Well that didn’t take long. Just four weeks into the season and we already have our first coaching casualty. The LSU administration finished what it started at the end of last season and pulled the plug on the Les Miles era. I said last year that LSU might have a very tough time replacing Miles with someone who would get better long-term results than he did, and I stand by that now. Still, I see why the decision was made. Just one-third of the way through the season, LSU has already fallen short of expectations, as a Playoff appearance is out of the question.
Ed Orgeron takes over as interim head coach, much as he did at USC in 2013 when Lane Kiffin was fired five games into the season. If history is any indication, LSU may go on to have a pretty decent season….Orgeron went 7-2 in his interim stint with the Trojans, including an upset win over a Stanford team ranked #4 at the time. Orgeron is also known as an excellent recruiter,but that may not be enough to help LSU hang on to its current 2017 commitments (which currently has them ranked #4 nationally) since Orgeron doesn’t have long-term stability to sell at this point. Though it appears Orgeron has been bestowed with some significant decision-making authority, as reports indicate it was his decision to have OC Cam Cameron relieved of his duties along with Miles rather than the LSU administration’s.
Go ahead and let the speculation begin as to both possible replacements at LSU and where Miles could end up (he pretty much said on the Dan Patrick Show today he intends to coach again). I said before Miles seems like a solid candidate to be in the Big Ten. His style of football fits the conference, and he has strong midwestern roots (Ohio native, Michigan grad). Like I stated, keep an eye on the situation at Penn State. As for LSU, that will obviously be a job that attracts a lot of attention. Does Tom Herman decide it’s a good time to leave Houston, especially if their hoped-for Big 12 invite doesn’t arrive by the end of the season? Jimbo Fisher is a name that was mentioned when Miles was on the brink of being fired last year, but I think Fisher would be crazy to use it as anything more than leverage to get a raise from FSU….if you’re recruiting SEC players, but playing an ACC schedule, why would you leave? Let the Silly Season begin!
Other Quick Hits: We have yet to see a solid 60 minutes of football from Tennessee. But when you dominate like they did in the 2nd Half against Florida it usually doesn’t matter. But if you’re playing the likes of Alabama, it does. And, by the way, the Vols do host the Tide, in three weeks. But they best not look ahead, because just a week before they travel to play #9 Texas A&M, who looked very impressive in dismantling #17 Arkansas. It might be time to start taking Wisconsin much more seriously after they went into East Lansing and took down Michigan State 30-6. The Badgers’ defense looks just plain nasty. Speaking of teams that might need to be taken more seriously, is Colorado really 3-1 right now? Then there are the teams who were apparently taken too seriously….USC, Notre Dame, Oregon….WTF is with you guys? My most anticipated matchup for this week, Friday night’s Stanford-Washington game, will still feature two Top 10 teams. Barely. Both had to pull out tough road wins to stay unbeaten, Stanford in the final minute at UCLA, Washington in overtime at Arizona.
Week 4 Rankings
- Alabama 4-0
- Ohio State 3-0
- Clemson 4-0
- Louisville 4-0
- Houston 4-0
- Michigan 4-0
- Texas A&M 4-0
- Stanford 3-0
- Washington 4-0
- Tennessee 4-0
Week 5 Preview
A bit of a light week in terms of volume of great matchups, but the ones we have look very good. There’s the aforementioned Top Ten Tilt in Seattle Friday at 9pm ET (ESPN). Then ABC has a great double-header on Saturday, starting with Wisconsin returning to Michigan, this time to face the Harbaughines at 3:30 ET. Then at 8pm Louisville gets its first huge road test when they head to Clemson. In the only other matchup featuring to ranked teams, Tennessee continues its 4-week meat grinder with a road trip to Athens to play Georgia (3:30 ET, CBS).
College Football Analyst
Mike is a Baltimore native living in Portland, OR since 2007. He currently runs his own business specializing in video production and online marketing. Prior to that he was a legal technology consultant, worked for 9 years at Johns Hopkins University and served 6 years in the Air Force. He also enjoys travel, food, beer, and is a volunteer at the Oregon Humane Society.