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Miles had a reputation for some pretty brutal practices. That being said, rarely did you see a Miles team getting pushed around . You may have botched about the style, but more often than not that would also lead to LSU being a tough out if you got to the 4th quarter and the game was within a touchdown. Miles' teams more often than not could wear down opponents and lead to victories . You rarely saw them outmanned.

We were less physical late in the season, and it showed. We could drive 85 yards all on the ground pushing UF around at times early in the season, but come Arky not so much.

Miles ran plays, up to 80, in one practice session. All damn year. Firstly, we'd only use 20-25 of those plays in a game making it unnecessary. Secondly, running plays as a form of conditioning isn't the best either; it isn't very efficient. Thirdly, your conditioning, in general needs to taper off as the year goes along. There's "getting in shape" and there's "maintaining conditioning". Rest is part of maintenance for sure. Miles was so repetative and semi-brutal because as the season wound down execution was decreasing. He failed to realize that was due to two things:
1. fricking exhaustion with no recovery
2. By doing the same thing over and over (and I mean practices AND games), the whole predictability thing, the opponents scheming was decreasing our execution, not the player forgetting how to do a combo block.

So his answer to #2 was to make #1 even worse. It was a downward spiral that showed in our record over the course of a season and in their numbers late vs. early.

Orgeron appears to be on the other extreme, almost. He seemed to divide it between camps/preseason and season. Which, firstly, if you are going to do that the preseason better be brutal; it was not. Secondly, that dividing line is arbitrary. It needs to based off performance.

I don't think either recognized the effect of practices on attitude. And I don't mean morale. No player really really wants to practice. And that's where attitude comes in. The key to it is, from either Les' extreme or Orgeron's by the way, making them feel like they are accomplishing something every practice. That is the ONLY thing that is both an infectious attitude and to a young player makes it worthwhile.

You hear it all the time... "got better today". That's the goal of everybody. If you do that practices are more energetic, productive, and significant. Going through the motions without being challenged (Orgeron) isn't going to get you better (or you won't feel like it); keep in mind it is a team mindset. The individual might have made progress, but if everybody around him is sluggish and didn't it becomes the overriding attitude for all.