Mississippi State coach Leach must visit civil rights museum after noose tweet, AD says

Mississippi State coach Mike Leach is not just a well-known icon in college football — he’s also a captivating online figure known for his sometimes controversial statements and tweets.

Now, Leach is using his Twitter account to tweet out an apology to his 350,000-plus followers.

Last week, the head coach tweeted out a meme of a woman knitting a noose for her husband while in self-quarantine, ESPN reported. And even though the tweet has since been deleted, the backlash has been continuously mounting.

Mississippi State athletic director John Cohen issued a statement that said the first-year football coach will use this opportunity to “expand his cultural awareness of Mississippi.” But numerous Bulldog players criticized the post, and some even entered the transfer portal, which allows student-athletes to publicly declare their intent to transfer to other schools.

Leach, a polarizing figure in the college sports world, is in his first year coaching at Mississippi State after spending the last seven years coaching Washington State. Before that, the 2x Pac-12 Coach of the Year spent nine years leading Texas Tech to greatness.

Mississippi State defensive lineman Fabien Lovett entered the transfer portal shortly following the backlash of Leach’s tweet. And while the decision wasn’t solely based off Leach’s insensitive tweet, Lovett’s father Abdual Lovett said it was a contributing factor and expressed that he didn’t feel comfortable with his son being under Leach’s leadership, according to ESPN.

Lovett wasn’t the only player to enter the transfer portal following the tweet scandal. MSU offensive lineman Brevyn Jones also entered, but it’s unknown whether his decision had to do with Leach’s tweet.

“No matter the context, for many Americans the image of a noose is never appropriate and that’s particularly true in the South and in Mississippi,” Cohen expressed in the statement. “Mississippi State University was disappointed in the use of such an image in a tweet by Coach Mike Leach.”

According to Cohen, Leach’s cultural awareness opportunities will include “listening sessions” with students and community groups and he will also visit the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the Museum of Mississippi History once it’s socially acceptable to return to a normal way of life following the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The university is confident that Coach Leach is moving quickly and sincerely past this unintended misstep and will provide the leadership for our student athletes and excitement for our football program that our fans deserve and that our students and alumni will be proud to support,” Cohen said.

With college football still up in the air thanks to sports being suspended, it’s unclear when and if the MSU Bulldogs will take to the field under Leach’s reign.