LEACH DEADLINE PASSES; NEW TWIST EMERGES

A 6 p.m. EST deadline for Mike Leach to accept Texas Tech’s latest -- and possibly final -- offer has came and went without an agreement being reached.So, what happens next?According to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Tech’s Board of Regents has called a special teleconference for Friday afternoon. The Avalanche-Journal says the teleconference will involve a discussion of the head-coaching position, while ESPN.com‘s Tim Griffin is reporting the virtual meeting will include, but is “not limited to the position of the football head coach."Both media outlets speculated that the teleconference could end in the firing of Leach, while ESPN.com reports it could result in a contract extension.An ominous statement from the school’s athletic director, however, seemed to paint a picture much closer to the former than the latter."Coach Leach has declined our $12.7 million contract,” Tech AD Gerald Myers said in the statement released shortly after the deadline passed. “We will enter the decision-making process and should have some announcements by next week. Our decisions will be based on the best interest of Texas Tech and all of its supporters."What has become patently clear is that, regardless of the outcome of Friday’s meeting, the relationship between the head coach and the AD is beginning to closely resemble Joe Theismann‘s leg after its Monday night meet-and-greet with Lawrence Taylor.This situation, involving a coach coming off an 11-2 season, is showing all the signs of not turning out well for anyone, especially the fans of this rising football program.Then again, given ESPN.com‘s expanded explanation that the Friday meeting is not simply limited to the head-coacing position, could it be Myers -- not Leach -- who will find his head on the chopping block?I don’t have a clue as to the answer to that question, but I am certain of one thing: I’m stocking up on popcorn. This could get good.