Mike’d up: Leach’s riffs could be rambling, but entertaining

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — The late college football coach Mike Leach was nothing if not entertaining.

Ask him a football question and you might get very little related to the game but a lot about anything or everything else, from food to Pac-12 mascots to politics to pirates to pet raccoons (their teenage years are tough, Leach said) to wedding planning. Even golf.

He could be gruff or playful but always insightful, part of his charm that will be missed.

The veteran college coach died on Monday at 61 from what Mississippi State officials said were complications from a heart condition. Leach not only left an indelible mark on the sport with innovative, high-speed offense — along with a 158-107 head coaching record between Texas Tech, Washington State and MSU — but also a treasure trove of lengthy yet memorable riffs that veered off into any direction. Just a tiny sampling:

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“I mean, you know, everybody says the science. Any time somebody wants to hide behind something, they throw science out there and everybody says, ‘Well, the science, the science, the science.’ You can get whatever answer you want with the science. Obviously, with the plug being pulled, some of them don’t feel like the science justified it.” — Leach in 2020, when asked about the frustration of former Pac-12 Conference colleagues initially having their season canceled by the coronavirus pandemic.

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“I completely hated candy corn when I was a kid. Well, Gummi Bears for sure (a favorite). The Haribo ones. The other thing I like is when they used to have the Sprees in a box. Outstanding. You have to go to the Dollar Store to find them, but I do. … There’s still candy innovation, although a while back, I found the Europeans did candy better than we did overall. … They have those Nerds clusters, which is new. Which is good. And then if you go chocolate, Almond Joy.” — Leach in a postgame interview with ESPN in October 2021.

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“I was wondering where the Golden Flakes were. Bear Bryant did get Golden Flakes when he did his stuff. Hopefully, I earned that slot.” — Leach, opening a news conference inquiring if the snack food company could sponsor him as it did the legendary Alabama coach.

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“We kind of go through the cupboards and there’s some stuff that’s in it every time. Tiger sauce really put it over the top. So I highly recommend that. Don’t undervalue soy sauce in it. … Lemon pepper is good. Some stuff, people try to put in them that I recommend against. Sage? No. Liquid smoke? No. And I think Worcestershire sauce is a sucker bet, too, for turkey gravy.” — Leach before last month’s Egg Bowl meeting with rival Mississippi, on whether his Thanksgiving turkey gravy comes from a recipe.

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