SEC 2009 // Why I Like Les Miles
by cocknfire on Jul 18, 2009 1:37 AM EDT
in SEC Football
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PrintApologies, as a late-breaking news story in Florida and watching the coverage of the death of Watler Cronkite made this post later than I intended.
It's a little bit tough to tie down exactly when the idea that Les Miles is a bad coach got started. After all, Miles has had a tremendous run of success since taking over at LSU, and while some people give the credit to Nick Saban's recruiting, that misses a key point: Miles has in some ways done more "with Saban's players" than Saban ever did. For example: Nick Saban never won double-digit games in consecutive years; Miles did it three years running (2005-07).
Miles has never lost a bowl game at LSU, and in fact has never won a bowl game by fewer than two TDs. He has one losing streak in his four seasons against the Tigers, against Ole Miss (arguably the third-best team in the conference) and Arkansas (an always tricky rivalry game) at the end of last year's disappointing regular season.
But I'm pretty sure the notion that Miles was a subpar coach started with this:
Weak-kneed souls need not watch.
I try to be tolerant of other people's views, in sports as in politics, but I can barely keep myself from screaming when people say this was a foolish but lucky move by Miles. The important thing here is to watch and listen carefully. First, note that even the broadcasters are expecting Tommy Tuberville to call a timeout. (In retrospect, he probably should have.) Second, note that when LSU breaks the huddle, there are about 17 seconds left -- more than enough time to run a play if the players showed some urgency. Finally, watch the clock as Byrd catches the ball and hits the ground. There are three and probably four seconds left -- it is the fault of a late call by the referees and a slow trigger by the timekeeper that the clock runs down to one second. It might have been close, and it might have taken a review, but I believe to this day that LSU could have probably gotten a chance to kick the field goal even if the pass had fallen incomplete.
After watching six years of Lou Holtz -- cautious to a fault until calling for sometimes truly illogical trick or surprise plays -- I respect a coach with a knack for the well-timed gambit. It's not that Les Miles is prone to gambling too much; it is, I believe, that he is like his idol Bo Schembechler -- he knows that his guys are better than the other guys (whether that's true or not) and is willing to take risks because of that. (For anyone looking to get a sense of Schembechler or Woody Hayes' personalities, I strongly recommend the now-in-paperback War As They Knew It, by Michael Rosenberg.)
The Mayor, as usual, does a superb job of summing up Les Miles' risk-taking while talking about an on-sides kick in last year's Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.
It was wild! It was wacky! It was insane! However, it also worked, and not because of random dumb luck, either. It was a calculated gamble. Yes, it was bold, but it was also shrewd. It was the decision of a coach intelligent enough to make an accurate assessment of the odds and gutsy enough to run the risk of having the percentages play out differently. [EMPHASIS C&F's.]
In a world that encourages us to play it safe and take only those chances that we know will turn out well, Miles is instead prepared to go in for the kill, even if there's a chance that his plan will backfire.
The risks are not the only thing I like about Miles, though. I also love the way that his emotions are just underneath the surface, the way that he allowed himself a moment of unadultered joy after winning the BCS title (against Ohio State, no less) by yelling "WAHOO!" to start his press conference. And, of course, there is always his most remembered moment.
In the age of super-controlled coaches like Bill Belichick and his would-be protege Urban Meyer (who can't seem to maintain the presumptuous disdain for the public that Belichick does), it is refreshing to see a coach unafraid to be himself in front of the world. Yes, I'm just as quick as anyone else to joke about Miles' interesting relationship with syntax, but it is at least something different among a sea of coaches saying that "We're just going to try to execute our game plan" or "The team that plays solid defense and scores more points on offense will probably win the game."
On the field and off, Miles is an original. And I, for one, am thrilled that the SEC fans of this generation get to watch him at work.
NEXT WEEK: SEC Media Days
--
MONDAY: LSU Addresses Its Chief Concern
TUESDAY: Pelican State Planner
WEDNESDAY: Les Gets His Groove Back; Deep in the Bayou?
THURSDAY: Lousiana Losses (and Wins)
EARLIER TODAY: Through the Eye of the Tiger
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It really started when he got aggressive with Tracy Wolfson
against Tennessee in 20006. It really is amazing that before that moment, MIles was considered boring. I wrote an article about it here, quoting from an article after that game printed in the LSU student newspaper. The key quote:
But the third and most shocking was LSU coach Les Miles has an emotional side.
Miles gave officials an ear full Saturday in Knoxville, Tenn., and he even got a sideline warning.
CBS sports commentator Tracy Wolfson got a question cut off by an explosive Miles after halftime.
Thank goodness it wasn’t me, but I still had tears in my eyes from sympathy pain for Wolfson – it happens to the best of us.
But the tears were there, more importantly, because it’s the closest Miles has resembled former coach Nick Saban since the almighty skipped out of Baton Rouge after the 2004 season.
…
After the shock wore off, one question still remained. Why the sudden change of attitude?
After being accused of being a “soft coach,” Miles said at his press conference after the University of Kentucky game that there were a lot of things that made him tick.
Back in 2006, Miles was actually usually criticized for not appearing to care enough. A mere one year later, he was the crazy, scary, riverboat gambler who would get fired up at anything. It’s funny how fickle public perception is.
Oh, and I deconstructed that catch multiple times over at ATVS. Here is the key photo:
Richard Pittman
by Richard Pittman on Jul 18, 2009 9:46 AM EDT reply actions
Excellent write up Richard -- Rec'd from me
First off, I love Les Miles.
But I do happen to have one criticism of him: I think he is a below average game manager. This incident in the Auburn game was poorly handled by LSU, imo. Tuberville calling timeout would have been a favor to LSU since they were on the 23 yard line, making this a ~39 yard FG. Colt David probably makes that 6 or 7 times out of 10. LSU had a timeout though, and could have tried to get closer to the goal, making it an easier FG, also positioning it on the middle of the field (as opposed to the right hash mark, where they were).
There have been more than a few anomalies like this — calling timeouts when there have been no call to, not calling timeouts when he should, misspent challenges, and the like.
That said, Miles is a VERY good football coach. He excels in other important areas: recruiting and team preparation, both of which are more important than game management. Plus, he is entertaining. I would rather have no one else beside Miles on the LSU sidelines.
Gregatron is not responsible for any of the crap he just wrote.
Good youtubery there.
After “the catch”, my favorite part of that clip is the incredulity in Mike Patrick’s voice when he said “And Flynn is back to throw!”. I felt it myself, having one of those “Oh sh**!” moments, then screaming so loud as to wake the dead.
Next favorite part is the banana in the crowd atround the 0:46 mark.
More than a few friends from other schools tell me “You know Saban is a better coach”, and I would begrudgingly have to agree. However, one place Miles is better is gladhanding the fans. Saban, to his credit, is all business. The guy even turned down dinner with the President (of the USA) while in Miami because he was too busy with work. That’s why he’s so good. Miles, on the other hand, is very personable with the public, which, while not quite as important, is part of what makes the wheels of college football go round. Those deep pockets like to feel important and cozy.
I also loved Skip’s cackling at the end of Miles’ press conference.
I Like Les Miles
I like Les Miles because in his first year he had to deal with Hurricane Katrina; moving Ariz to an away game and postponing the Appalachain game, along with all the emotions and chaos of team members who lost their homes and then had relatives living with them in BR, and he did it without any complaints or excusing. Then he did it all over again when Gustav mowed down BR and the LSU stadium and campus in 2008; moving Appalachain again to an early AM game and postponing Troy. He did his job as a highly paid coach, but he also was an enormous personal support to his team members, the families and the fans. He still went 10-1 in 2005, but lost the SEC Championship to GA with JaMarcus Russell injured during the game, only to coach his backup QB Matt Flynn to a huge win in the Peach Bowl over Miami 40-3.
He has constantly been negated by some as having done so well due to having Saban’s recruits, but no one has given him hardly any credit for laying the groundwork for Mike Gundy and the now rise of Oklahoma State, where he was before LSU, and he just ignores all these slights, at least puublicly.
I also like Les Miles because he did not lie to the LSU players, Athletic Dept. and fans like Nick Saban did in 2003 when he knew he was going to Miami and was more focused on that than on preparing LSU for their Bowl game against Iowa, which they lost. Miles was on a yanked chain by Lloyd Carr and Michigan and for the sake of his team and his own integrity in facing the SEC championship game against Tenn., when Herbstreit shot his mouth off saying he KNEW Miles was leaving, Les Miles made a decision and has stood by it to this day, and he did it with style and class regardless of what personal loss and disappointment it may have been to himself! He decided TO BE LSU’s coach in every way and I believe he meant it.
As for the Auburn “Catch”, it worked! and it is probably a big part of why Matt Flynn was drafted by Green Bay and then made their backup QB and why San Diego drafted Demetrius Byrd even while he lay in a hospital injured from a car wreck. There were still 4 seconds on the clock, but even so it was a hugely gutsy call, AND IT WORKED! What if Miles never made calls like that or of going for it on 4th down 4 times? It would be soooo… boring to be living all those years when LSU was playing it safe and just getting by! He has brought fun, excitement, suspense and continuous WINNING back to LSU and I support him 100%!
I also appreciate that he stood up to Ryan Perrilloux for the integrity of the rest of the team and finally cut him loose even if it did mean having a very precarious QB situation the next year. He made the right choice. I also appreciate that he supported the Byrd family when Demetrius was injured and that he had the understanding to let Jared Mitchell and Trindon Holiday miss Spring practice this year in order to pursue their dreams in other sports and THEY BOTH SUCCEEDED to their credit and that of LSU, Miles and the other coaches. This is a wonderfully caring , compassionate man who is a huge Recruiter! and COACH and his showing up in Omaha is enormous savy in recruiting, supporting his fellow LSU coaches and his players on the team.
He has managed to get LSU a really great defensive coaching unit which far surpasses the first expectations of Orgeron coming to LSU, and when that possibility fell through you never heard any bad mouthing from Miles. He just moves on trying to do the next right thing needed. I also appreciate how he does not accept committments from recruits who then want to continue to take visits. Havinfg a long list of names in recruiting and an early high ranking is not what Miles is about, but being committed to LSU IS and that goes for himself, too.
I guess you could say I Like Les Miles… well I do! I started going to games in 1958, as a child, and I think these past 5 years with Coach Les Miles have been the best since that 1958 Championship team and I am delighted to see it all happen! GEAUX LES!
To ignore all that Les Miles has done at LSU since 2004 due to a slump year last year that had all the pitfalls of releasing Perrilloux, losing Pellini and several defensive starters, hurricane Gustav and just being part of the SEC is no reason to continue to denigrate this man and his coaching skills. He got the number 2 recruiting class last year and he is working on another stellar year now. i like Les Miles because he is a terrific husband, father, coach and person and I will take his quirkiness and caring any day over anyone else no matter WHO it is!
by carollct on Jul 18, 2009 6:50 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
The "Les Miles is a dufus" meme dates back to the Tennessee game in 2005 . . .
. . . when he was shown frantically calling for a time out after a change of possession while his assistants tried to restrain him.
I bought into the idea that Coach Miles was stupid but lucky for a couple of years after that before recognizing the error of my ways.
That moment, though, was the beginning of the notion that he didn’t know what he was doing. In retrospect, it was a slender reed upon which to rest such a damning condemnation, but that’s where it started.
Go 'Dawgs!
I came to like Miles
When he ran that fake FG on Spurrier (’07, I believe). I also enjoyed the “Our doofus just beat your genius” comments by the LSU faithful after that game.
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