Washington State Locks Up Leach Until 2023
Washington State Locks Up Leach Until 2023
"It has been a great run here at Washington State over the last seven years, but I still believe that our best days are ahead of us. I am just as excited to be the head coach at WSU as I was the day that I was hired here and I look forward to leading this program to big things in the future.
These were the words of Mike Leach after he and Washington St. agreed on a one-year extension that will keep him as head coach through 2023. He is due to make $3.75 million this season, and $4 million the years after, with a $750,000 bonus in 2020. That’s a nice chunk of change. Does Leach deserve this type of money?
Leach has been coaching at Washington St. since 2012. He has a career record of 133-83, but in a “what have you done for me lately” league, coaches need results now. Here’s what he did in 2018:
Set school record with 11 wins
Won his first Pac-12 North Division title
Won Valero Alamo Bowl
Won AFCA Coach of the Year
Turned ECU transfer Gardner Minshew into the nation’s leading passer
FInished season ranked 10th in AP Poll
It makes sense why Washington St. wanted to lock him up for another year. Leach has put up the best season of his career, and there’s no reason to believe this past year was a fluke. He has one of the best offensive minds in college football and with national exposure and good recruiting, Leach could have some new players to bring in and start running up the score.
I remember watching the Cougars upset USC and Leach was asked about the win and said: "It's a good win. There's a lot of people. It's like Woodstock, except everybody's got their clothes on."
With Mike Leach in Washington the next five years, they better be ready to celebrate a lot more.
-By: Chris Czaplinski