Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach was rushed to the hospital this week. Prayers up was the call for college football fans as Leach had to be airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi.
The head coach was initially expected to be taken to Oktibbeha County Hospital in Starkville.
Mike Leach hospitalized: Mississippi State HC suffering from "personal health issue"
Mississippi State released a statement saying he is battling a personal health issue without divulging further details. The statement said:
"That is the extent of information that MSU has available regarding Coach Leach's condition, and the university will make no other comment at this time other than to say that the thoughts and prayers of the university are with Mike and Sharon and their family."
Mike Leach has a 19-17 record at Mississippi State. They were 4-7 in 2020 and improved to 7-6 in 2021 and 8-4 this season. The Bulldogs are scheduled to play Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl in a month's time.
Until coach Leach is back, the university will name Zach Arnett as the interim coach. He is the defensive and linebackers coach and will take temporary charge of the post if all goes well.
Mike Leach is 61 years old and has an extensive college coaching record resume despite never playing football in college.
There have been unsubstantiated rumors that he had a heart attack but nothing has been officially confirmed just yet.
Within the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic, it must also be noted that he refused to divulge if he had received a vaccine.
The vaccine was a requirement for all Mississippi university coaches, but he refused to respond out of principle, saying it was something that had become too reactionary a question.
He also said that he believed he had contracted the virus.
Coach Leach said that he had all the symptoms generally associated with the disease and he had the symptoms for a couple of days. He also pointed out that he needed a lot of sleep after falling ill during that time. Whether that has had any impact on his current health scare is unknown.
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