Mississippi State releases emotional video as team prepares to honor Mike Leach at bowling game
Mississippi State will play the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois with heavy hearts as the school pays tribute to the late Mike Leach, who passed away last month.
The university released a tribute video honoring Leach and revealed that she would wear a pirate logo on her helmet to honor the coach’s swashbuckling nickname. The game will take place at Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The team had a memorial installed near the pirate ship which overlooks one of the end zones of the stadium.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE AT FOXNEWS.COM
Mississippi State players warm up near a board honoring “Mike” – former head coach Mike Leach – before the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois on Monday, Jan. 2, 2023, in Tampa, Florida.
(AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
On Sunday, the school released the tribute video narrated by quarterback Will Rogers.
“Time is precious. It’s never been clearer than now,” Rogers says in the video. “For three years we sailed with our pirate. Oh, the lessons we learned from him. A new voyage was his destiny. But now we have a chance to show the world how he will remain a part of us forever. How We Do This Just as he taught us, we’ll be the most excited to play.
MICHIGAN’S ROMAN WILSON REVERSED BY ‘BULLS —‘ REVERSED TOUCHDOWN VS TCU CALL
Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Mike Leach arrives at the stadium before a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks on November 6, 2021 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
(Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
“No matter the ups, no matter the downs, we’ll play the next game not wanting to be overtaken or overwhelmed by those who played before. Simply put, we’ll play the kind of football he wanted us to play. We’ll do our job. again and again and again until the clock shows 0:00.”
Mississippi State vowed to play the game in Leach’s honor because that’s what the coach would want them to do.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Mike Leach takes on the LSU Tigers on September 17, 2022 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
(Stephen Lew – USA Today Sports)
The school said Leach died of complications from heart disease. He was 61 years old. Zach Arnett will coach the team in the bowling game.
Fox Gt
