Despite having no ties to Mike Leach, the Miami Redhawks are still paying homage to the late coach in an awesome way -- putting huge decals featuring crossbones on the backs of their helmets on Friday.
The school unveiled the tribute at the Bahamas Bowl against the UAB Blazers ... showing off a big, black sticker that has Leach's name on it with a pirate-themed MAC logo.
Leach, of course, was nicknamed "The Pirate" due to his obsession with sea robbers ... and on the Miami decal, they added another tribute to that by putting the hashtag "#FlyTheFlag" at the bottom.
The ode is particularly meaningful considering Leach never coached at Miami -- nor in the MAC ... which shows just how far his coaching genius reached during his life.
As we previously reported, the former Mississippi State football head coach died on Monday ... due to complications from a heart condition.
He was just 61 years old.