LSU drama: Les Miles takes aim at Ed Orgeron
Ed Orgeron wants a little patience from the LSU faithful, but Les Miles doesn’t want to hear it. Miles thinks Orgeron just doesn’t believe in his team.
When Les Miles was in charge of the LSU football program, it seemed as if he was always on the verge of getting fired. Perhaps the former Tigers coach wants his successor to know exactly how that feels. Miles recently took aim at Ed Orgeron’s appeal for patience from the school’s passionate fan base.
Orgeron made the request during the team’s spring game. New offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger is still in the process of trying to identify his team’s starting quarterback for the upcoming season. That certainly led to an ugly showing from the offense in their first open practice of the season.
Count Miles among those who were entirely unmoved by Orgeron’s plea. He told reporters in the area that he never asked for a break during his tenure in charge. Even more damning was the title-winning coach’s assertion that “certain people need to have a safety net.” The obvious intimation was that Orgeron wasn’t confident enough in his own’s team ability to win games this season to resist the urge to ask for forgiveness in advance.
The truth is Orgeron is going to be under pressure to win big this season no matter what Miles has to say on the matter. The team’s over/under is set on seven wins at the moment. That simply isn’t good enough on the Bayou. If Orgeron can’t build on last year’s 9-4 record, it’s very possible LSU will be in the market for a new coach.
As for Miles, his decision to publicly take shots at Orgeron isn’t going to help him land a new job. Athletic directors are hypersensitive about their ability to trust their head coaches to stay out of making headlines for the wrong reasons. It’s obvious Miles doesn’t think much about what he says to the media. That won’t fly in a lot of markets around the country.
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From a fan’s perspective, this can only lead to more entertainment as the season goes on. The more Miles feels empowered to talk about Orgeron’s tenure at LSU the more entertaining quotes we’re all going to enjoy. It all makes for great college football theater.