College football has lost an icon.
Mississippi State football coach Mike Leach — a sharp-witted on-field innovator whose Air Raid offense transcended the sport and created numerous coaching disciples across the nation — died Monday night at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson following complications with a heart condition, MSU announced. The third-year Bulldogs coach was transferred to the hospital Sunday.
He was 61.
Mississippi State president Mark Keenum and interim athletics director Bracky Brett named defensive coordinator Zach Arnett as interim coach when Leach was hospitalized Sunday.
Leach was a head coach for 21 seasons, working at Texas Tech and Washington State before joining the Bulldogs in January 2020. He had a 158-107 career record, including a 19-17 mark in three seasons with Mississippi State.
