Red Raiders, Washington State Cougars to Honor Mike Leach

The Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Washington State Cougars kick off Week 2 of their college football seasons on Saturday night in Pullman, Washington at Gesa Field.

It'll be just the third overall meeting ever between the two programs. So what could make this night so mutually special for the universities?

Mike Leach. The former Red Raiders and Cougars head coach is being inducted into the Washington State Hall of Fame this weekend. Leach led both programs to a combined 16 bowl games.

Red Raiders coach Joey McGuire anticipates a big weekend in Pullman.

"Man, I'm excited to go to Washington State and honor Mike Leach," Maguire said. "What better way to do that than to have us there."

Leach is the all-time winningest coach in Red Raiders program history and third on the Cougars' list, and was the architect of what became known as the "Air Raid" offense. What better way for the two schools to honor Leach than with an offensive battle?

Last week, Washington State scored 70 in a win over Portland State, and the Red Raiders hung 52 in a narrow win over Abilene Christian. Texas Tech gained 539 yards and Washington State amassed 637.

"I think it's the exact same," Cougars coach Jake Dickert said of the two offenses. "I think they call things the same. They signal things the same ... it's gonna be about execution. I think we're very familiar with it, but at the same time, what makes (Tech's) offense hard is every week is different. You see something one week and you can practice it, and it's completely different in a new formation."

In December 2022, while the head coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs, Leach was hospitalized for an undisclosed health issue in Jackson, Mississippi. It was reported later that evening that he was in critical condition.

Related: Red Raiders vs. Washington State Cougars: How to Watch, Betting Odds

The Clarion-Ledger reported that Leach had suffered a massive heart attack and had not received medical attention for 10 to 15 minutes, and could have suffered seizures that may have contributed to brain damage as a result.

Leach died the following day at the age of 61, with the cause of death as "complications due to a heart condition".

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