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Mike Leach, the most important coach credited with popularizing the Air Raid offense and transforming modern college football, has been nominated for the College Football Hall of Fame class of 2027 just under four years after his death.
Leach’s last coaching stop was at Mississippi State before his death in December 2022.
The National Football Foundation has released the ballot for next year’s class, and the class will be officially announced in January. The list includes 80 players and nine coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision and 99 players and 39 coaches from lower levels.
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Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach watches the game against the LSU Tigers during the first half at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on September 17, 2022. (Stephen Lew/USA TODAY Sports)
Under previous rules, Leach did not meet eligibility requirements. However, based on revised criteria, you are now eligible for consideration. The NFF announced last year that the minimum career winning percentage required for coaches would decrease from .600 to .595, beginning with the class of 2027.
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Leach posted a .596 winning percentage during his tenure as head coach at Texas Tech, Washington State and Mississippi State. He finished his career with a record of 158-107.
Leach coached his teams to wins in 18 games against Top 25 opponents when his team was unranked.
Head coach Mike Leach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs arrives at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium before a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on November 6, 2021. (Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
A player is eligible 10 full seasons after his senior year in college and must have received first-team All-America honors from a major selector. The nominee’s achievements in college football are a primary consideration, but his record as a post-football citizen is also taken into account.
Other FBS coaches on the ballot include Larry Coker, whose Miami team won the national championship in the 2001 season; Dennis Franchione, who stopped at TCU, Alabama and Texas A&M; Ralph Friedgen, who led Maryland to bowl games in seven of his 10 seasons; Darryl Rogers, 1977 Big Ten Coach of the Year at Michigan State; Jackie Sherrill, Mississippi State’s all-time wins leader; and Tommy Tuberville, who coached powerful Auburn teams of the 2000s.
Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach talks about the quarterback position during Big 12 media day in Irving, Texas, on July 29, 2009. (Kelley Chinn/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service)
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Heisman Trophy winners Cam Newton of Auburn (2010) and Robert Griffin III of Baylor (2011) are on the ballot along with first-time nominees Tavon Austin of West Virginia, Melvin Gordon of Wisconsin, AJ Hawk of Ohio State and Barrett Jones of Alabama.
