Gruden to replace (or follow) Miles at LSU (rumor)

Submitted by trueblue262 on

Its on the ESPN Insider (paywall) so I can't read the whole thing, just wanted everybodys thoughts.......

jmblue

May 12th, 2010 at 7:32 PM ^

I don't know if this is true, but I wouldn't be surprised if Miles is fired sometime in the next couple of years.  He is not popular down there.

twohooks

May 12th, 2010 at 7:41 PM ^

Surfaces during every premiere coaching vacancy and nothing ever sticks, well at least of substance. At least it is not as ridiculous as Bill Cowher to LSU. Miles hasnt been fired (yet) but RR will be coaching at UofM long after Les and LSU part ways.

samsoccer7

May 12th, 2010 at 7:48 PM ^

I have Insider and the link to Gruden in the blurb is pretty weak.  It wonders if some beat writer is picking up on popular sentiment that Gruden SHOULD come next, not that there's any real discussion or talk or anything.  God bless ESPN.

JimBobTressel-0

May 12th, 2010 at 7:48 PM ^

yeah I could write a book about my thoughts on Miles. Growing up in Louisiana and being somewhat of an LSU fan (partying is an athletic sport down there) I would hole myself up in the dorms after attending a Michigan game and flip the channel to watch  LSU and whoever they were playing.

Miles got insanely effing lucky in 2007. I'm not saying he's a bad coach. He just got reaaaaaallllllly lucky. His teams are the polar opposite of Nick Saban's and Jim Tressel's. Absolutely inconsistent. They'll CRUSH a team one week, then trail a team by two TD's that they should be beating the next.

2007's national championship happened due to a chaotic Top 25 (upsets every week), senior talent and experience (and I bet that senior class retained many of Saban's rules and ideas), and gambles that paid off. Like playing roulette, calling black and hitting it every time.

Calling five 4th down conversions in one game, beating the Auburn corner for a go-ahead TD with 2 secs left, onside kicks, god knows what else...man that year was chaotic, but fun to watch.

blueheron

May 12th, 2010 at 8:20 PM ^

He has a national championship (under crazy circumstances, as you described).  He has won lots of games at LSU and recruited well.  Who knows how much he rode the wave of momentum that Saban created?

Earlier, he had a solid record at Okie State and a couple of big wins over OU.

Still... I'm not sure I understand the devotion of his Michigan-based fan club.  Could anyone help me with that?  It seems to me that his followers see and hear only the part of the picture that is flattering to him.  (True, the same can be said, though maybe not to the same degree, of RichRod's fans.)

I wonder if he would have given a scholarship to the younger Boren?

exmtroj

May 12th, 2010 at 9:04 PM ^

I think a lot of that group was excited about the fact the he was a Michigan man/Bo disciple and won the National Title the year that Carr announced he was stepping down. The noise has died down considerably, especially after Miles' atrocious play-clock management last season.  ESPN still makes occasional "Les taking over for fired Rich Rod" comments every now and then, but I doubt Miles would be considered too viable a replacement by much of the fan base if Coach Rod went away anytime soon.

jmblue

May 12th, 2010 at 9:10 PM ^

Even in the year of his crowning achievement (2007), he lost twice and was extremely lucky to win a few other times.  He's basically your standard-issue good recruiter/shaky coach, with a little more of a wild side than most. 

Tater

May 12th, 2010 at 9:26 PM ^

...but I do beblieve that Gruden is much better suited for college than the NFL.  He has the same problem that Bobby Knight would have in the NBA: he is so abrasive that his act soon wears thin in a professional environment. 

Gruden would be great in a situation where the players recycle every four years.   They wouldn't be around long enough to tune him out as they did in Tampa Bay.

michiganfanforlife

May 13th, 2010 at 10:01 AM ^

are unbelievably complex. He would have to "dumb down" everything he's been working on for his entire career to coach in college. I just don't see him as a good fit for the college game because of what his strengths are as a coach. This guy will definitely get back into the NFL, though. He has a group of coaches who all get up at 5am during the week and break down film. They study trendy offensive/defensive schemes, and work the same kind of hours that full time coaches work. This guy lives, eats, breathes, sh*ts football - and even though he's a good MNF announcer, you will see him coaching a team probably as soon as next year.