After the unlikely “Lucky 13” denouement in the Tennessee game, Les Miles, the Coach, is bigger than his ever-enigmatic persona; a certain cause célèbre among American College Football coaches; and an otherwise anomaly among a traditionally subdued group of sporting professionals. In short, Les Miles is ubiquitously loved, hated, adored, deplored, appreciated, misinterpreted and wholeheartedly vilified. His tendencies and mannerisms are as misconstrued as they are quirky; yet his results, steadfastly undeniable. Five coaches in seriatim have fallen this season to the man many consider a blithering idiot, making them none other than absolute hapless fools in the deliberate process. Matching football wits with Les Miles most often proves as perplexing as it is pointless, as the Mad Hatter has incredibly won four of every five games as LSU’s head coach, and his teams—much like their iconic head man—are as fiercely loyal as they are damn strong.

In this exclusive piece we’ll take a hard look at what is happening to the LSU Football fan base in the face of lofty expectations in the nation’s toughest football conference. Furthermore, we’ll revisit LSU’s offensive woes as well as take our regular armchair quarterback league tour and comment on who’s hot and who’s not in the ultra-competitive, fanatical, SEC.

How it All Got Started

The fix came quick and easy in the beginning. In hindsight, it didn’t take much to get started. It apparently never does. At first, an Independence Bowl was all it took—and we went completely numb. Then came the Peach bowls; New Years Day bowls and an SEC Championship or two; coupled with a pair of highly-coveted, multiple national championships. We celebrated, partied hard, and rightfully bragged—like never before. We were hooked. Not only winning--but dominating our opponents in football--at all costs, became the new way of life—almost an obsession. And thereafter, nothing compared to the fleeting, bourbon-soaked glory binge of another dominating victory in Death Valley on a Saturday Night. It was all we ever needed—or so we thought, as it was ever fleeting. It seemed everything else was just killing time till Saturday, when everything deficient, lazy and backwards in our world was somehow strangely validated by the medication of winning numbers on a scoreboard. And then, nothing worked anymore. The little bit became a lot--and a lot no longer did it for us. Vanquished by our addiction, we were no longer what we once were—veritable shells of our former selves.

Stemming the Tide of Negative Public Opinion

LSU could win a close, hard-fought game against the Gators in Gainesville this weekend, and the headline in the Baton Rouge Advocate on Sunday could conceivably read: “LSU wins Close Game, Prompts Miles Firing by Alleva.” Sure, firing a 6-0 coach for underachieving is easy in Baton Rouge, where excellence comes in all forms academic, artistic and proprietary, and mediocrity is universally shunned. Priorities are, after all, important. Was it not Mark Emmert, now NCAA President, and then-LSU Chancellor, who punctuated Nick Saban’s hiring at LSU with what is in retrospect seems a redefined campus mission statement, “Success in LSU Football is essential to the success of Louisiana State University.”

When will the insanity end? It likely will not. Fans will continue to spew bile and hate toward the funny hat-wearing Yankee (so is Nick Saban by the way) until he goes undefeated or again brings the crystal ball home. The problem is no one believes this can happen until Gary Crowton or Les Miles—or both—are gone. I have been saying for over a year that Crowton was the problem, to no apparent avail.

All of this has gotten out of hand, really, and it is undeniably Les Miles’ fault. Miles should have fired Crowton at the end of last year and hired Gonzales or someone else equally capable to take his place. If that would have happened LSU would not be in the shape it currently is on offense. Keep in mind if LSU had a capable offense (around the middle of the twelve-member, SEC pack) it would be a top-five ranked team because it would be blowing opponents out. On second thought, when the LSU offense isn’t on the field, the Tigers look like a top five football team.

So whether or not Miles fires Crowton now, later this season or after—he is likely going to do it, because he threw Gary under the bus during his press conference like he owed him money.

Speaking of money, I hear Miles is a big fan of Texas Hold ‘Em Poker, as he has been occasionally spotted in Biloxi poker rooms. This is not surprising. Poker requires a deft combination of skill and luck, both of which Miles firmly possesses. The funny thought I have regarding this is that Miles really is both lucky and good to the point where poker pros would invoke his name at the river, hoping that by osmosis, or some other unforeseen notion of the Poker and Football Gods they would suck out for having loudly yelled, “Les Miles!” before the final card fell.

Getting Offensive

Jarrett Lee produced almost 185 yards through the air in a limited role on Saturday, helping the Tigers make what was a most improbable comeback a reality before 90,000-plus disbelieving fans. With Lee LSU more closely resembles a middle-of-the-pack SEC team, as they already possess the league’s most proficient rushing attack with Stevan Ridley. If Lee can distribute the ball to his playmakers with the aid of play action stemming from a solid rushing effort by Ridley, LSU’s offense could finally come to life. For it to finally come together for Lee, would be quite a fitting comeback story, and a much-needed ray of hope for Tiger fans pining for league and national titles.

Lee was highly rated coming out of high school like most SEC quarterbacks. His dad was his high school coach. I recall seeing film of him working out with his dad in his backyard in Texas through a series of efficiency drills his dad had established. As a product of Texas High School Football (Friday Night Lights), Lee is surely a student of the game. Unfortunately, he was thrust into the limelight of starting as a freshman in the SEC, which can be as unforgiving as it is extremely difficult. Two years removed, the pick-six jinx is ready to be put to bed for good, as Lee has a solid arm and an even better release, evidenced by his game-winning heroics a week ago.

Around the League

Alabama – Nick Saban punked a seemingly disinterested Urban Meyer in Tuscaloosa this past Saturday. Saban’s sentinels somehow saw the jump-pass coming in time to tip off his waiting stop troops, much to Meyer’s discontent. One would think Meyer would reinvent his playbook every now and then—but what the heck—he already has two crystal balls. While Meyer’s concentration appears shaken, Alabama looks stronger than new rope heading into their matchup with the Gamecocks. Bama will continue to try and bludgeon its opponents into submission.

Auburn – Cam Newton is looking more and more comfortable with playing in the nation’s toughest conference, as his Auburn Tigers are improving as much as he has from week-to-week, making them one of the league, and the nation’s, most compelling teams. Ontario McCaleb has looked great after gaining considerable weight and strength during the offseason, and it seems that Auburn’s defense is much improved. The Iron Bowl is shaping up to be a dandy again this year since Alabama appears to be peaking early, with Auburn peaking later in the season.

LSU – Read up about Les being much more than Gary Crowton.

Arkansas – The Hogs have had two weeks off to think about Ryan Mallet giving away the game to Bama. The Razorbacks are a wildly proficient offensive team with little running game and a not-so-great