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Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Mississippi State football coach Mike Leach, who was rushed to a Jackson, Miss., hospital earlier this week because of a heart issue, has died, the school announced Tuesday morning. He was 61. Leach died Monday night at the Mississippi Medical Center. Mississippi State said Leach succumbed "following complications from a heart condition." He is survived by his wife, Sharon, and four children.
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"Mike was a giving and attentive husband, father and grandfather," the Leach family said in a news release from the school.
"He was able to participate in organ donation at UMMC as a final act of charity. We are supported and uplifted by the outpouring of love and prayers from family, friends, Mississippi State University, the hospital staff and football fans around the world. Thank you for sharing in the joy of our beloved husband and father's life."
The veteran coach, known for his entertaining interviews and prolific offenses, posted a 158-107 record in 21 seasons at three programs. Leach led those teams to winning records in 17 of those campaigns.
Mississippi State announced Sunday night that Leach was transferred by ambulance from his home to the Mississippi Medical Center. The school said Leach sustained a "personal health issue" and remained in critical condition Monday morning.
"Coach Mike Leach cast a tremendous shadow not just over Mississippi State University, but over the entire college football landscape," Mississippi State president Mark E. Keenum said.
"His innovative 'Air Raid' offense changed the game. Mike's keen intellect and unvarnished candor made him one of the nation's true coaching legends.
"His passing brings great sadness to our university, to the Southeastern Conference, and to all who loved college football. I will miss Mike's profound curiosity, his honesty, and his wide-open approach to pursuing excellence in all things.
"Mike's death also underscores the fragility and uncertainty of our lives. Three weeks ago, Mike and I were together in the locker room celebrating a hard-fought victory in Oxford.
"Mike Leach truly embraced life and lived in such a manner as to leave no regrets. That's a worthy legacy. May God bless the Leach family during these days and hours. The prayers of the Bulldog family go with them."
Leach was named Mississippi State's 34th head football coach on Jan. 9, 2020. He led the Bulldogs to an 8-4 record this season. He posted a 19-17 record in three seasons with the program.
Leach led Washington State to a 55-47 record in eight seasons at the school. He went 84-43 in 10 seasons at Texas Tech from 2000 through 2009. He also worked as an assistant at Oklahoma, Kentucky, Valdosta State, Iowa Wesleyan, Cal Poly and College of the Desert.
He also coached the Pori Bears of the American Football Association of Finland.
No funeral arrangements have been announced. The Bulldogs will face Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Jan. 2 in Tampa, Fla.
