Baseball or Football for Kyler Murray? Bronco Draft Choice Rick Leach Picked Baseball

Today Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray will decide whether to enter the NFL draft or stick to his baseball contract with the Oakland A's.  Murray is a star in both sports so the decision is not an easy one.

Murray's dilemma brought back memories of the Broncos fifth round draft choice in 1979 - quarterback Rick Leach.  Leach was a baseball and football star at the University of Michigan.  He finished third in the Heisman trophy balloting at the end of his senior season.  Different than Murray, Leach was first drafted by the Broncos, and then by the Detroit Tigers one month later (13th pick of the first round).

The appeal of playing for his home town Tigers was too much for Leach as he relayed in this 2017 interview with Mlive: "At that time, where I could stay in my home state and play if I made the Major Leagues, and where family and friends could see me was appealing," Leach said. "When I looked at the longevity factor, the injury factor and everything, I never regretted one thing about that decision."  Turns out Leach did reach the majors but was mostly a backup in his nine seasons for various teams (he was released by the Tigers after three seasons)

But what if Leach had chosen football instead?  Bronco coach Red Miller was said to have been impressed with Leach in rookie minicamp before the two sport star picked baseball.  Perhaps Leach would have been a worthy successor to the aging Craig Morton as the Broncos starter, Miller wouldn't have made the failed Matt Robinson trade in 1980 in search for a starting quarterback, and Red would have kept his job instead of being replaced by Dan Reeves as Broncos head coach in 1981.

It all worked out in the end for the Broncos, for if Leach had been a successful multiyear starter for the team they may not have traded for John Elway after the 1983 draft.  Still it would have been interesting to see how Leach would have fared with the Broncos.  "I thought I had a skill level that I would have liked to try and see what would have happened," Leach said in his Mlive interview. "But the offense I ran at Michigan and what I would have needed to play in the NFL was significantly different. But I would have loved the opportunity just to kind of prove to myself to see if I could have done it."

Will They Name an Elementary School After Fangio? New Bronco Coach Reaction

In December 1966 I was 10 years old, and an avid fan of the Denver Broncos! The Broncos had just announced Lou Saban as their new head coach.  My friend Greg called a sports talk radio show to talk about the news.  "What school do you go to?" asked the host. "Sabin Elementary" said Greg.  "That's amazing! They've already named an elementary school after him!" replied the host.

Of course Sabin Elementary was not named after Lou Saban, but the host's comment reflected the excitement the city had for the new Broncos head coach at the time.  For two 10 year old kids, and for other die hard Bronco fans, Saban gave us hope that the coaching change would transform the perennial loser Broncos to a winning franchise.  Five years later, "Half A Loaf Lou" was run out of town after a 20 win, 43 loss, 3 tie record.

Over the years I've seen other Bronco head coaches arrive with great anticipation, only to exit in disappointment after a few seasons.  John Ralston was supposed to bring his innovative Stanford offense with him from the college ranks in 1972.  Ralston left in 1976 after a player revolt. Red Miller was a career assistant coach (much like Vic Fangio today).  Red got his first head coaching job with the Broncos in 1977, had an amazing Super Bowl run that year, but a few years later was fired after some unwise personnel decisions (like trading for qb Matt Robinson from the NY Jets).  And more recently Vance Joseph was heralded as a "leader of men" when he was hired as head coach in 2017, only to be let go two years later after 11 wins in 32 games.

Today, like back in 1966, this town is sure to get its hopes up when the Broncos introduce new head coach Vic Fangio to the Bronco faithful.  I like the hire on paper.  Fangio's strong defensive background can only make the Broncos defense even better.  Gary Kubiak's return to the staff is sure to improve the Broncos coaching on the offensive side of the ball.

Somehow, though, I have a feeling Fangio won't meet the fans high expectations this year.  The Broncos have yet to find a long term answer at starting quarterback, and years of draft mistakes have hurt the team's depth.  It'll take more than one season to get a true measure of Fangio and his coaching staff.  I hope the impatient Denver fans give him that.

Vic Fangio photo courtesy of the Denver Post

(update: Gary Kubiak won't be running the Broncos offense, which may turn out well, as Fangio in consultation with John Elway can pick his own man as Bronco offensive coordinator)