Skip to content

Ad Disclosure

LSU Tigers

Les Miles press conference opens Alabama week

Brett Weisband

By Brett Weisband

Published:

Following a weekend off, Les Miles took to the podium to address the media Monday afternoon. With his rapidly rising LSU team playing its best football of the season, the Tigers welcome in the rival Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday for a primetime showdown.

  • Miles says his team plays best on the biggest stages. He looks forward to getting into Tiger Stadium in front of the fans, who he hopes show up early and stay late. “Our team plays best in Tiger Stadium. It’s a magical place.”
  • The coach said, as it is every year, he can’t believe how quickly senior night arrived. He said that the team will certainly miss seniors like Terrence Magee, Kenny Hilliard and La’el Collins once their careers at LSU are finished.
  • Miles says his team cannot afford four turnovers against LSU like they had against Ole Miss. His team won’t have opportunities to win many games if they give their opponents three extra possessions.
  • Miles praised Alabama’s skill position players, including Blake Sims, T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry. He said that Amari Cooper is the best receiver in the country. Miles also said his team hasn’t seen a defense as good as Alabama’s yet this season, and that side of the ball is loaded with talent for the Crimson Tide. He added that Alabama’s defense is big, strong and rarely out of position.
  • Asked about his quarterback situation, not having a star at the position, Miles said that football is the ultimate team sport — “There is no finer team sport than football.” While quarterback is a “lightning rod” position, Miles knows that having all 11 players on the field giving a “quality effort” is most important. Miles said the quarterback has to make his team better, and “that’s what Anthony Jennings has done.”
  • Having different styles of running backs is crucial to having success on the ground, Miles said, from elusive and speed guys to downhill power runners. If LSU had a guy that had all of those elements, he would be taking all of the snaps, but instead his group shares responsibility. On the topic of running backs, Terrence Magee did not practice last week after taking a poke to the eye against Ole Miss, but Miles expects him to both practice and play this week.
  • Nick Saban and Miles share a mutual respect, Miles said. He looks forward to the matchup. “Any time you match yourself with that style of program and team, it’s very enjoyable.” Miles called Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin “a very tactical guy.” Miles continued on, calling him “a talented coach and a guy that has ability.”
  • LSU’s two losses this season came against dual-threat quarterbacks, but Miles thinks his team has improved significantly since then, mostly in “technical” details of defense, specifically gap responsibilities.
  • “Hopefully there will be some surprise,” Miles said when asked about his offense, which has been a predictable run-heavy unit in recent weeks. “We’re always searching for balance. There’s an opportunity to achieve some of that in this game.”
Brett Weisband

A former freelance journalist from Philadelphia, Brett has made the trek down to SEC country to cover the greatest conference in college football.

You might also like...

2024 RANKINGS

presented by rankings

Read our Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions, Cookie Policy and

© 2025 Saturday Down South. All rights reserved

We do not target any individuals under the age of 21. We support responsible gambling. If you feel like you're losing control over your gambling experience, call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, PA, WV), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-888- 532-3500(Virginia) 1-800-522-4700 (NV, TN), 1-800-522-4700 (CO, TN), 1-855-2CALLGA (IL), 1-800-270-7117 (MI). global.footer.legal