If Leach leaves....

[95coug]

Just for kicks, I typed in "Arkansas Leach" to see what "news" articles there are. Some dumbass wrote an article saying that WSU got pounded by Stanford, was last place in the conference, and that he didn't understand the appeal of Leach. High quality internet journalism all the way around.

Was it Blanchett?

EDIT: I did the same search, and found at least a full page of results suggesting him for the job. Some are glorified blog posts & fan sites, others are 'legitimate' sports sites, and one Change.org petition. So it's an idea that's out there being batted around, it's not just our own paranoia.

 

[royhobbs2]

Just for kicks, I typed in "Arkansas Leach" to see what "news" articles there are. Some dumbass wrote an article saying that WSU got pounded by Stanford, was last place in the conference, and that he didn't understand the appeal of Leach. High quality internet journalism all the way around.

Sounds like some of the low brow goobers ive been reading and hearing "You caint throw the ball and win" "that air raid suff aint gonna win a football game" "if you don't run the rock ever down you caint win in the s-e-c"

frigging morons

 

[CougPatrol]

Just for kicks, I typed in "Arkansas Leach" to see what "news" articles there are. Some dumbass wrote an article saying that WSU got pounded by Stanford, was last place in the conference, and that he didn't understand the appeal of Leach. High quality internet journalism all the way around.

I'm sure he meant Cal, but yes, it's a pretty careless error. With that said, there are a lot of Arkansas fans calling for Leach to be hired, and a lot of them saying Hell no. I can see both sides of it, honestly.

Leach is fantastic, and I hope he never leaves here. If he goes to Arkansas, they'll become an exciting team. Kind of like Texas A&M under Sumlin. They'll win their non conference games, beat teams like Vandy, Kentucky, Tennessee (for now), Mizzou, Mississippi, A&M occasionally, etc. He'll find a way to win 7 games like he typically does.

With that said, I've come to see first hand what his kryptonite is, and the SEC West alone has 3/4 teams that will bring it every season defensively. Alabama, Auburn, LSU, and Mississippi State have fearsome pass rushes. Then they'll face the likes of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina every couple of years. They'll certainly never eclipse the Blue Bloods of the SEC, and they'll lose games they shouldn't, but Leach would welcome the challenge of the SEC and be motivated by the doubters.

I've followed football for many, many years, and I just don't see a team that doesn't run the ball and play top flight defense winning consistently in that conference. Yes, he'll have access to better players, but he's still not going to run the ball between the tackles, and you can't win in that league if you don't. That's why there are many Arkansas fans doubting Leach, and you can't blame them. The wide splits won't work against 5* defensive linemen. If it did, Blue Bloods would adopt it.

 

[CougPatrol]

Was it Blanchett?

EDIT: I did the same search, and found at least a full page of results suggesting him for the job. Some are glorified blog posts & fan sites, others are 'legitimate' sports sites, and one Change.org petition. So it's an idea that's out there being batted around, it's not just our own paranoia.

Hell no it's not just paranoia. Leach is a top-3 candidate for the Arkansas job.

 

[royhobbs2]

You have to know Arkansas, they are the little guy in the sec.

Go by history : Bobby Petrino passing offense, lots of deception= wins, very competitive

Brett Beliema, conventional offense-power run game, abysmal fail

Arkansas will never have the talent bama and lsu have-they cant run on them successfully., they just cant match up man for man talent wise.

Not too different from wsu in the pac 12, or texas tech in the big 12

 

[wazzucougs96]

Why do people think CML is leaving?

• He turned down Tennessee
• He and his family love Pullman and E. Washington
• He's got a loaded QB room with two 4-stars waiting in the wings
• He brings home $4M per year
• Next year could be another season with 10-plus wins

I don't think he is leaving but he 100% did not turn down Tennessee.

 

[wazzucougs96]

No, just Coug fans having nothing better to do than scream "the sky is falling!!!"

Bingo. Insecure bullshit is the trademark of our fans. This thread reads like the pile of shit on facebook known as Die Hard Cougs.

 

[BleedCrimsonandGray]

Bingo. Insecure bullshit is the trademark of our fans. This thread reads like the pile of shit on facebook known as Die Hard Cougs.

I left that group 2 years ago and haven't looked back.

They make Jill Osur look like a calm, rational human being.

 

[32eekortS]

The “Leach leaving” fear is not just insecure fans being insecure and/or general paranoia. Mike Leach would be in Tennessee right now if it weren’t for the last minute firing of the AD. Arkansas is a real threat to procure his services. I would be surprised if they don’t make an offer.

 

[wazzucougs96]

I left that group 2 years ago and haven't looked back.

They make Jill Osur look like a calm, rational human being.

It never ceases to amaze me how unhinged that place is.

 

[Observer11]

I could easily see Stoops leaving Kentucky for Florida State and Leach getting the hard sell from the Wildcats.

He already made his name there once and he’d avoid the SEC West for the most part.

 

[PeteTheChop]

From a Tennessee fan site this summer:

Mike Leach was a guest on The Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday afternoon, and Finebaum asked Leach about his interview with former (UT Athletic Director John) Currie for the opening at Tennessee back in 2017. According to Leach, he was happy at Washington State, and the meeting didn’t really go anywhere.


“Well, it really didn’t end up anywhere because I’m very happy here at Washington State,” Leach explained to Finebaum. “They said, ‘Well, will you be willing to talk?’ I said, ‘Sure. I’ll talk. I’m in L.A. recruiting.’

 

[BleedCrimsonandGray]

It never ceases to amaze me how unhinged that place is.

hopped over just to see for myself and noticed that a BX "correspondent" is one of the mods.

Yeah... no.

 

[CougPatrol]

Again....and again, and again, and again...

A coach leaving is always a possibility, especially a coveted coach like Leach. Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, etc. will always give him look. If one of them goes nuts with an offer, he may very well leave.

My post was a curiosity question about what our response would be. That's it. That's all.

 

[random soul]

Sounds like some of the low brow goobers ive been reading and hearing "You caint throw the ball and win" "that air raid suff aint gonna win a football game" "if you don't run the rock ever down you caint win in the s-e-c"

frigging morons

Wonder what they make of LSU this year, to say nothing of Kentucky's years of barnstorming the SEC under Mumme

 

[royhobbs2]

like I said, some of the dumbest fuggers ive ever seen. Fan bases for what ever reason do have some different traits in iq and behavior across the country. SEC for some reason have a lot of jackasses. As I said, im not including nice every day folk in Arkansas, but their fanbase is a bad strain of trash vermin

 

[longtimecoug]

He didn’t turn down Tennessee. That’s b.s.

you have to have an offer before it can be turned down

 

[Tx64]

I'm sure he meant Cal, but yes, it's a pretty careless error. With that said, there are a lot of Arkansas fans calling for Leach to be hired, and a lot of them saying Hell no. I can see both sides of it, honestly.

Leach is fantastic, and I hope he never leaves here. If he goes to Arkansas, they'll become an exciting team. Kind of like Texas A&M under Sumlin. They'll win their non conference games, beat teams like Vandy, Kentucky, Tennessee (for now), Mizzou, Mississippi, A&M occasionally, etc. He'll find a way to win 7 games like he typically does.

With that said, I've come to see first hand what his kryptonite is, and the SEC West alone has 3/4 teams that will bring it every season defensively. Alabama, Auburn, LSU, and Mississippi State have fearsome pass rushes. Then they'll face the likes of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina every couple of years. They'll certainly never eclipse the Blue Bloods of the SEC, and they'll lose games they shouldn't, but Leach would welcome the challenge of the SEC and be motivated by the doubters.

I've followed football for many, many years, and I just don't see a team that doesn't run the ball and play top flight defense winning consistently in that conference. Yes, he'll have access to better players, but he's still not going to run the ball between the tackles, and you can't win in that league if you don't. That's why there are many Arkansas fans doubting Leach, and you can't blame them. The wide splits won't work against 5* defensive linemen. If it did, Blue Bloods would adopt it.

They used to say this about the Big 12 before Leach. It was Leach that turned them into a passing conference.

 

[etowncoug]

you have to have an offer before it can be turned down

This is the key point.

 

[CougPatrol]

They used to say this about the Big 12 before Leach. It was Leach that turned them into a passing conference.

The B12 needed to change, the SEC doesn’t. They get the best recruits, at the hardest positions to recruit to. They’re an NFL development conference. Pro style passing offenses. Power running attacks. Huge tight ends. The biggest, fastest receivers. The biggest, fastest running backs. And damn near every team in the league has a good to great defense.

The B12, when Leach came onto the scene, had Kansas and Kansas State, Oklahoma St, Iowa St, Missouri, A&M, Nebraska, Baylor, Texas, and OK. Some good teams, but there were a lot of real dogs back then. They didn’t hold a candle to the SEC.

 

[royhobbs2]

you need to look at the big 12 south early 2000s, every bit as good as sec west today. OU and UT top 5, tamu and okie st both top 15-20, and texas tech

 

[CougPatrol]

you need to look at the big 12 south early 2000s, every bit as good as sec west today. OU and UT top 5, tamu and okie st both top 15-20, and texas tech

i don’t agree with that. Texas and OU, yes. A&M and OK State were just ok.

 

[Observer11]

i don’t agree with that. Texas and OU, yes. A&M and OK State were just ok.

So was Alabama was just ok at that point. They hired a guy named Mike Price.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

The B12 needed to change, the SEC doesn’t. They get the best recruits, at the hardest positions to recruit to. They’re an NFL development conference. Pro style passing offenses. Power running attacks. Huge tight ends. The biggest, fastest receivers. The biggest, fastest running backs. And damn near every team in the league has a good to great defense.

The B12, when Leach came onto the scene, had Kansas and Kansas State, Oklahoma St, Iowa St, Missouri, A&M, Nebraska, Baylor, Texas, and OK. Some good teams, but there were a lot of real dogs back then. They didn’t hold a candle to the SEC.

Nebraska had won 3 championships in the prior 10 years, Kansas State was in the middle of winning 11 games per season in 6 out of 7 years, Texas A&M won 28 games in the three years before Leach arrived and Colorado had been a football power for most of the prior decade. Yeah.....the Big 12 sucked........

 

[CougPatrol]

Nebraska had won 3 championships in the prior 10 years, Kansas State was in the middle of winning 11 games per season in 6 out of 7 years, Texas A&M won 28 games in the three years before Leach arrived and Colorado had been a football power for most of the prior decade. Yeah.....the Big 12 sucked........

The Big12 has mostly sucked throughout history. Texas and OK were superpowers who benefited from playing in the worst major conference in college football. Don’t ever, ever compare the B12 to the SEC. Come on now.

 

[royhobbs2]

just do a google search it has the rankings for big 12 south by year for each team

it was the best conference subdivision in the country and matches up with sec west of today, both tamu and ok state were ranked and ou, ut were top 5 teams

 

[fingerdisco]

you need to look at the big 12 south early 2000s, every bit as good as sec west today. OU and UT top 5, tamu and okie st both top 15-20, and texas tech

A&M in the early 2000’s (and most of their history) was mediocre at best. With the exception of a couple 9-4 seasons, they were barely a .500 team (3 losing seasons in those 10 years) and lost 6 of their 7 bowl games. Not very good.

 

[BiggsCoug]

A&M in the early 2000’s (and most of their history) was mediocre at best. With the exception of a couple 9-4 seasons, they were barely a .500 team (3 losing seasons in those 10 years) and lost 6 of their 7 bowl games. Not very good.

Having been on their campus and seen their stadium.... this school IMO could win a title.

My list of things you need:
proximity to talent
money
winning history

A&M could prob use a little more winning history. But everything else is there. Houston may be the most talent rich city in America. It is loaded.

 

[fingerdisco]

Having been on their campus and seen their stadium.... this school IMO could win a title.

My list of things you need:
proximity to talent
money
winning history

A&M could prob use a little more winning history. But everything else is there. Houston may be the most talent rich city in America. It is loaded.

I’ve always wondered why they aren’t better for all the things you just pointed out, but they’ve always been pretty mediocre.

 

[kougkurt]

I’ve always wondered why they aren’t better for all the things you just pointed out, but they’ve always been pretty mediocre.

The ultimate elitist school.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

The Big12 has mostly sucked throughout history. Texas and OK were superpowers who benefited from playing in the worst major conference in college football. Don’t ever, ever compare the B12 to the SEC. Come on now.

I'm not trying to say that the Big 12 in the late 90's equals the SEC's mythology today, but when it comes down to it, the SEC this year is 4 elite teams (Georgia, Florida, LSU and Alabama), two good teams (Auburn & A&M) and eight bad teams. They hardly play each other during the regular season and they almost always schedule at least two creampuff FCS teams.

BTW, your comment above shows that you don't know jack squat about the Big 12 in the 90's. In the time period before Leach arrived at Oklahoma as an assistant, Nebraska was the Alabama of the day, Colorado was the Georgia or LSU of the day and KSU, Texas A&M and Texas were the Auburn & A&M's of the day. People forget that KU went 10-2 in 1995 under Glen Mason. Oklahoma was actually pretty terrible in the years before Stoops arrived and brought Leach in. The top five programs in the Big 12 in the 90's were good enough to go toe to toe against the big boys around the country without embarrassment. For all of the flack that KSU takes for their schedule, they beat Syracuse, Tennessee, Iowa, Washington, USC (2 times), ASU, and Cal in OOC games during their run at the top.

The top of the SEC is great, but the conference as whole isn't all that impressive. Don't take too many gulps of that kool-aid. Alabama's "tough" schedule features 6 wins against teams with losing records and an overall combined record of 38-54 for the 9 teams that they beat. Daunting........

FWIW, the 10 FBS opponents that we beat last year went 61-65 overall. Yeah....the SEC is fuggin' great.

 

[Coug95man2]

The ultimate elitist school.

Have you been to College Station? "Elitist"? Yeah... nope.

 

[CougPatrol]

The SEC is the best conference, and has been the best conference, in all of what I consider to be the most important measurables. Most NFL draft picks, toughest conference schedule, attendance, tv ratings, tv contract, etc. The Big12 and Big10 have elite programs of course, but the gap between the top-2 in those conferences has always been enormous with a few exceptions. Your points are valid about the B12 10+ years ago, but the disparity between the conferences has widened significantly since then, and it's only getting wider.

The point in this thread is that what Leach faced at Texas Tech and now WSU would be very different in todays SEC, but his overall W/L would likely be similar. He'd win his non conference games (mostly), beat the lowest tier conference opponents, and get blown out of the water 4-5 times/year at the hands of Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Auburn, Florida, etc. There will also be a few mediocre teams in the SEC (like Cal and UW), who field defenses capable of shutting down the air-raid.

At WSU, Leach will occasionally have us in serious contention for the P12N title. In the SEC, that will never happen. That's why there are a fair amount of Arkansas fans skeptical of hiring him. That, and he's a bit of a loose cannon, which scares a lot of people. Now, if Leach were to modify his offense a bit to include a run/pass option type QB, that would be a different story, but 65 drop back pocket passes/game? Not gonna fly in the SEC.

 

[CougEd]

you have to have an offer before it can be turned down

Actually don't you have to a a formal interview with the AD before they can offer you the job. Don't you have to run the resume through Indeed? AD's can't have an informal "meeting" and offer a job, can they?

 

[CougEd]

If Leach accepts another coaching gig, either this year or in the future, what direction do you think we'll go with his replacement?

Hire from within? Hire another air-raid disciple? A group of 5 coach? An older P5 coach?

If Leach Leaves tomorrow will he still remember me....sorry...just saw a Showtime documentary on Lynyrd Skynyrd....and your post headline reminded me of the song....

 

[Fab5Coug]

The SEC is the best conference, and has been the best conference, in all of what I consider to be the most important measurables. Most NFL draft picks, toughest conference schedule, attendance, tv ratings, tv contract, etc. The Big12 and Big10 have elite programs of course, but the gap between the top-2 in those conferences has always been enormous with a few exceptions. Your points are valid about the B12 10+ years ago, but the disparity between the conferences has widened significantly since then, and it's only getting wider.

The point in this thread is that what Leach faced at Texas Tech and now WSU would be very different in todays SEC, but his overall W/L would likely be similar. He'd win his non conference games (mostly), beat the lowest tier conference opponents, and get blown out of the water 4-5 times/year at the hands of Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Auburn, Florida, etc. There will also be a few mediocre teams in the SEC (like Cal and UW), who field defenses capable of shutting down the air-raid.

At WSU, Leach will occasionally have us in serious contention for the P12N title. In the SEC, that will never happen. That's why there are a fair amount of Arkansas fans skeptical of hiring him. That, and he's a bit of a loose cannon, which scares a lot of people. Now, if Leach were to modify his offense a bit to include a run/pass option type QB, that would be a different story, but 65 drop back pocket passes/game? Not gonna fly in the SEC.

In the SEC West, maybe. With the way Bama, LSU & Auburn are going right now, the rest of the teams in that division don't stand much of a chance, unless they pull off some kind of major coup and hire Dabo Sweeney or Urban Meyer or something.

In the East though? You've got Georgia & Florida and a pile of mediocre. That's maybe only slightly tougher than having to beat out Oregon, UW & Stanford in the Pac12 North every year and Leach has managed to be, at least in the conversation 3 of the last 4 years.

 

[CougPatrol]

In the SEC West, maybe. With the way Bama, LSU & Auburn are going right now, the rest of the teams in that division don't stand much of a chance, unless they pull off some kind of major coup and hire Dabo Sweeney or Urban Meyer or something.

In the East though? You've got Georgia & Florida and a pile of mediocre. That's maybe only slightly tougher than having to beat out Oregon, UW & Stanford in the Pac12 North every year and Leach has managed to be, at least in the conversation 3 of the last 4 years.

The problem with the SEC, actually it's everyone else's problem, is that the elite programs in that league are growing 10x faster than just about everyone else. They have superior marketing, superior TV contracts, rabid fan bases, and surplus cash. If you're an aspiring 4* or 5* prospect, you look to the SEC first.

Even in the SEC East, where you mentioned Georgia and Florida, Tennessee is a sleeping giant. They'll eventually pull the right string and get a coach in there who'll win. Hell, they've won what? 4 National titles. South Carolina is another program that hasn't scratched their potential. 70-80K fans/game, in the middle of the recruiting mecca, rivals with the new college football #1 program (which will elevate their performance as well). I don't at all consider that the same as winning the P12N.

Programs like Arkansas, Mizzou, Kentucky, Miss St, etc. will put together nice years here and there, but they'll always be buried by the blue bloods, and Leach's system will not ever overcome those programs. Not with his pass only offense and a ho hum defense.

WSU faces plenty of challenges of our own, but once you get past USC, Oregon, and UW, we're one of the most successful programs West of Texas. Leach is making $4m/year. I hope he realizes what a good gig he has going in Pullman. For us and for him.

 

[PeteTheChop]

And damn near every team in the (SEC) has a good to great defense.

???

Arkansas gave up 31 to San Jose State and 45 to Western Kentucky.

Vanderbilt gave up 42 to Purdue and 34 to UNLV.

Mississippi State allowed a combined 59 points to Louisiana-Lafayette and Kansas State.

Wyoming scored 37 on Missouri.

LSU and Alabama were unquestionably great defensive teams when the Tigers won 9-6 in 2011.

But this year seems different.

LSU got rung up for 37 points by Ole Miss (whose freshmen QB had 212 yards rushing), 38 to both Texas and Vanderbilt and 41 to Bama. Of those four teams, only the Tide are currently ranked in the Top 25.

Alabama gave up 31 to Ole Miss, 28 to Texas A&M and 46 to LSU.

By comparison, Ole Miss scored 20 on Cal.

 

[royhobbs2]

according to "sources" in Arkansas, Leach is staying at WSU

smart move overall for Leach imo. If Kentucky and a few other schools come open there could be more offers though.

 

[random soul]

according to "sources" in Arkansas, Leach is staying at WSU

smart move overall for Leach imo. If Kentucky and a few other schools come open there could be more offers though.

Stoops the Lesser is actually doing alright at Kentucky. Down this year after a big season, but still more success than they're used to.