Why HC Mike Leach Rarely Takes A QB to His Conference's Media Days
SEC Media Days will kick off in Atlanta next week, but one big name heading into the 2022 season is missing from Mississippi State's chosen student-athlete attendees.
Head coach Mike Leach did not elect to take quarterback Will Rogers to Atlanta this year, even though Rogers is being mentioned as one of the top signal-callers in the SEC. Seven other quarterbacks will be in attendance, many of which are expected to have incredible seasons. These include Georgia National Champion Stetson Bennett, Heisman-winner Bryce Young of Alabama, Tennessee's Hendon Hooker, Florida signal-caller Anthony Richardson, KJ Jefferson of the Arkansas Razorbacks, veteran Kentucky quarterback Will Levis and Vanderbilt's Mike Wright.
This isn't out of the ordinary for Leach, as he has only taken a quarterback to conference media days twice during his 21-year head coaching career. Former Washington State leader Jeff Tuel attended Pac-12 Football Media Day in 2012, and fellow Cougar Connor Halliday went to the event in 2014. The decisions have raised some questions, but Leach explained his reasoning back in 2008 after not taking Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell or wide receiver Michael Crabtree to Big 12 Media Days.
"Harrell and Crabtree get a lot of attention, deserve a lot of attention and will continue to get a lot of attention," Leach said. "The important thing to our football team is the fact that football is the ultimate team game. Our effort this year is going to be how every member does as far as fulfilling his role on the team, and that being the case, I've got three guys that I think are team leaders that are emerging."
This year, three graduate senior Bulldogs will represent their team at SEC Media Days: wide receiver Austin Williams, defensive tackle Jaden Crumedy and linebacker Nathaniel Watson. These MSU student-athletes have each made significant contributions to the program through the years, but don't typically receive a substantial amount of praise.
Leach's tactic of taking the more "unsung heroes" of teams to various conference media days has worked out well in the end. Not only do those selected players get an opportunity to have a special moment, but his strategy truly emphasizes the importance of teamwork: something that is vital in performing well as a whole against talented SEC foes.
