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Swing Your Sword: Leading the Charge in Football and Life
Legendary head coach Mike Leach tells his captivating story—from rural Wyoming to law school to the upper echelons of the SEC.
SWING YOUR SWORD is the first ever book by one of the most fascinating and successful coaches in sports today. A maverick who took an unlikely path to coaching through law school, Mike Leach talks about his unorthodox approach to coaching and the choices that have brought him success throughout his career. A lover of the game who started creating formations and drawing his own plays as a kid, Leach took his Texas Tech Red Raiders to numerous bowl games, achieving the #2 slot in national rankings and being voted 2008 Coach of the Year before being unceremoniously fired at the end of the 2009 season. The scandalous nature of his dismissal created a media frenzy and began a personal battle between Leach and his accusers that remains unresolved.
SWING YOUR SWORD is the first ever book by one of the most fascinating and successful coaches in sports today. A maverick who took an unlikely path to coaching through law school, Mike Leach talks about his unorthodox approach to coaching and the choices that have brought him success throughout his career. A lover of the game who started creating formations and drawing his own plays as a kid, Leach took his Texas Tech Red Raiders to numerous bowl games, achieving the #2 slot in national rankings and being voted 2008 Coach of the Year before being unceremoniously fired at the end of the 2009 season. The scandalous nature of his dismissal created a media frenzy and began a personal battle between Leach and his accusers that remains unresolved.
260 pages, Hardcover
First published June 27, 2011
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August 11, 2011
The only difference between the petty math teacher Leach discusses early in this book and the ESPN and Texas Tech powers-that-be is that the math teacher had the common decency to retreat when called on his BS.
I started this book with low expectations, even for an iconoclast like Leach. Coaches and other politicians seldom write interesting books. Leach quickly shows that he is an exception. Leach is one of those people with an incurable compulsion for telling it like it is and beating his own path—the bane of bureaucrats everywhere.
Leach did not follow a traditional path into coaching. He did not play college football. He has a law degree. He entered the field with no personal connections. He was willing to put academics above football. He never hesitated to chuck the conventional wisdom when in doubt of its actual wisdom. Despite this, or perhaps in part because of it, Leach became one of the most successful coaches in college football before his ignominious firing from the head coaching job at Texas Tech.
Leach covers the birth of his “pirate” reputation. A well read man, Leach is a particular aficionado of pirates. He leveraged this for a post-defeat team meeting, bringing in a sword as a memorable prop.
The book is written in a conversational, easily readable style. Leach is famously meandering in conversation which shows here, but it works by providing an easy way to insert insights into the traditional biographical structure and avoid the rut of merely reciting events. Leach’s erudition shows through, e.g., he uses “institutionalized” and “coaching caste system” in a single sentence, but it never becomes pedantic or results in overly dense prose.
Leach’s non-conformity is well demonstrated in the appendix covering his game week preparations. For example, he ran shorter practices to keep his players fresh, but he also tried to keep everyone moving and relied heavily on his graduate assistants to work with the third- and scout-teamers to maximize the time.
This book is not primarily focused on the controversy that embroiled Leach at the end of his tenure at Texas Tech, but it is covered at great length. Leach shows, with support from depositions and emails between key players, that the Adam James controversy was used as a pretext by a Texas Tech administration more concerned with petty politics than the best interests of the university. They were greatly assisted in this by a media conglomerate, ESPN, that was more than happy to present its employee’s side of the story as plain fact while ignoring the other side (reported by other news outlets) as “irrelevant.” Numerous inconsistent statements were made by administrators and the Jameses (Adam James essentially recanted his entire story when deposed), and a PR firm was hired to smear Leach.
ESPN writer Bruce Feldman helped edit this book. Despite signing off on his work in advance, the ESPN powers-that-be suspended Feldman shortly after it was released. They then reinstated him less than a day later after an outpouring of support via Twitter but, true to form, claimed that Feldman was never suspended.
As a college football fan, I fervently hope that Leach returns to the sidelines post-haste. As an N.C. State fan, I fervently hope that Leach does not return to the sidelines in the ACC.
I started this book with low expectations, even for an iconoclast like Leach. Coaches and other politicians seldom write interesting books. Leach quickly shows that he is an exception. Leach is one of those people with an incurable compulsion for telling it like it is and beating his own path—the bane of bureaucrats everywhere.
Leach did not follow a traditional path into coaching. He did not play college football. He has a law degree. He entered the field with no personal connections. He was willing to put academics above football. He never hesitated to chuck the conventional wisdom when in doubt of its actual wisdom. Despite this, or perhaps in part because of it, Leach became one of the most successful coaches in college football before his ignominious firing from the head coaching job at Texas Tech.
Leach covers the birth of his “pirate” reputation. A well read man, Leach is a particular aficionado of pirates. He leveraged this for a post-defeat team meeting, bringing in a sword as a memorable prop.
The book is written in a conversational, easily readable style. Leach is famously meandering in conversation which shows here, but it works by providing an easy way to insert insights into the traditional biographical structure and avoid the rut of merely reciting events. Leach’s erudition shows through, e.g., he uses “institutionalized” and “coaching caste system” in a single sentence, but it never becomes pedantic or results in overly dense prose.
Leach’s non-conformity is well demonstrated in the appendix covering his game week preparations. For example, he ran shorter practices to keep his players fresh, but he also tried to keep everyone moving and relied heavily on his graduate assistants to work with the third- and scout-teamers to maximize the time.
This book is not primarily focused on the controversy that embroiled Leach at the end of his tenure at Texas Tech, but it is covered at great length. Leach shows, with support from depositions and emails between key players, that the Adam James controversy was used as a pretext by a Texas Tech administration more concerned with petty politics than the best interests of the university. They were greatly assisted in this by a media conglomerate, ESPN, that was more than happy to present its employee’s side of the story as plain fact while ignoring the other side (reported by other news outlets) as “irrelevant.” Numerous inconsistent statements were made by administrators and the Jameses (Adam James essentially recanted his entire story when deposed), and a PR firm was hired to smear Leach.
ESPN writer Bruce Feldman helped edit this book. Despite signing off on his work in advance, the ESPN powers-that-be suspended Feldman shortly after it was released. They then reinstated him less than a day later after an outpouring of support via Twitter but, true to form, claimed that Feldman was never suspended.
As a college football fan, I fervently hope that Leach returns to the sidelines post-haste. As an N.C. State fan, I fervently hope that Leach does not return to the sidelines in the ACC.
October 12, 2011
This book is terrific.
I initially put this on hold for the laughs, which I figured would be in about a 60/40 with/at ratio. Crazy ramblings! Who can pass those up?
It isn't crazy ramblings, though. It's a genuinely interesting and informative autobiography/football book. The tone is extremely matter-of-fact, without any pomposity.
The first section is a retrospective on Leach's early days, from childhood to BYU to law school. My favorite part was about Leach's very brief foray into acting. He played a security guard in something called Grunt! The Wrestling Movie and an FBI agent in a miniseries about J. Edgar Hoover. "I didn't have a speaking part," he writes. "I just tried to look like an FBI agent." He's never seen that one, though, so he doesn't know whether he made it into the final cut or not. The book also provides a pull quote from his agent: "I represented that guy?! Holy smokes! That's wild."
In the second part, Leach details how he got into coaching and what it was like to be an assistant coach. This is where the book gets really interesting on a general football level. He talks about developing his offensive philosophy with Hal Mumme and about moving from school to school (and what went into the decisions about when and where to go). I think any college football fan would find it really interesting. My favorite quote in the whole book is in this section--Leach explains how once he decided he wanted to coach, he got a degree at a coaching school in Alabama, but that wasn't a ton of help: "It was impossible to become a graduate assistant at a Division I team because I had no connections. I hadn't been a player, and hadn't had any prior opportunity to build relationships with any coaches. They weren't going to take some slap-dick out of the Sports Academy."
The third section deals with Leach's time at Texas Tech. He makes sure to hit all the high points by talking about Wes Welker, his whole pirate thing, the win over texas in 2008. This is the longest part of the book, and about a third of it is dedicated to his firing from Tech. Thanks to extensive documentation (full emails from figures in the controversy are found at the back of the book), Leach does an excellent job of nailing Tech brass and ESPN to the wall. (That's why Leach's co-author, Bruce Feldman, used to work for ESPN, which is a whole huge controversy in itself.) The insight into university politics, particularly the way that the roots of Leach's firing go all the way back to Bobby Knight, is fascinating. Again, I think that anybody who was following college football at the time would be interesting in getting the fuller story.
Leach finishes up by discussing life since his firing (he really loves living in Key West) and, in an appendix, going through the day-by-day schedule of his football teams. The latter is the most football-wonky part of the whole book. General observations are sprinkled throughout the book, so you get a broad overview of Leach's Thoughts on Life. (Example: Michael Jordan playing baseball? He was for it!)
I can't recommend this book strongly enough. It's not just fun from a human interest perspective, it's probably the best sports book I've read.
Finally, here are the Kubler-Ross Stages of Mike Leach:
1. Annoyance: Who is this weird dude? And why does he keep beating my team?
2. Anger: No, seriously, WHY.
3. Grudging amusement: OK, admittedly, I do enjoy reading all his weird quotes.
4. Admiration: That weird guy really is a solid coach. (NOTE: this stage is expedited if he stops working for a team you hate)
5. Love: Yayyyyyyyy, Mike Leach wrote a book!!! [reads book] . . . I wonder what it would be like if Mike Leach coached my team.
I initially put this on hold for the laughs, which I figured would be in about a 60/40 with/at ratio. Crazy ramblings! Who can pass those up?
It isn't crazy ramblings, though. It's a genuinely interesting and informative autobiography/football book. The tone is extremely matter-of-fact, without any pomposity.
The first section is a retrospective on Leach's early days, from childhood to BYU to law school. My favorite part was about Leach's very brief foray into acting. He played a security guard in something called Grunt! The Wrestling Movie and an FBI agent in a miniseries about J. Edgar Hoover. "I didn't have a speaking part," he writes. "I just tried to look like an FBI agent." He's never seen that one, though, so he doesn't know whether he made it into the final cut or not. The book also provides a pull quote from his agent: "I represented that guy?! Holy smokes! That's wild."
In the second part, Leach details how he got into coaching and what it was like to be an assistant coach. This is where the book gets really interesting on a general football level. He talks about developing his offensive philosophy with Hal Mumme and about moving from school to school (and what went into the decisions about when and where to go). I think any college football fan would find it really interesting. My favorite quote in the whole book is in this section--Leach explains how once he decided he wanted to coach, he got a degree at a coaching school in Alabama, but that wasn't a ton of help: "It was impossible to become a graduate assistant at a Division I team because I had no connections. I hadn't been a player, and hadn't had any prior opportunity to build relationships with any coaches. They weren't going to take some slap-dick out of the Sports Academy."
The third section deals with Leach's time at Texas Tech. He makes sure to hit all the high points by talking about Wes Welker, his whole pirate thing, the win over texas in 2008. This is the longest part of the book, and about a third of it is dedicated to his firing from Tech. Thanks to extensive documentation (full emails from figures in the controversy are found at the back of the book), Leach does an excellent job of nailing Tech brass and ESPN to the wall. (That's why Leach's co-author, Bruce Feldman, used to work for ESPN, which is a whole huge controversy in itself.) The insight into university politics, particularly the way that the roots of Leach's firing go all the way back to Bobby Knight, is fascinating. Again, I think that anybody who was following college football at the time would be interesting in getting the fuller story.
Leach finishes up by discussing life since his firing (he really loves living in Key West) and, in an appendix, going through the day-by-day schedule of his football teams. The latter is the most football-wonky part of the whole book. General observations are sprinkled throughout the book, so you get a broad overview of Leach's Thoughts on Life. (Example: Michael Jordan playing baseball? He was for it!)
I can't recommend this book strongly enough. It's not just fun from a human interest perspective, it's probably the best sports book I've read.
Finally, here are the Kubler-Ross Stages of Mike Leach:
1. Annoyance: Who is this weird dude? And why does he keep beating my team?
2. Anger: No, seriously, WHY.
3. Grudging amusement: OK, admittedly, I do enjoy reading all his weird quotes.
4. Admiration: That weird guy really is a solid coach. (NOTE: this stage is expedited if he stops working for a team you hate)
5. Love: Yayyyyyyyy, Mike Leach wrote a book!!! [reads book] . . . I wonder what it would be like if Mike Leach coached my team.
January 4, 2023
4/5 - Mike Leach was a powerful storyteller. No doubt about it. I am not a football fan, but I am a people fan, and a fan of Mississippi State (the school itself, not just athletics lol). And Mike Leach was such an interesting person and was at Mississippi State, so I knew I needed to read this. Even as someone who only casually enjoys a football game here and there, I enjoyed reading about his coaching philosophy. It was so intriguing to read this and parallel some of the relationships with relationships that he could have had in Starkville. I really enjoyed the quotes from others with Leach’s response after it as well. The entire thing truly read as if he were speaking it. I’m glad that he was able to coach again after this book was written, I’m glad that he ended up at Mississippi State. -.5 star because the flow of the book sometimes seemed disjointed (and there were quite a few editing errors). -.5 for being a little too technical (may just be me not knowing football; I’ll admit it). We miss you, Coach Leach!!
August 17, 2020
As a Mississippi State fan, I really enjoyed learning more about Mike Leach’s life and coaching style. This book seems to confirm all I’ve heard about Leach—brilliant, eccentric, genuine, curious, creative, and endearing.
December 28, 2022
'There's something to the expression, "ignorance is bliss," I might not have pursued a college coaching career after law school if I'd listened to most folks in the coaching world. I'm sure I wouldn't have even tried to do a lot of the things I've done in my life if I'd only listened to people who supposedly knew better. If you're not loaded down with reasons why something won't work, the reasons why it can work become much clearer." - Mike Leach (1961-2022)
The late Mike Leach was among the most fascinating people to ever coach football. In high school, I always made time to watch Texas Tech football games. I admired his willingness to do unconventional things: not have a playbook, throw the ball sixty times a game, recruit guys based on fit and character, not just speed and athleticism. His interviews were must-see TV. Leach is legendary for his rants on candy, wedding planning, college mascots, movies, etc. A great book written by one of the most interesting men to have walked earth.
The late Mike Leach was among the most fascinating people to ever coach football. In high school, I always made time to watch Texas Tech football games. I admired his willingness to do unconventional things: not have a playbook, throw the ball sixty times a game, recruit guys based on fit and character, not just speed and athleticism. His interviews were must-see TV. Leach is legendary for his rants on candy, wedding planning, college mascots, movies, etc. A great book written by one of the most interesting men to have walked earth.
May 4, 2023
Mike Leach is the contrarian’s contrarian. This book is a cool look into how he rethought the game of football, using analogies from his law school days and passion for pirate history.
August 30, 2020
When your head coach has written a New York Time best seller, you have to read it, right? In all honesty, my mom is the reason this book ended up in my house. Once it was here, curiosity drove me to start it over other books I had been planning to read for much longer. With so much uncertainty about whether or not we are going to play the 2020 season, this book was a dive into football that helped make the start of Fall seem a little more normal.
Of course, Mike Leach is about a lot more than football, and this book really drives home that point. Aside from his unique and questioning mind, I was most intrigued about learning details of the Texas Tech case that led to his dismissal. I never paid much attention to the story, and heard rumors that he had mistreated a player. Other than that, I never much looked into it. Texas Tech and Washington State were teams that rarely affected my world in the SEC. After reading this book and the evidence in its Appendix sections, I am convinced that he really was screwed by Tech Tech higher ups and former ESPN analyst, Craig James. The older I get and the longer I work in athletics, the less faith I seem to have in humanity - outside of my small circle of family and friends, of course. This book emintated the feelings and frustrations I have felt myself, just on a much grander scale.
If I ever have the chance to ask Coach about his book, and I really hope I do, I want to know if he ever found out who the pirate man was he saw at a gas station in Key West. If anyone can track down a modern day pirate, its Coach Leach.
Of course, Mike Leach is about a lot more than football, and this book really drives home that point. Aside from his unique and questioning mind, I was most intrigued about learning details of the Texas Tech case that led to his dismissal. I never paid much attention to the story, and heard rumors that he had mistreated a player. Other than that, I never much looked into it. Texas Tech and Washington State were teams that rarely affected my world in the SEC. After reading this book and the evidence in its Appendix sections, I am convinced that he really was screwed by Tech Tech higher ups and former ESPN analyst, Craig James. The older I get and the longer I work in athletics, the less faith I seem to have in humanity - outside of my small circle of family and friends, of course. This book emintated the feelings and frustrations I have felt myself, just on a much grander scale.
If I ever have the chance to ask Coach about his book, and I really hope I do, I want to know if he ever found out who the pirate man was he saw at a gas station in Key West. If anyone can track down a modern day pirate, its Coach Leach.
April 21, 2012
I was always intrigued by Mike Leach after first really hearing him on Sirius Radio on his daily show with Jack Arute. His perspective on life and his "don't give a damn" attitude quickly makes you gravitate towards him. After an interview with Kevin Calabro on a local radio show here in Seattle, I became even more interested in learning about him. After a quick plug on his book, I bought it convinced it would be good. It was.
There's so much relation when you read Mike's book. He explains why his personality is an off-the-cuff sort and really gets into why having an open mind can lend you to success in many different aspects of your life and not just coaching. His pride in maintaining the student in student-athlete is commendable and his commitment to execution is second to none. I really enjoyed his spacial awareness when it comes to drawing up the X's and O's. He makes you want to volunteer to coach because he makes it so easy.
He sways back and forth from football to life and gives colorful and fun examples of moments in his life that left a lasting impression on who he is. He also keeps perspective. Football is a game, but it's a game he loves and there's no reason in his life for him to not be involved in the molding of these young men.
Great read that gives a refreshing point of view of football and life.
There's so much relation when you read Mike's book. He explains why his personality is an off-the-cuff sort and really gets into why having an open mind can lend you to success in many different aspects of your life and not just coaching. His pride in maintaining the student in student-athlete is commendable and his commitment to execution is second to none. I really enjoyed his spacial awareness when it comes to drawing up the X's and O's. He makes you want to volunteer to coach because he makes it so easy.
He sways back and forth from football to life and gives colorful and fun examples of moments in his life that left a lasting impression on who he is. He also keeps perspective. Football is a game, but it's a game he loves and there's no reason in his life for him to not be involved in the molding of these young men.
Great read that gives a refreshing point of view of football and life.
November 18, 2012
This book is a must read for any sports fan. Love Mike Leach or hate him, I guarantee you will find the book interesting. I literally couldn't put the book down. I read it in just a few short hours. Being a former coach I have read several books written by or about coaches such as Vince Lombardi, John Wooden, Barry Switzer, Tony Dungy, Billy Martin, Bob Knight, Coach K, Dean Smith, Jimmy Johnson, Bear Bryant, etc., and this was by far the best "coaching" book I have ever read. It of course gave a little more insight into the events that lead to his firing, but it was primarily about his life. The book was mainly about him growing up in Wyoming, going to BYU, going to law school, rising through the coaching ranks, and building his program at Tech. This was the aspect of the book that I found most interesting, but I also enjoyed reading about the events that lead to his being fired and particularly enjoyed reading the emails between booster/regents and the notes from the deposition of Adam/Craig James.
July 21, 2011
Disclaimer: I consider Leach to be in the upper echelon of sports entertainment with Shaq. Barkley is a distant second to those two. Leach could have written a children's book, and I'd still read it.
Leach starts the book with a really bizarre story of him as a kid, but after that he brings it back around and it's pretty clear how smart this loony coach really is. He spends a little too much time outlining the unfortunate circumstances leading to his dismissal from Tech for me. It's understandable that it's at the top of his mind, but I was more interested to hear about his otherwise positive outlook and how he motivates people.
Final note for the recovering lawyers: Leach includes an honest explanation of why he ditched law and took a $3k per year coaching job, despite having student loans from Pepperdine to pay off.
Leach starts the book with a really bizarre story of him as a kid, but after that he brings it back around and it's pretty clear how smart this loony coach really is. He spends a little too much time outlining the unfortunate circumstances leading to his dismissal from Tech for me. It's understandable that it's at the top of his mind, but I was more interested to hear about his otherwise positive outlook and how he motivates people.
Final note for the recovering lawyers: Leach includes an honest explanation of why he ditched law and took a $3k per year coaching job, despite having student loans from Pepperdine to pay off.
December 5, 2022
More 4 stars, but I’m biased. Mike Leach is such an interesting person. I’ve head about that being true over the past few years, and got to witness it only once at an alumni luncheon.
Educated and well read. He believes in hard work and accountability. Most of us know about the Texas Tech ordeal but I’ve never looked into it. Leach “spills the tea” on the corruptness of the school’s administration that ultimately led to his firing.
Lots of football talk in here, but also some really cool name drops.
I wonder if he ever rereads what he wrote.
Educated and well read. He believes in hard work and accountability. Most of us know about the Texas Tech ordeal but I’ve never looked into it. Leach “spills the tea” on the corruptness of the school’s administration that ultimately led to his firing.
Lots of football talk in here, but also some really cool name drops.
I wonder if he ever rereads what he wrote.
August 31, 2013
Mike Leach has always struck me as an interesting guy who possessed the courage to challenge football's status quo and the intelligence to really innovate the game. I started reading his memoir Swing Your Sword with the hope that he would provide a glimpse into his unconventional coaching methods and strategic philosophy in a readable package. And he certainly does offer up a good bit of insight into his views about football and running a program and it makes for generally entertaining fare. The book unfortunately veers from that subject matter halfway through and descends into a mess of damage control and finger-pointing regarding the Adam James incident that led to his ouster at Texas Tech. I found the book to be a worthwhile read despite its rather glaring flaws but the second half occasionally bordered on unreadable for me.
While Leach often takes an unorthodox approach to gridiron matters the book follows a rather tried-and-true template for coaching memoirs. He offers up some amusing anecdotes from childhood and college and describes how experiences such as coaching youth baseball fostered his passion for developing talent and creative strategies to outmaneuver more talented opponents. Leach's followed one of the more unlikely paths to football coaching, as he played rugby in college and entered Pepperdine Law School after graduating from Brigham Young University. He was likely the only member of his class at Pepperdine to pursue a football coaching job after graduating law school (though Rick Neuheisel and Marc Trestman are other coaches with law degrees) and he bounced around various small schools and even endured a stint coaching a Finnish team where players often smoked cigarettes on the sidelines.
Leach eventually ended up at Iowa Wesleyan under the tutelage of Hal Mumme and began to really establish the philosophical basis for his wide-open Air Raid offense at Texas Tech. He followed Mumme around various gigs and reached prominence after helping Tim Couch put up pinball numbers as offensive coordinator at Kentucky. He proceeded to run the offense for Bob Stoops at the University of Oklahoma before signing on as the head coach at Texas Tech.
Leach is refreshingly honest and open about most of his coaching experiences. His book is more insightful than other coaching memoirs I have read, and his musings on the game were definitely highlights for me. He mentions how coaches have more leeway to really stray from the norm in the lower levels of college football, where there is more freedom from fans and boosters, and he also makes a convincing case for abandoning common strategies such as having mirrors for all of your plays (players can specialize in and get more reps from having one responsibility on a play) and having receivers line up on both sides of the field (based on the benefits of specialization again. Maybe it is the economics major in me but Leach's argument certainly makes sense to me). Now Swing Your Sword doesn't contain any diagrams or get into the nitty-gritty of his scheme to the extent of something like Ron Jaworski's The Games That Changed the Game, which may disappoint some Leach fans, but I was impressed by the amount of strategic content offered by Leach for a memoir. I definitely learned more concepts about the game than I did from most other football books, such as how receivers on "go" routes are open several times during their route while those running "curls" and the like are only open at the end of the route.
Leach's chapters on his tenure at Texas Tech are initially fascinating. He outlines how he constructed his program and built his coaching staff. The coach put an emphasis on graduating players and ensuring reasonable academic performance through punishments such as "The Tower of London," where players would answer a gauntlet of scholarly questions while running around the school's campus carrying a cinder block over their head. He also occasionally played mind games against his opponents, such as intentionally dropping a fake play sheet on the field before a game against Texas. The chapters touch upon highlights such as the Red Raiders' 2008 upset victory over #1-ranked Texas and their 31-point comeback win against Minnesota in the 2006 Insight Bowl and such reflections make for decent reading.
Unfortunately, I read the pages with a sense of foreboding that is somewhat common in football memoirs. I had the same feeling reading recent books by Michael Strahan and Rex Ryan. I knew that at some point Strahan would discuss his divorce and probably regale me with tales about how horrendous his ex-wife was and that Rex would eventually stop telling his amusing anecdotes from his assistant coaching jobs (overall I really thought Play Like You Mean It was a fine read for the admittedly low standards of the genre) and draft Mark Sanchez, and then probably spend way too many pages justifying why his decision was the greatest thing to ever happen to the franchise. As Leach moved from the Kliff Kingsbury to Graham Harrell era I realized that there was still a good bit of dead tree matter between my current location and the back cover. Correctly assuming that Swing Your Sword did not contain a 150-page index, I braced myself for an inevitably exhaustive account of the Adam James affair and Leach's firing from Texas Tech.
I'm guessing you are at least somewhat aware of why Leach got fired if you are reading a review of the coach's book. Basically it stems from Adam Jones, a Red Raiders receiver and the son of Craig James claimed that he was put in a dark equipment closet after suffering from a concussion, which resulted in a media firestorm (at least on ESPN) that ruined many a campus meal at college dining halls across the country. According to Leach, the administration (who are not very scrupulous people) used the overblown incident to fire him and avoid paying him a completion clause and negotiating a new contract. Honestly it does appear that Leach got somewhat of a raw deal in the matter, and as a human being I sympathize with him for falling victim to university politics. But as a reader I do not want to slog through way too many pages outlining every reason why Leach is innocent, how Adam Jones is the worst person ever (except perhaps his father), and the pettiness of Texas Tech Chancellor Kent Hance. I can't imagine that my complaining about it all makes for very compelling reading material either. So unlike Leach, I'll show some restraint and just hope I've made my point. The book concludes with the fired coach discussing his life without football and excitement at obtaining a fresh start with Washington State, but Swing Your Sword's last 100 pages are mainly just him explaining how he was mistreated by Texas Tech.
In Sum
If you still haven't read the book at this point you probably aren't the biggest Mike Leach supporter in the world. You are more likely a football fan decently curious about whether his book is worth your time. And my answer to that is yes based on the strength of the first half, though you will be disappointed when it descends into damage control and complaining. Caveat emptor/library patron.
6/10
While Leach often takes an unorthodox approach to gridiron matters the book follows a rather tried-and-true template for coaching memoirs. He offers up some amusing anecdotes from childhood and college and describes how experiences such as coaching youth baseball fostered his passion for developing talent and creative strategies to outmaneuver more talented opponents. Leach's followed one of the more unlikely paths to football coaching, as he played rugby in college and entered Pepperdine Law School after graduating from Brigham Young University. He was likely the only member of his class at Pepperdine to pursue a football coaching job after graduating law school (though Rick Neuheisel and Marc Trestman are other coaches with law degrees) and he bounced around various small schools and even endured a stint coaching a Finnish team where players often smoked cigarettes on the sidelines.
Leach eventually ended up at Iowa Wesleyan under the tutelage of Hal Mumme and began to really establish the philosophical basis for his wide-open Air Raid offense at Texas Tech. He followed Mumme around various gigs and reached prominence after helping Tim Couch put up pinball numbers as offensive coordinator at Kentucky. He proceeded to run the offense for Bob Stoops at the University of Oklahoma before signing on as the head coach at Texas Tech.
Leach is refreshingly honest and open about most of his coaching experiences. His book is more insightful than other coaching memoirs I have read, and his musings on the game were definitely highlights for me. He mentions how coaches have more leeway to really stray from the norm in the lower levels of college football, where there is more freedom from fans and boosters, and he also makes a convincing case for abandoning common strategies such as having mirrors for all of your plays (players can specialize in and get more reps from having one responsibility on a play) and having receivers line up on both sides of the field (based on the benefits of specialization again. Maybe it is the economics major in me but Leach's argument certainly makes sense to me). Now Swing Your Sword doesn't contain any diagrams or get into the nitty-gritty of his scheme to the extent of something like Ron Jaworski's The Games That Changed the Game, which may disappoint some Leach fans, but I was impressed by the amount of strategic content offered by Leach for a memoir. I definitely learned more concepts about the game than I did from most other football books, such as how receivers on "go" routes are open several times during their route while those running "curls" and the like are only open at the end of the route.
Leach's chapters on his tenure at Texas Tech are initially fascinating. He outlines how he constructed his program and built his coaching staff. The coach put an emphasis on graduating players and ensuring reasonable academic performance through punishments such as "The Tower of London," where players would answer a gauntlet of scholarly questions while running around the school's campus carrying a cinder block over their head. He also occasionally played mind games against his opponents, such as intentionally dropping a fake play sheet on the field before a game against Texas. The chapters touch upon highlights such as the Red Raiders' 2008 upset victory over #1-ranked Texas and their 31-point comeback win against Minnesota in the 2006 Insight Bowl and such reflections make for decent reading.
Unfortunately, I read the pages with a sense of foreboding that is somewhat common in football memoirs. I had the same feeling reading recent books by Michael Strahan and Rex Ryan. I knew that at some point Strahan would discuss his divorce and probably regale me with tales about how horrendous his ex-wife was and that Rex would eventually stop telling his amusing anecdotes from his assistant coaching jobs (overall I really thought Play Like You Mean It was a fine read for the admittedly low standards of the genre) and draft Mark Sanchez, and then probably spend way too many pages justifying why his decision was the greatest thing to ever happen to the franchise. As Leach moved from the Kliff Kingsbury to Graham Harrell era I realized that there was still a good bit of dead tree matter between my current location and the back cover. Correctly assuming that Swing Your Sword did not contain a 150-page index, I braced myself for an inevitably exhaustive account of the Adam James affair and Leach's firing from Texas Tech.
I'm guessing you are at least somewhat aware of why Leach got fired if you are reading a review of the coach's book. Basically it stems from Adam Jones, a Red Raiders receiver and the son of Craig James claimed that he was put in a dark equipment closet after suffering from a concussion, which resulted in a media firestorm (at least on ESPN) that ruined many a campus meal at college dining halls across the country. According to Leach, the administration (who are not very scrupulous people) used the overblown incident to fire him and avoid paying him a completion clause and negotiating a new contract. Honestly it does appear that Leach got somewhat of a raw deal in the matter, and as a human being I sympathize with him for falling victim to university politics. But as a reader I do not want to slog through way too many pages outlining every reason why Leach is innocent, how Adam Jones is the worst person ever (except perhaps his father), and the pettiness of Texas Tech Chancellor Kent Hance. I can't imagine that my complaining about it all makes for very compelling reading material either. So unlike Leach, I'll show some restraint and just hope I've made my point. The book concludes with the fired coach discussing his life without football and excitement at obtaining a fresh start with Washington State, but Swing Your Sword's last 100 pages are mainly just him explaining how he was mistreated by Texas Tech.
In Sum
If you still haven't read the book at this point you probably aren't the biggest Mike Leach supporter in the world. You are more likely a football fan decently curious about whether his book is worth your time. And my answer to that is yes based on the strength of the first half, though you will be disappointed when it descends into damage control and complaining. Caveat emptor/library patron.
6/10
November 16, 2021
The bulk of the book contains Leach's memoir; the latter part the juicy details about his firing.
Funny anecdotes such as one about his crying when his dog peed on his baseball glove are peppered throughout the book.
Football is a beautiful and expansive game in which coaching encompasses both motivating players and a lot of strategy. Leach gives a glimpse about his coaching philosophy, including his weekly routine, details about some of his playbook. As a BYU fan dealing with BYU's modus operandi of conducting almost all business behind closed doors, this was mighty refreshing.
The last part of book contains details about his firing, including emails sent by the Texas Tech administration, Craig James, and others involved. He is a lawyer by training (he never played football himself), and it reads like a collection of all the evidence against Texas Tech.
Overall, a great great.
Funny anecdotes such as one about his crying when his dog peed on his baseball glove are peppered throughout the book.
Football is a beautiful and expansive game in which coaching encompasses both motivating players and a lot of strategy. Leach gives a glimpse about his coaching philosophy, including his weekly routine, details about some of his playbook. As a BYU fan dealing with BYU's modus operandi of conducting almost all business behind closed doors, this was mighty refreshing.
The last part of book contains details about his firing, including emails sent by the Texas Tech administration, Craig James, and others involved. He is a lawyer by training (he never played football himself), and it reads like a collection of all the evidence against Texas Tech.
Overall, a great great.
August 4, 2023
Mike Leach was one of the most interesting characters in college football in the last two decades. He completed law school but never practiced law. His passion was football, but he did not play in college at BYU where he attended. The principles he teaches here are sound: you are either coaching it or allowing it to happen. As head coach of Texas Tech, he achieved enormous success in the 2000s decade in both football and the graduation rate of his players. His firing there was quite controversial and the school was clearly in the wrong, as we all knew at the time. He possibly spends more time than is necessary making his case against the young man who got him fired. The book ends with his decision to get back into coaching at Washington State. All in all, it is a good book and I recommend it to sports fans who are curious to learn.
February 9, 2020
Swing Your Sword follows the coaching life of Mike Leach. Written by Mike Leach and Bruce Feldman, this book is mostly for those who enjoy football. Leach comes across as a bit of a rebel, but there is a method to his madness. He is a scholar of the game, but he also isn't afraid to be a free thinker. Leach is more than a football coach; he is a student of life. Some of the most entertaining parts of this book were understanding some of the non-traditional methods Leach uses to grab his student-athletes' attention.
My only criticism of the book is that he dwells too long on his firing from Texas Tech. While I understand he wants to defend his reputation, that section went on too long for my tastes with numerous emails involving the Texas Tech administration.
My only criticism of the book is that he dwells too long on his firing from Texas Tech. While I understand he wants to defend his reputation, that section went on too long for my tastes with numerous emails involving the Texas Tech administration.
September 4, 2023
I like to read these books. As far as football books go this was away from the norm enough to be particularly interesting and fun. I especially liked the insight on why he was let go from Texas Tech when he was on top of the world. Ego, self interest, and university politics tops any type of common sense. Coach Leech died Dec 12th of last year. I hope his family keeps suing Texas Tech & ESPN on his behalf. And then I hope Texas Tech sues Larry Anders, former chancellor Kent Hance, president Guy Bailey, athletic director Gerald Myers, and Craig James for libel.
You can tell the worth of a man by the people who support him, and the people who try to take him down.
You can tell the worth of a man by the people who support him, and the people who try to take him down.
June 25, 2017
Mike Leach is probably my favorite coach who doesn't work for a team that I support. I love his attitude towards life and learning, as well as the fact that he coaches the same way I do when I play NCAA14. I strongly enjoyed about 80% of the book, and would love to read more about his time coaching at Washington State, which came after this was published.
However, the part of the book dedicated to his legal battles with Craig James and Texas Tech over his firing is absolutely brutal to read, and I say this as someone who was on his side throughout. I understand why he wrote it, but it really detracted from my enjoyment of the book when he continually went into subpoenaed emails and deposition testimony. The book was on the borderline of a 4 before I got to that section, but the legal issues section dropped it a low 3 in my book.
However, the part of the book dedicated to his legal battles with Craig James and Texas Tech over his firing is absolutely brutal to read, and I say this as someone who was on his side throughout. I understand why he wrote it, but it really detracted from my enjoyment of the book when he continually went into subpoenaed emails and deposition testimony. The book was on the borderline of a 4 before I got to that section, but the legal issues section dropped it a low 3 in my book.
July 3, 2017
Outside the box
Coach Leach is a unique person, never mind football coach. His outsiders view of the game has made him successful wherever he has been. Sportscasters, writers, and football junkies have called him an out of the box thinker. My opinion is that Coach Leach has never been around the box As less in it. The one thing that sets him apart is his commitment to his beliefs, his character, and his application of seemingly unconnected information to the game of football. As a football coach, I found the book highly entertaining and very informative.
Coach Leach is a unique person, never mind football coach. His outsiders view of the game has made him successful wherever he has been. Sportscasters, writers, and football junkies have called him an out of the box thinker. My opinion is that Coach Leach has never been around the box As less in it. The one thing that sets him apart is his commitment to his beliefs, his character, and his application of seemingly unconnected information to the game of football. As a football coach, I found the book highly entertaining and very informative.
December 17, 2022
Excellent. This book is everything you hoped it would be. The same Mike Leach you see answering questions from sideline reporters and in press conferences also comes across so genuinely fascinating in the pages of this book. This guy is going to be missed for years to come, not just in college football but as a true national treasure. There’s so many great leadership thoughts and lessons shared by Coach Leach here that this book will keep anyone engaged regardless of their affinity for sports. A true must-read.
April 15, 2023
I enjoyed this book and Mike Leach’s approach to life (be curious, ask questions) and his, some might say, quirkiness. I am sad he is gone, I wish I had met him, or better yet, been his neighbor. I would have enjoyed chatting with him very much. I like his quote from John Wooden, “Be more concerned with your character than your reputation.” Also he quotes an acronym used by Rex Ryan … “KILL” - Keep It Likable and Learnable…good advice for a math teacher as well as coaches. I am glad I also got the full story about how and why he was fired. Texas Tech made a big mistake.
September 5, 2023
This book is a bit of a unicorn. Unlike many celebrity books, it's pretty light on biography, name-dropping, and inside baseball. It's really about coaching because thats what Coach loves. Every story, digression, and tangent really comes back to that. Bonus features include a breakdown of a game week schedule, lessons from law school, and peeing on the dog. Make sure you listen to some interviews before reading so that you can read in Coach Leach's voice; the book really doesn't work any other way.
October 30, 2017
Great story about Leach
My daughter is a freshman at WSU, so I figured this would be a good book to read about their head coach, who I heard was an interesting guy. I am not a huge football guy, but found the book very interesting. It had a great way of making the art of coaching apply to life, and not in a self help book type of way!
I have a whole new respect for Leach.
Will most likely read again.
My daughter is a freshman at WSU, so I figured this would be a good book to read about their head coach, who I heard was an interesting guy. I am not a huge football guy, but found the book very interesting. It had a great way of making the art of coaching apply to life, and not in a self help book type of way!
I have a whole new respect for Leach.
Will most likely read again.
December 26, 2021
Mike Leach is one of the most interesting characters in the world. Not just in football: in the world. This dude marches to the beat of his own drum. His storytelling abilities are legendary. I most respect his ability to use logic, devoid of passion, when approaching any situation. Besides this ability, he has an uncanny knack that allows him to read people. He used it to motivate everyone from his high school baseball team to Michael Crabtree. I highly recommend reading his autobiography.
December 17, 2022
This is a fun read that really lets the reader into the mind of Mike Leach. Coach really tells all: about himself, his career and his firing at Tech. As a Red Raider, I am ashamed that, as a university, we threw away the greatest thing to ever happen to our athletic department. But, all that humdrum aside, I'm thankful for Leach and the gift he was to College Football. He'll be missed and this book will live on in his memory.
Swing your sword!
Swing your sword!
January 25, 2018
Mike Leach is a very odd guy, but an outstanding football coach. Coaching is his passion, and it comes through in this book. It was an enjoyable book about how he runs things, with many side stories along the way that end up being the meat of the book. You can learn a little about X's and O's, but his insights are in the style of Coach Wooden or Lou Holtz. I hope you like it too.
August 12, 2019
Good read. I’d recommend it to anyone, football fan or not
Mike Leach is a brilliant man and this book opens the portal into his mind and thought process. It also dives into the corruption that he was the victim of at a former school. Very eye opening how money can push an agenda, not just in politics.
Mike Leach is a brilliant man and this book opens the portal into his mind and thought process. It also dives into the corruption that he was the victim of at a former school. Very eye opening how money can push an agenda, not just in politics.
April 3, 2020
Mike Leach is an interesting football coach who has been blessed with his experiences as a coach. Particularly enjoyed this read of his early days making a career decision to evolve into football and the steps up the ladder at various programs. He was definitely railroaded at Texas Tech but now is out of that and prospering further in his career.
October 14, 2020
Great Guide to the philosophy and psychology of Coaching
Mike Leach is an incredibly creative's thinker. Even though my 50+ years of coaching have been in Junior Men's Gymnastics, pretty far afield from NCAA Football, I found this book not only interesting, but one of the VERY BEST guides to the intricacies and effective methods of teaching and coaching I have ever read
Mike Leach is an incredibly creative's thinker. Even though my 50+ years of coaching have been in Junior Men's Gymnastics, pretty far afield from NCAA Football, I found this book not only interesting, but one of the VERY BEST guides to the intricacies and effective methods of teaching and coaching I have ever read
January 10, 2023
Legend, Renaissance Man, and Pirate
Coach Leach may best be known for his Air Raid offenses, but college football fans have always loved him for his bold and unique approach to the sport and life.
I will never get the chance to meet Mike Leach, but his approach to life, challenges, learning and curiosity will stick with me forever.
Coach Leach may best be known for his Air Raid offenses, but college football fans have always loved him for his bold and unique approach to the sport and life.
I will never get the chance to meet Mike Leach, but his approach to life, challenges, learning and curiosity will stick with me forever.
January 18, 2020
If you like football, sports, or just a good positive read, get this book.
If this book was a thousand pages, I would have read every page. I read a lot, and never read books twice, but this one I will.
If this book was a thousand pages, I would have read every page. I read a lot, and never read books twice, but this one I will.
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