Les Miles is still trying to get Florida off LSU’s schedule
It was about this time last year that LSU coach Les Miles started his campaign to remove Florida from the Tigers’ schedule and the efforts continued Wednesday during the SEC’s post-spring teleconference.
"It's interesting to see how you would compare our schedule with others," Miles said on the SEC coaches' post-spring teleconference. "I wonder if there should be no permanent partners. I wonder if we couldn't choose cross-division opponents through a random computer draw."
A computer draw? Hold on, we’ll get back to that.
Miles claims the fact that LSU has to play Florida as its cross-divisional rival puts the Tigers at an unfair disadvantage because it adds yet another tough game to an already daunting schedule.
Florida has won more SEC East titles than any other team.
"This is all based on some vague tradition that is not considering that you're adding teams to the conference," Miles said during SEC spring meetings last year. "Tell me about the tradition of the conference when you add teams to it.
"I mean, Florida isn't even a nearby state. This tradition of rivalry is the fact that we enjoy playing them."
So, to solve LSU’s scheduling quandary, and perhaps put some of the other teams in the SEC West at a similar disadvantage, Miles would like a random computer draw to decide the crossover games.
Really? After all the headaches computers have caused in college football, Miles wants to bring them into his league? I’m sure his fellow coaches would love that idea. After all, they’re already a little fed up with his complaining about the schedule.
"If we want to be fair, we wouldn’t have permanent opponents," said South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier, who was on the call right after Miles. "But nobody said it was supposed to be fair."
Still, the schedules are only set through the 2013 season, so maybe there's some hope for Miles' plight. But in reality, the league needs the cross-divisional rivalries, even if they are the bane of Miles’ existence. People want to see LSU and Florida clash. There’s something to be said about the history of Georgia-Auburn and Alabama-Tennessee. Even Kentucky and Mississippi State has some love for it.
And really, if you want to be a conference or national champion, you should have a resume that looks the part of a national champion. In that regard, LSU - with Florida on the schedule - currently has the advantage.
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