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With a pair of swim instructors who attended the University of Florida, the daughter of LSU head coach Les Miles, Smacker, was especially happy when her father’s Tigers took down the Gators this past weekend.
Or so she thought.
“I got a text from her and she said that due to basically discriminating athletic views, the person that had to clean the bus up after we arrived home from the swim meet will be Smacker Miles and there will be an extra hundred fly per point that LSU happens to top Florida by for Smacker Miles.”
Thanks to a dominant effort in Tiger Stadium Saturday, make it 30 extra laps for Les’ favorite swimmer, and his squad is ready to move on to the next challenge with Tennessee on the schedule this week for another 2:30 p.m. start.
Volunteer quarterback Tyler Bray has been ruled out for Saturday’s contest with a thumb injury that he suffered last week against Georgia. That means Matt Simms will resume his role as Tennessee’s starter. The son of the Pro Football Hall of Famer started eight games last season, winning just two, but he played better in the LSU game that he did in most, running for a score and not turning the ball over.
“Simms played very well against us in our stadium, so we understand that they are still very, very capable no matter who they play at quarterback,” Miles said.
Many questions at Miles’ weekly luncheon centered around the frantic finish to last season’s game against Tennessee that saw the Tigers win 16-14 on an untimed down after Tennessee had presumably won the game.
“Victory is victory any way you cut it. I can tell you that the enjoyment that I have after that game was significant with the feel of victory,” Miles said. “We did the things that we needed to do in unusual circumstances to get victory. Dag-gone if I didn’t enjoy it. I’m going to stay that way.”
However, it is undeniable that despite Tennessee’s debacle of epic proportions to give LSU another chance, the Tigers had several clock management snafus at the tail end of the contest, and Miles said the team addressed those problems the following week in practice and they “frankly will not happen again.”
“Having made the quick adjustment, we felt that was good,” Miles said. “We work on it all the time anyway. In what would be a normal week, we work on our last two minute part of the game on Monday and on Thursday.”
Apart from the rematch on Rocky Top, another storyline for Saturday’s contest is defensive coordinator John Chavis’ return to Knoxville, where he coached the Volunteers from 1989-2008.
“John Chavis is a tremendously loyal person and a very loyal supporter and advocate of Tennessee,” said the seventh-year coach. “Certainly he’s maintained relationships back there and roots for them when they’re not playing LSU. I think he’ll want to represent his past by being an excellent defensive coordinator against Tennessee this coming Saturday.”
Chavis was known for building Tennessee into ‘Linebacker-U’ and in recent weeks his coaching ability has become apparent with the emergence of several LSU linebackers. Kevin Minter has made 12 tackles in the past two games, and Ryan Baker is closely behind with 11.
“Those guys are playing more significant snaps and their output and productivity is extremely good,” Miles said. “They’re just becoming more comfortable in the play in the SEC so I think they’ll continue to see more snaps and continue to see more impact.”
Along with Chavis, Miles was also very complementary of fellow assistant coaches Steve Kragthorpe and Billy Gonzales for helping the passing game gain quite a bit of efficiency from last season. LSU quartrbacks have already matched their 2010 total of 10 passing touchdowns.
“Both [Kraghorpe and Gonzales] have done a very strong job in guiding the passing game and teaching it to the receiving corps and the quarterbacks. I think we’re more efficient there,” said the headman.
The offense in general has taken care of the ball much more in 2011. After six games last year the Tigers had turned the ball over 15 times, and LSU has only three give aways in six games this year.
“I think Steve has taken the exact plays that we run and really added some of his own pieces but really interpreted it so well that the quarterback is making decisions very quickly, and again Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee are veteran guys. So it’s easier for them to make decisions and it’s easier to get the ball out of their hands,” Miles said.
On the injury front, Miles doesn’t expect center P.J. Lonergan to practice today with a left ankle sprain.
“I think tomorrow and Wednesday are certainly are the days [he may return]. The good news is it doesn’t appear to be a very bad ankle sprain,” Miles said.
During his tenure at LSU, Miles has picked up his two biggest wins over ranked SEC foes this season with a 13-point decision over Mississippi State and a 30-pointer over Florida. In fact, LSU hasn’t won a game by fewer than 13 points this season, and the Tigers will have their chance for another big win Saturday against reeling Tennessee. Luckily for Smacker Miles, the Gators likely won’t be on the schedule again this season.
“She texted me, ‘Not by so much next time.’ ”
The family man responded, ‘Get in shape.’
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