Report: Les Miles’ job could be in question at LSU

Usually when we talk about Les Miles’ job status, it’s in relation to rumors that other schools are trying to poach the coach, not because of a lack of security at LSU. This time around, a report indicates Miles could be coaching for his job.

The Baton Rouge Advocate’s Scott Rabalais wrote a column about Miles Tuesday in which he said he believes the coach is coaching for his job.

But 25 years of covering LSU, cultivating a variety of knowledgeable sources, have led this writer to believe that there is a serious threat to Miles’ tenure here.
[…]
But in the span of just two Saturdays, with two humbling losses to Alabama and Arkansas, the ice has thinned under Miles’ feet to the point where strong indications are that he will be coaching for his very job at Ole Miss on Saturday and the week after that against Texas A&M.

It’s hard to imagine things have come to this when LSU started off 7-0 and was in the thick of the College Football Playoff race prior to the loss to Bama. Losing to Arkansas last weekend didn’t help, either.

LSU is currently 13-11 in conference games since going 8-0 in SEC play in 2011. That mark of nearly .500 apparently is below the expectations in Baton Rouge.

Rabalais says another issue with the public’s perception of Miles is that he runs the ball too much during a time when passing offenses are the trend in college football. He reports that the coach does not have the support of the school’s biggest boosters and that a buyout could be possible for the coach. That’s despite the $17 million it would cost to buy out Miles and his staff. He also supposedly does not have a great relationship with the school’s athletic director.

AD Joe Alleva and Les haven’t been on good terms in quite some time. Not something to dismiss https://t.co/vKNGLg8r2o

— FootballScoop Staff (@FootballScoop) November 18, 2015

LSU is 7-2 and at Ole Miss this weekend. If they drops to 7-3, a win against Texas A&M would be a must the following weekend.

Miles has been at LSU since taking over for Nick Saban prior to the 2005 season. He has taken the Tigers to two BCS Championship Games, winning one, and he has produced seven double-digit win seasons during his tenure. If LSU really wants him out that badly, there will be no shortage of programs who would love to have the coach, starting with one of his SEC rivals.