College Football Hall of Fame adjusts eligibility criteria to induct Mike Leach

Legendary coach Mike Leach tragically passed away at the age of 61 back in 2022, his death coming ahead of Mississippi State’s appearance in the ReliaQuest Bowl vs. Illinois. That game, won by the Bulldogs with interim coach Zach Arnett leading the team to a 19-10 victory in Leach’s honor, proved to be the difference in his eligibility for the NFF College Football Hall of Fame.

Leach finished his career with a record of 158-106, good for a win rate of 59.8 percent. The cutoff for the Hall of Fame? 60 percent — one victory separating the Pirate from consideration.

That was the case, at least, leading to understandable outrage from the football community following his unexpected death. He may not have won a conference or regular season championship across stops at Texas Tech, Washington State or Mississippi State, but his status as an offensive mastermind and impact on the game popularizing the Air Raid alongside Hal Mumme — including a two-year stint at Kentucky from 1997-98 to help Tim Couch become the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft — made him more than deserving.

The College Football Hall of Fame obviously agrees, altering its eligibility requirements to lower the minimum win percentage to 59.5 percent, opening the door for Leach as a potential inductee.

“The NFF is committed to preserving the integrity and prestige of the NFF College Football Hall of Fame,” NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell said in a statement. “This adjustment reflects thoughtful dialogue with leaders across the sport and allows us to better recognize coaches whose contributions to the game extend beyond a narrow statistical threshold.”

Going into effect beginning with the 2027 NFF College Football Hall of Fame Ballot, coaches with win rates of 59.5 percent must have served as a head coach for a minimum of 10 seasons with at least 100 games and will be eligible for consideration three full seasons after retirement or immediately following retirement if they are at least 70 years of age. Active coaches will be eligible upon reaching the age of 75.

In two seasons at Kentucky, Leach helped the Wildcats set six NCAA records, 41 Southeastern Conference records and 116 school records in 22 games. UK went 12-10 in that span while earning an Outback Bowl bid in 1998. From there, he became Bob Stoops’ first offensive coordinator at Oklahoma and the rest was history, getting his first head coaching shot at Texas Tech a year later in 2000.

Now, thanks to some eligibility adjustments, he’s on his way to the College Football Hall of Fame.

We’ll be calling it the Pirate Rule until further notice. Time for the late, great Mike Leach to receive the recognition he deserves in Atlanta in 2027.