LSU's Win Over Missouri Proves Les Miles Was The Problem

In the first game since LSU decided to part ways with head coach Les Miles, the Tigers faced a Missouri team that many predicted would give them some issues. No one really knew what to expect from this team, so most just assumed they would struggle against an inferior opponent.

That could not have been further from the case, as the LSU Tigers dominated Missouri from start to finish, winning the game by a final score of 42-7. Ed Orgeron got his first win as the head man in Baton Rouge, and the team gave us a reason to be hopeful for the rest of the 2016 season.

Last night I was caught up in the thrill of a dominating performance, so I didn’t give much thought to the big-picture implications the game had. But after taking some time to really go back and think about Saturday’s game, one thing has become increasingly apparent to me: Les Miles was the problem.

When the decision was made to fire Miles, it was met with mixed reaction. For those of us who closely follow the team, it had become apparent that a change had to be made. We knew Miles was a fantastic coach, but it was just time to move one. From a national perspective, many criticized the program’s decision, saying LSU was making a huge mistake firing a coach of Miles’ caliber.

As the Tigers piled on point-after-point last night, I think it became very clear who the problem was at LSU during these recent struggles. When LSU struggled to beat bottom of the barrel SEC teams like Mississippi State and Auburn, Miles was the man leading the Tigers. As soon as he’s gone, the team puts up the best performance we’ve seen from them in quite some time.

I know many of us still love Les Miles, but sorry folks, there’s no coincidence there.

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The head coach with the highest winning percentage in school history was let go for one simple reason: the complete inability to develop offensive talent and put players in position to succeed on that side of the ball. Poor production from the offense and no sense of urgency to improve became a scary theme at LSU, and the program correctly decided that it had given Miles long enough to correct this issue.

In just one short week, interim head coach Ed Orgeron and the rest of his staff were able to take LSU’s stagnant, unproductive offense and turn them into a team able to hang 42 points on a SEC defense. You can argue just how much of a challenge the Missouri defense presents, but regardless, 42 points is impressive for a team that couldn’t top 25 against a pitiful Mississippi State team just a few weeks ago.

The ONLY difference in that outing and yesterday’s game was the coaching. In fact, LSU was missing their best offensive player in Leonard Fournette against Missouri, and this team still managed to have an offensive performance that we couldn’t dream of under Miles.

It’s still early, but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say that Saturday’s blowout win proved that Les Miles really was the problem for LSU. With the exact same players Miles was given, the new staff was able to light up the scoreboard with creative playcalling and the ability to put their playmakers in positions to succeed. Under Miles, the Tiger offense was predictable and unable to score at a level necessary to reach where the program expects to be. In less than a full week, Orgeron and his staff changed everything, and LSU is better off because of it.