Mike Leach fires back at sky is falling crowd regarding NIL

In the age of name, image and likeness, not only do the athletes on the field have to adapt to a shifting landscape of being able to benefit off of their own brand, it’s changing the way college coaches have to recruit. Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach said he hasn’t made any changes to his philosophy, however.

“I think there’s still in a transitional period. I’m curious what unfolds,” Leach said Wednesday.

According to Leach, the old school philosophy of creating relationships and getting kids to sign works just as well in 2022 as it has been throughout college football history.

“You know, occasionally there’s some people out there that you know, talk about this, that, the other thing, and I think a lot of that’s really quite exaggerated,” Leach pointed out. “We just went out and recruited and as we made relationships with players them, we signed them.”

With Mississippi State boasting the No. 23 ranked recruiting class in the country for the 2022 season, that old school sentiment seems to be paying off.

Not only has Leach tied down five different four-star recruits in Zavion Thomas, Braedyn Locke, Trevion Williams and Marquez Dortch — he also has singed two different top JUCO recruits in Percy Lewis (No. 5) and DeCarlos Nicholson (No. 9). Nicholson was originally committed to Kentucky before flipping to Leach and the Bulldogs toward the end of 2021.

While those numbers are certainly pleasing, Leach’s Mississippi State program still sits at No. 10 overall in the SEC. The teams atop the rankings are the ones that have some of the most prolific NIL deals.

Nowadays it’s not about what coach you play for or what school you go to — it’s about how well you can market yourself in a certain city to make the most amount of cash possible in the area where they play. Players can now go and join non-traditional programs instead of perennial powers.

“I think it’s fair to say it’s a mess,” Leach said. “At some point, we’re gonna have to sort it out so that it’s not a series of explosions all over the place. They said we’ll do this so you don’t have to be at it all year, and now they have assured that you’re at it all year. Some of the guys who make rules can’t resist changing the rules.

“Right now, we’re in the middle of the recruiting version of the halo rule. One of the worst rules ever contrived. Took us three years to get it behind us. Not sure that some of this will be behind us anytime soon.”