The year was 2010 and head football coach Mike Leach had just been terminated from Texas Tech over the controversial discipline of one of his players.
Interestingly enough, beyond his games against TCU, there’s a Fort Worth connection to Coach Leach, who passed away Monday evening following a massive heart attack at his home in Mississippi.
My friends at the Fort Worth Business Press had discovered that I had a close friendship with Carey Hobbs, who often vacationed with Coach Leach. Carey had served on the Texas Tech Athletic Council, and he has also served on the Board of Trustees for the university.
The Business Press was in the planning stages for its Power Attorneys event that honored the top legal minds in the Fort Worth area. Having conducted their research, they knew that Mike Leach had received his law degree from Pepperdine University, so they asked me to book him to address the leaders of Fort Worth’s legal profession.
I called Carey and in a very short time, all the details were confirmed.
Coach Leach was more than entertaining, regaling the audience with insights and hilarious stories about the legal and coaching professions.
What Coach Leach did next will absolutely astound you.
One of my clients at the time was Bryan Horton, managing partner of Eventide Spring Water in Mineral Wells. Bryan – Texas Tech Red Raider graduate – also devoted much of his time as coach of a local six-man high school football team at Community Christian School in Mineral Wells. They are the Warriors.
That same November week that Coach Leach spoke for the Power Attorneys luncheon, the Warriors would be playing in the Texas state quarterfinals for six-man football. (If you have never watched a six-man football game, by the way, you’ve missed some exciting moments. It’s not unusual for scores in this high-octane offense format to be 63-60 or even 84-83).
I called Bryan to tell him about Coach Leach’s speaking engagement, and I asked if he could bring his team to the Fort Worth area to work out early that afternoon. My goal was for Coach Leach to stop on his way to DFW Airport and watch the team practice for five minutes or so.
Carey Hobbs secured Coach Leach’s approval, and we were fortunate to receive authorization from HEB ISD to use Pennington Field, which is located on Airport Freeway at the Central Drive exit.
Following his insightful and hilarious keynote, Coach Leach had consented to spend five minutes with the team as they held a workout at Pennington Field.
While he promised five minutes, Coach Leach had so much fun that he stayed for MORE THAN AN HOUR and analyzed the team’s workout. Even better, he helped the team’s receivers improve their passing routes.
Next, he drew up a trick play that the team used in that weekend’s state quarterfinal game. The play won the game and sent the Warriors to the state semifinal the next week!
When asked by an NBC 5/KXAS reporter why he had given his time to the six-man team, Coach Leach said, “It’s not very likely that any six-man football players would get an interview with a college football coach at the highest level, so it’s my honor to meet with them, encourage them, and hopefully inspire them.”
Yes, and even help them win a playoff game.
Coach Leach touched a LOT of lives during his football career, and every one of these six-man players, their families, and their coaches (including Texas Tech grad and my friend Bryan Horton, who coached that team), will be inspired by his kindness – his Godwink – for the rest of their lives.
Coach Leach did a lot of behind-the-scenes kindnesses that very few people knew about.
Godspeed, Coach Mike Leach!
John Fletcher is CEO/Founder of Fletcher Consulting Public Relations in Arlington, where he emphasizes the value of developing strong personal and business relationships.
