Former Texas Tech Football Coach Reportedly Agrees to Coach Washington State

PULLMAN, Wash. – Former Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach has agreed to become the next coach at Washington State, CBS Sports reported Wednesday.

The verbal agreement comes one day after the firing of Paul Wulff, who won just nine games in four seasons at Washington State.

Reports first surfaced last week suggesting the school was likely to fire Wulff and go after Leach.

CBS said Leach was offered the job Tuesday afternoon and will receive a five-year contract that would make him the third-highest paid coach in the Pac-12.

In announcing Wulff's firing, athletic director Bill Moos declared he would look to hire a coach who favored a "flashy, high-octane offense that lights up the scoreboard."

Leach's decision to head to Pullman comes with several other major jobs available, including at Penn State, Ole Miss, Kansas, UCLA and Arizona State.

In 10 seasons at Texas Tech, the 50-year-old Leach was known for his explosive spread offenses, compiling a career mark of 84-43 and reaching a bowl game every year. Washington State has not reached a bowl since 2003.

But Leach's tenure at Texas Tech came to an acrimonious end in Dec. 2009 over his alleged mistreatment of a player who had suffered a concussion. Leach allegedly directed the player to stand alone in a dark shed.

Leach subsequently refused the university's demand that he publicly apologize to Adam James, the son of ESPN analyst Craig James.

Leach, who has been rumored as a candidate for several openings in the past two years, filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Texas Tech that is still in the courts. He was fired just before he was supposed to be paid an $800,000 bonus.