Mississippi State to Play in ReliaQuest Bowl After Mike Leach’s Death

The Bulldogs will honor their coach by playing in their next game.

While Mississippi State players mourn the death of Mike Leach, they would like to honor their head coach by playing in one more game this year. Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger reports Mississippi State still plans on playing in the ReliaQuest Bowl game vs. Illinois on January 2.

“Mike would be pissed if we didn't play,” a source told Dellenger. “The bowl game is at a stadium with an actual pirate ship in it.”

That stadium will be Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, the home of the Buccaneers. It is fitting that the Bulldogs will honor Leach, who was nicknamed The Pirate, at a stadium that features a pirate ship

Athletic director Bracky Brett said there is no doubt that the Bulldogs’ players will want to play in the game.

“The players are 100 percent behind playing this bowl game and doing what coach Leach would expect them to do,” Brett told ESPN’s Chris Low.

Mississippi State finished the season with an 8–4 record, the best record for the team under Leach’s watch. It earned the Bulldogs a spot in the ReliaQuest Bowl, which used to be known as the Outback Bowl, and has been one of the more prominent bowl games in recent years.

Usually played on New Year’s Day, the game will take place on Jan. 2 as New Year’s Day lands on a Sunday. ESPN 2 will have the coverage at noon ET.