Mike Leach is known for his very detailed answers about everyday subjects, and cargo shorts is the latest topic where the Mississippi State coach offered an explanation.

Cargo shorts have been a staple of his coaching wardrobe since shortly after Leach got into coaching. Before cargo shorts, he first tried surf shorts because pockets are most important to him.

“I’ve always loved the canvass first, so the very first time I got into coaching, everybody was wearing those Bike double-knit shorts that had a waist-band basically this thick, and they’re just terrible,” he said. “They’re the worst shorts ever, and they’ve gone on for decades.”

Leach prefers a somewhat shorter short as some cargo shorts can be almost like half-pants, he said, and he likes 100 percent cotton in the pockets.

In the pockets, he puts his wallet, headphones, any change, a pen and practice script and sometimes sunglasses. There’s also room for “bigger, clunkier sheets of paper, even a small notebook.:

“But also put small lunch items in there, like apples, you know cargo shorts you can stick a sandwich in there, I’ve done that, too.”

Being Leach, this was no surprise that he would go into such minute detail about every facet of his coaching wardrobe, and it’s something he continues to do to set himself apart from every other head coach.