’m not so sure CJ will be calling games period.
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Presidents don’t care about that..its all $$$$$ and good exposure….win, graduate your players, keep your players out of trouble, and don’t( get caught) have any NCAA violations. Leach checks every box…and if he ever got to a school like Miami or Florida?…..Lord have mercy on the rest of college football..nobody else might win another NC.
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Imagin Leach and Kiffin in the same league and state? That would have been a windfall for blogs.
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In all sincerity, if Leach doesn’t get a gig what would y’all think of CMR asking him to bide his time for 6 mos in Athens as OC? We’d have to dump a coach (Lily?) to make room and Bobo would go back to merely QB coach for a season, but I see it as an learning opportunity for CMR and CMB. I know they don’t think they need such a learning experience, but we all know they do.
I look at it like this, if some hotshot lawyer from NYC was b/w gigs and living at his lake cottage, my small town firm could bring him in for a year and pick up some tricks.
I’ll concede that ego and personality are a major qualifier. I certainly don’t think Leach could work the rubber chicken dinner circuit and he’s probably a grade A jerk. But dude can play call the hell out of a passing scheme.
Of course, its unlikely he’d do it. But still, I’m frustrated by the staleness of our offense and think it is easier and easier for DC’s to defend b/c of the sameness.
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It’s just not worth it to put up with him.
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Yar…I’ve been proposing this for weeks! Lock him B-M to gameplan, leave him up in the booth gameday, and let CMB focus on QB development. We get a re-energized offense, more national TV exposure, watch Mike Adams hair fall-out, see the black uni’s make a re-appearance, and have UGA wear an eye-patch. What could possible go wrong?!
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What Leach runs is radically different from what Georgia does (duh!). You’d be making changes in o-line deployment and with the running backs that would be significant. Not to mention you wouldn’t need tight ends anymore.
Hardly worth it for a six-month rental, assuming Leach would even have an interest in slumming at OC.
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Sometimes a 6 month rental is all you need – see Auburn, Cam Newton.
Per ‘radically different’, I’d say one of our biggest problems is a mindset that assiduously avoids changes – even when the status quo is a disaster (directional kick-offs, CWM, tackling, etc.).
To get Leach as OC for 1 season, I’d happily dump our whole O staff. Where’s the downside?
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“Where’s the downside?”
The season after he leaves and you have 0 continuity.
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The Houston Chronicle speculated the same thing about UT (the one in Austin). I can’t see Leach working as an OC anywhere. Not sure his ego would fit on the sidelines with any decent head coach.
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The Pirate and Vandy would go together like peanut butter and jelly.
As for UF, I believe they are one of the top 2-3 programs in the country. They could literally pluck whoever they wanted. Why would they hire the Pirate?
Maybe when Curry retires in a couple of years, the Fightin’ Panthers of GSU will pick him up.
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Speaking of Curry, what would he have to do to get a Panther throwing a brick through his window?
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“You’ll get to introduce yourself as Commodore Mike Leach. And I’ll buy you a really big hat.”
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Nice angle. That would make a great line at the presser announcing his hire, wouldn’t it?
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Yes, but it should be noted piracy on the Tennessee river in a steam boat is lot less fun than sailing the Caribbean in search of swashbuckling adventure.
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Forget GSU, maybe kennesaw state will pick him(Leach) up. They’re building the program now. That would definitely get the school some exposure.
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I just want to see Leach get a job somewhere and succeed, because he got railroaded by some grade A douchbags and didn’t deserve the ax.
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amen! DawgPhan
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