Comparison of coaching style Miles vs Saban (not a bash)

I am going to try and explain my frustration (as well as many others on this board) with this head coach without being negative but by comparing his coaching style and philosophy with that of Nick Saban. This is not a “bash” Miles post nor is it a “Saban is better than Miles” post, strictly a comparison of their coaching style. The SNAFU that took place on Saturday was kind of the boiling over point for a lot of us and got me to thinking about why Miles gets so little respect as coach compared to Saban.

Saban demanded and expected perfection from himself, his coaches and his players. We all remember him yelling at players and coaches for mistakes late in the games even though the outcome was already determined. Saban will never be considered a “players coach” but his players respect his ability to coach and teach. Saban stressed the importance of playing hard on every down for 60 minutes. For Saban the process was almost as important as the end result…..meaning…..how did we play, are we improving, are we doing the little things right which leads to doing big things. Now Saban did not win all his games and there were some ugly wins and losses, but for the most part his teams were well prepared and well coached.

Miles, on the other hand, is more of an emotional father figure rather than a technician. Miles is definitely a “players coach” and his players play hard for him because they respect him as an individual. Miles is also an end result guy…..the only thing that matters are W & L’s…….JUST WIN BABY! Miles is loyal……some call that a strength others call it a liability. Miles coached teams don’t always pay attention to the little things and they sometimes seem ill prepared, but they always have talent and play hard. Miles gets the most out of his teams physically but not always mentally. Miles record at LSU speaks for itself. He has some ugly wins and losses, but for the most part his teams play hard and win.

One other quick comparison, Saban always preached the next game is the most important. The reason being he did not want his players looking past an opponent nor did he want them to put more emphasis on any one game. While Miles has never come out and said any one game was more important than another. I get the impression he and the players put a lot more emphasis and emotion into certain games. When that happens and the team loses, it makes it extremely difficult to move forward.

With that being said, both coaches win and have proven track records but they get there in different ways…….which leads to my frustration as a fan. The bottom line is W & L’s and we are PERFECT in that regard, but I’m more of process guy…..are we doing the little things correct…..not always……are we improving (on offense)…..slowly….but the little things are killing us……which leads to my frustration ………but WE ARE WINNING