I think C34 has already said most of what I think, but here goes.

1. Leach is a helluva coach. You don't win nearly 150 games at TTU and WSU if you aren't a damn good coach.

2. Pulling a sitting P5 coach is huge. I would have preferred an up-and-comer type from G5, but pulling a sitting P5 coach is a huge statement for us.

3. I'm concerned about the fit. Leach runs a very specific style of offense. And frankly, it's one I don't think MSU and our recruiting footprint is ideally suited to running. MSU has always been a physical, hard-nosed, blue collar type of school and offense. Leach's Air Raid is about as far away on the finesse side as you can go, even more finesse than Moorhead's RPO system.

4. If anyone can make Air Raid work in the SEC that isn't named Spurrier, it's Leach. He is THE guru of the system. It'll be interesting to see how the speed of SEC defenses and how much man they play affects the system.

5. If nothing else, it's going to be really damn entertaining having Leach here the next 3-5 years. It also says a lot to me about how much he wants to test himself against the SEC that he basically took equal money to leave WSU to come here. Leach may come across as a goofy cat, but he's clearly very ambitious and competitive.

6. I don't think it's a good look that we didn't give him the same amount of money for his staff as Northern Miss gave Kiffin. I know it's only a $500K difference and we're paying Leach more, so we're actually spending more than them, but if we were willing to give Napier $5.8M for staff, why not give Leach at least $5.5M? Kinda reeks of Cohen & LT penny pinching, imo.

7. I'm willing to reserve judgment on #6 if we spend extra money to bring in several analysts for the program. That's as important as competitive assistant pay, imo. If we do that, it tells me we're serious about trying to win and will spend the money it takes to do so. If we don't, that $4.7M staff will only take us so far. Ball is in Cohen's court there.

8. I really, really, really want us to bring Feld home. Don't know how realistic it is since he will never want for anything at Oregon, be it facilities or salary. But I'd hand him a check and tell him write the number it'd take to get him back home. Regardless, hiring an elite S&C guy is a must and needs to happen very quickly.

9. Sweet baby Jesus, please let us hire Charlie Strong. I don't get the fascination with Stoops. He's a good DC, but I saw way too many busted coverages this year. I can't help but feel he's boom or bust and we can upgrade on him. Strong was an elite DC and I see no reason he can't be again.

10. I don't really want Felipe Franks. But if Mullen and Leach both think it's a good idea, then I'm willing to give it a chance. And I think C34 makes a good point that we're probably going to need 2 QBs ready to go every weekend with the beating they'll take in an Air Raid scheme.

11. We desperately need to hit the transfer portal for some WRs, a pass catching RB, and a couple of good pass blocking OL. Regardless, I expect us to really struggle the next 1-2 years while Leach turns over the roster. 6 wins is probably the ceiling next year.

12. Despite my concerns and skepticism over the fit of Leach, I'm willing to be convinced. His press conference actually made me feel a little better. If he can get the players to buy in, that'll go a long way. And who knows, he may wind up being an incredible fit.

Regardless, it's going to be a wild ride for a few years. One thing is sure, Leach isn't going to get scared playing against Saban, Jimbo, Smart, etc. He's going to play to win all the time and try to score as much as he can. Also, we better readjust our expectations from defense while he's here, even if we hire a blue blood DC like Strong. They're going to be on the field a lot, much like the last two years, and they're going to give up yards and points. It's just an unfortunate byproduct of the Air Raid offense. You'll get a bunch of 3-and-out possessions with 3 straight incompletions where almost no time comes off the clock and the D has to run right back on the field with essentially no time for a breather. We might see an increased focus on creating turnovers, since that would get the D off the field more often, too. But if that happens, we're going to give up more big plays. It's the give-and-take thing again. Having a top 35 D would be really good for any DC under Leach. We're just going to have to hope Leach's offense can be top 10-15 to offset the decrease in D.

Hail State,

WMD