Texas Tech Prepares for Life After Leach

While Mike Leach, the ousted Texas Tech coach, and his attorney prepare for a legal battle, school administrators went on the offensive late Wednesday afternoon in justifying firing the program's winningest coach.

School officials said Leach left them with little choice but to terminate the coach with cause after the mistreatment of sophomore receiver Adam James, followed by defiance as the school tried to reach a resolution. Leach, who was in his 10th season at Texas Tech, was placed on indefinite suspension Monday because of alleged mistreatment of James, who is the son of former SMU star running back and current ESPN college football analyst Craig James.

Leach, meanwhile, expressed a mix of anger and disappointment in a statement e-mailed to media.

I want everyone to know what a privilege and pleasure it has been to teach and coach more than 400 student-athletes at Texas Tech University over the past 10 years. ....

Over the past several months, there have been individuals in the Texas Tech administration, Board of Regents and booster groups who have dealt in lies, and continue to do so. These lies have led to my firing this morning. I steadfastly refuse to deal in any lies, and am disappointed that I have not been afforded the opportunity for the truth to be known.

Texas Tech's decision to deal in lies and fabricate a story which led to my firing, includes, but is not limited by, the animosity remaining from last year's contract negotiations. I will not tolerate such retaliatory action; additionally, we will pursue all available legal remedies.

These actions taken by Texas Tech have severely damaged my reputation and public image. In addition, Texas Tech has caused harm to not only my family, but to the entire Red Raider nation and the sport of college football.

Leach was seeking a temporary injunction in a Lubbock, Texas, court Wednesday morning to lift the suspension so that he could coach the Red Raiders against Michigan State in Saturday's Valero Alamo Bowl, when his attorney Ted Liggett was informed of the termination. Liggett decided not to go forward with the motion.

"The coach's termination was precipitated by his treatment of a player after the player was diagnosed with a concussion," Texas Tech media relations director Chris Cook said in a statement e-mailed to the media. "The player was put at risk for additional injury. After the university was apprised of the treatment, Coach Leach was contacted by the administration of the university in an attempt to resolve the problem. In a defiant act of insubordination, Coach Leach continually refused to cooperate in a meaningful way to help resolve the complaint. He also refused to obey a suspension order and instead sued Texas Tech University.

"Further, his contemporaneous statements make it clear that the coach's actions against the player were meant to demean, humiliate and punish the player rather than to serve the team's best interest. This action, along with his continuous acts of insubordination, resulted in irreconcilable differences that make it impossible for Coach Leach to remain at Texas Tech."

The James family accused Leach of secluding Adam in a dark equipment room and a dark closet in successive practices last week after he suffered a mild concussion in practice. The belief is that Leach sought to demean Adam, who showed up Dec. 17th wearing sunglasses to prevent the sun from aggravating his head injury. The insinuation was that Leach did not take Adam's complaint seriously because of what he believed was a questionable work ethic.

Leach's attorney denied to FanHouse that his client had any ill intent toward the player and was only looking out for his best interest in placing him in areas with less light. But it's clear the school wasn't buying the argument.

The decision to fire Leach was made by president Guy Bailey and athletic director Gerald Myers. Neither has fielded questions since announcing Leach's suspension.

"It is our number one priority to protect the welfare of our students and the reputation of the Texas Tech University," the release read. "Parents have entrusted us with their children and we take this responsibility very seriously."

But now the question is what's next?

Liggett has all but promised a lawsuit on the behalf of Leach as he seeks the money still owed to him from a five-year, $12.7-million contract signed in February, which includes an $800,000 payment that would've come due Thursday. Under Leach's new contract that was supposed to run through 2013, Leach can be terminated for mistreatment of his players. That language is new to his 2009 contract.

As for Tech and where it goes from here, that seems a question that may not have any easy answers for the west Texas school. Leach had achieved unmatched success in 10 seasons at Tech, guiding the Raiders to 10 straight bowl seasons.
But it certainly wasn't easy. Leach's quick-strike offense put up huge passing numbers each year and seemed to mask many of the recruiting deficiencies. Tech never made many inroads into the recruiting stronghold Texas and Oklahoma both have in the Lone Star State, which forced Leach to develop players to fit his system.

Bringing in a coach who is on the level of Leach in terms of innovation seems paramount as Texas Tech moves forward. The initial names surfacing for the job are Baylor coach and former University of Houston coach Art Briles, University of Houston coach Kevin Sumlin, Arizona offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes (the son of former Texas Tech coach Spike Dykes), former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville and interim coach and defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill.

Briles, Sumlin and Dykes are generating early excitement because of their offensive backgrounds. Briles was the running backs coach under Leach for a few years before taking over at Houston. Sumlin's Cougars have put up Texas Tech-like numbers with the help of offensive coordinator Dana Holgersen, who worked on Leach's staff for several years before branching off. Dykes has the offensive background after working under Leach and he has the Texas Tech bloodline.

But the sleeper could be McNeill, who is wildly popular with the players and is regraded as an excellent motivator. McNeill could be the galvanizing choice who would have instant respect and credibility in the locker room. He could either promote one of Leach's offensive assistants to offensive coordinator or perhaps bring back Holgersen.

McNeill, who has been successful in reviving the Red Raiders defense in the past few seasons, will have a chance to showcase his abilities as a head coach against the Spartans on Saturday. A strong showing could go a long way in making him a serious contender for the job.