Canzano: My heart broke when I heard Mike Leach died

PHOENIX, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 27: Head coach Mike Leach of the Washington State Cougars watches from the sidelines during the second half of the Cheez-It Bowl against the Air Force Falcons at Chase Field on December 27, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Falcons defeated the Cougars 31-21. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

College Football lost a remarkable soul Monday night, when Mike Leach passed away at the age of 61.

John Canzano, host of “The Bald Faced Truth with John Canzano” weekdays 3-6 p.m. on 750 The Game, wrote at his website on Leach’s passing.

My heart broke when I heard Mike Leach was dead.

Maybe yours did, too.

Mine hurt for Leach. For Leach’s wife, Sharon, and their four children. For the players he recruited and coached, as well. For his close friends, fans, and colleagues. In the end, Leach’s heart itself gave out.

Doctors at the University of Mississippi Medical Center did what they could. But they couldn’t save Leach. He died Monday night.

He was 61.

——————————–

Canzano continued:

There was no one quite like him.

The last time I spoke with the football coach on the phone, he told me he couldn’t sleep. This was a couple of months ago. He was up well past midnight in Mississippi, walking his dog, Keira. She’s a lab. Leach and his wife adopted her and the football coach marveled at how well trained the dog was.

We talked about the Pac-12, and pets he had as a kid, and Leach told funny stories while out on that walk.

If you have a Leach story, I’d love to hear it today.

I’m sure others would, too.

—————————–

Leach challenged conventional thinking. He pushed boundaries. He did things with his offense that almost nobody else would have done. He was outspoken, intelligent, polarizing, had no filter, and made an impact with the players he coached.

My heart broke when I heard the news.

The game was better with him in it.

The world was, too.

Read the entire column here at JohnCanzano.com.