Miles meets media as team returns from Christmas

Written by Richard Fischer

Tuesday, 27 December 2011 11:55

After his team’s first practice following their four-day Christmas break, LSU head coach Les Miles addressed the media Monday night and said the practice was lively, but his team looked a little rusty. “I checked some weights. There were some leftover turkey and some stuffing that was kind of reminiscent of the meals that were eaten over the break,” said the seventh-year coach. “But there was a nice, healthy sweat acquired today (Monday), and that will happen tomorrow (Tuesday) as well.” Miles ran his team after practice Monday in an effort to get them back into game shape, and the coach is in no way worried that any of his players enjoyed the holidays with a little too much food. The squad is, “still going very significantly LSU versus LSU,” meaning the Tigers haven’t implemented most of the Alabama game plan yet, but they will surely address most (if not all) of that before the team heads to New Orleans next Wednesday. The coach didn’t go into great depth at the press conference when responding to most of the questions (as he often doesn’t), but he spoke a bit about motivating his team for the big game Jan. 9. “It’s really a wonderful opportunity knowing that you’re the last game, and you get to watch all the other teams in the country playing their bowl season before you get to play,” said Miles. The coach agreed that he shouldn’t have a difficult time getting his team up for a contest of this magnitude against a bitter rival. “I think they go to the field pretty easily with this one,” said the headman. “I think they go to the field for a game that’s going to be physical and significant and enjoy playing in it.” The coach mentioned that his team’s motivation comes easy thanks to them seeing previews of the contest that appear daily in newspapers and on television. But when asked if Alabama being favored and picked to win also motivates his team, Miles responded, “I don’t think that this team listens to that stuff much.” So apparently the Tigers are pretty selective about which bowl prep they pay attention to and which they just turn aside. Either way, Miles appreciates the intensity in which his team practices - something you hear players boast about quite often. “They work hard. You see it in practice. You see it in how they’re going to play the game, and that’s the important part piece,” Miles continued. “You get to correct technique. You get to correct who they are. You’re given an opportunity to coach well when you have a team that practices well.”