Leach quirky enough for Albuquerque

It won't be long before Mike Leach returns to college football. He's the best unemployed coach on the market, and no program is in worse shape than New Mexico.

Leach is obviously quirky, but that makes him a good fit for Albuquerque.

Mike Locksley, fired Sunday after a series of embarrassments on and off the field, turned the Lobos into a laughingstock. Leach almost certainly would work a quick fix.

"So, would New Mexico consider Leach? The answer seems to be a resounding yes," wrote Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.com. "Don't sleep on this situation."

Leach's pass-happy offenses at Texas Tech were entertaining and highly successful. He went 84-43 with the Red Raiders from 2000 to 2009, a run that ended with his firing under controversial circumstances.

Last offseason, Leach was a candidate for openings at Maryland, Miami and Minnesota. It is rumored he soon will be pursued to replace Howard Schnellenberger at Florida Atlantic or Rick Neuheisel at UCLA.

While not lobbying for the job, Leach said this week he does like New Mexico for "the skiing, Taos and wandering around Santa Fe."

Like most of us, Leach has a fascination with pirates. He studied Blackbeard and Calico Jack, and used to tell his players stories about the history of pirates, whom he admired for their teamwork.

If the Lobos are lucky, Leach will be coaching on their sideline next season -- while wearing an eye patch and a bandana and with a parrot on his shoulder.

■ AS BAD AS IT GETS -- Locksley went 2-26 and was canned four games into his third season. His victories came at the expense of Colorado State in 2009 and Wyoming last year. The Lobos won those games by a total of five points, so Locksley narrowly avoided going 0-28.

The positive spin is his teams were 11-17 against the spread, and he went out in style with a spread win.

His final game Saturday was a 48-45 overtime loss to Sam Houston State, which failed to cover as a 5½-point road favorite. The fact that Sam Houston State was favored at New Mexico says a lot about Locksley's losing legacy.

■ DISS AND MAKE UP -- In a comical television interview moment eight years ago, an intoxicated Joe Namath leaned close to ESPN sideline reporter Suzy Kolber and sloppily said, "I want to kiss you."

Namath, the former New York Jets quarterback, criticized Jets coach Rex Ryan this week, so the New York Post framed the story with a classic back-page headline: "I Wanna Diss You."

■ FAVRE BACK FOR MORE -- Brett Favre has accomplished plenty. He made sexting popular and stars in Wrangler commercials playing backyard football with his buddies.

Now, he's returning to football, but not to quarterback the Indianapolis Colts or any other NFL team. Favre is joining the Comcast Sports announcing team to call this weekend's Rice-Southern Mississippi game.

Favre, who has obvious commitment issues, said, "I'm not committing to a new career in broadcasting."

COMPILED BY MATT YOUMANS
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL