When the Mike Leach experiment fails, these are my two choices in order.
1)Blake Anderson
2)Jamey Chadwell
Discuss
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When the Mike Leach experiment fails, these are my two choices in order.
1)Blake Anderson
2)Jamey Chadwell
Discuss
Let's pump the breaks on the Leach era failing. This year should be a good year for us and not only that he has been successful at every stop. If we do part ways it won't be before 2025 unless we totally tank in 22 and 23.
I will say this Anderson should have been a front runner in 20 before we hired Leach and possibly should have been after Mullen.
Leach will be here 20 years, finish ranked several times, and go to the CF HoF. And I'm sure the usual suspects will be bitching about him the whole time.
It's literally worked everywhere he's been and the offense saw just as much improvement last year in year 2 as it saw in every other stop in his career year 2. It will show improvement this year too, just like it has everywhere else. Our defense and special teams cost us a chance at winning 9 games last year, not the offense.
Schedule is tough ... really tough!
If you fire Leach, and btw we are nowhere remotely close to that, I'd wager a decent amt of money on the top name being Matt Mumme or Sonny Cumbie. For our roster to not have to go into a full rebuild you will need a guy from the Air Raid coaching tree.
I think discussing prospective coaches is never a bad thing. This doesn't mean anyone wants the current coach to fail, but very few coaches go off into happy retirement, most are fired to end their career. All ADs keep of current list or prospective head coaches for ever sport, even the ADs and Bama and Clempson for the day Saban and Dabo are no longer on the sidelines. Certainly in Saban's situation it will be of his own accord, but very few coaches are afforded that.
Leach won 11 games 3 years ago. He improved dramatically in every offensive statistical category from year 1 to year 2. I do believe he could benefit by adding some more to his offense, but it's going to be good enough to win as many games here as any other coach we've had. Our defense and special teams need to improve as much this year as our offense did last year.
Concur, if he wins 8 games next year, he'll be coach of the year.
Everything works until it doesn't. The wishbone worked for a long time until it didn't.
Leach hasn't been successful game in and game out against high caliber SEC Defenses that are loaded with speed at every position. Hopefully we take another good step this season. My expectation is 7 wins, we have a tough schedule. We have to beat Kentucky, Ark and OM at least half the time year in and year out. This season we need to beat two of those three plus knock off the barn or upset another team.
Leach's results the last five years, the last three have not been good. He had a NFL (spot) starter as QB in 2018.
2017 Washington State 9–4 6–3 3rd (North) L Holiday
2018 Washington State 11–2 7–2 T–1st (North) W Alamo
2019 Washington State 6–7 3–6 T–5th (North) L Cheez-It
2020 Mississippi State 4–7 3–7 T–6th (West) W Armed Forces
2021 Mississippi State 7–6 4–4 T–3rd (West) L Liberty
Leach’s first 2 seasons at Washington state looked exactly like his first 2 years here. Using his last 5 years that include 2 seasons at a school He’s having to totally rebuild offensively from a run first mentality just isn’t painting a picture that “it won’t work”. It’s pretty clear that the offense is going to work. The jump from year 1 to 2 looks just like it did elsewhere. Also, the wishbone would work if the teams who recruit 5 stars ran it. The flexbone worked at a very high level when Paul Johnson ran it. Any offense works with the right talent and coaching. Kids don’t want to play in that type offense so no one is going to run it. Too difficult to recruit to.
We won't have 5 stars to run Leach's offense, we are doing it on 3 stars. Improving the offense from year two to three is a lot easier in the Big 12 and PAC 12, gonna be much harder in the SEC.
I'd disagree with your point, "It’s pretty clear that the offense is going to work." From a stats standpoint it it may work, from a wins standpoint it is yet to be seen. Just because it worked in the past, doesn't mean it will work in the future. I hope it does though.
Yes, Leach’s offense is designed to work with 3 stars. That’s what he’s done throughout his career. The wishbone was a general comment, not MSU specific.
As far as offensive improvement, it’s not going to be harder to improve year 2 to year 3 here just like it wasn’t harder to improve offensively year 1 to year 2 here. Yea the competition is harder here but He has way more talent to work with here than he did elsewhere as well. I mean look at the 2020 numbers offensively compared to 2021. They got way better. We return 17 starters. This team will improve.
A year ago, people were saying "Improving the offense from year one to two is a lot easier in the Big 12 and PAC 12, gonna be much harder in the SEC."
Two years ago, people were saying that Leach's offense would never succeed whatsoever in the SEC.
A year from now, people will say that sure Leach was able to finish ranked once at MSU, but he'll never be able to sustain that for many years in a row.