SteveR Loc: Michigan

I know Les Miles got fired. I didn't realize until today that he had the 3rd best recruiting class in the country, ahead of both Ohio State and Michigan, but behind Florida and Alabama. Even Bo Schembechler had one losing season, and he didn't get fired. Miles has won a N.C. and two conference championships for LSU. What are they, crazy?

richosob Loc: Lambertville, MI

I guess in coaching it's all about what have you done for me lately.

Rich

usnpilot Loc: Ft Myers Fl

It will be interesting to see how many of his recruits transfer next year.

pipesgt Loc: Central Florida

Les Miles is an excellent coach. He will land on his feet someplace next year.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

Maybe, just maybe, the school decided to focus on academics, for a welcome change. If that's true, then all Division I schools should follow suit.

usnpilot Loc: Ft Myers Fl

Come on, this is the SEC, only two schools care about academics, Vanderbilt and Florida. All the rest rank low.

pipesgt Loc: Central Florida

IowaGuy Loc: Iowa

It's a two way street. Univ. of Iowa pays Ferentz $4.5 million a year just to show up with a poor overall track record. Bloody weight coach makes $600,000 a year. Something is out of wack with "higher education".

coastlawyer Loc: Coastal Mississippi

According to an LSU alum friend, LSU Coach Miles lost the final of four games due to his personal misuse of the time remaining in each of the four.

Duggy

Football is constantly changing styles of offense / defense unlike Nick Saben who brought on lane tippin , Les is old school who would not change with the times , les a great coach , but today we change or get left behind.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

College & professional sports, unfortunately, are entirely about money. Tickets to a Michigan game are $100+ for a lousy seat. Simple multiplication will provide a reasonable estimate for receipts at one game. Add to that, sales of junk food, beer, ... and income from the media and one quickly sees how college sports is BIG BUSINESS and has little to do with education. It's ugly and the income does little to pave the way for a kid obtaining affordable education. I don't watch football anymore. I don't miss it either. Just having to sit through commercials was agonizing.
Mark

SteveR Loc: Michigan

Actually, Mark.....$100 is not for a lousy seat. That's for the better seats. Other tickets can be had for $65-$75, depending on the game. The last game I attended, 2003, all seats were $56 per. However, my Dad's season ticket (at one time he had four), was on the 45 yard line, row 34, and was considered a premium ticket. In about 2004 in became necessary to be a donor at the $500 level to retain that ticket. Dad had no problem in doing so because of what the university had done for him. The donation helps to run the rest of the athletic program. When Schembechler Hall and practice facility was built, Dad was asked to be on the committee to raise funds....specifically, to contact players from the thirties. His personal contribution landed his name on the list of donors outside Schembechler Hall....and he was a teacher. As far as lousy seat goes.....I'd much rather see a Michigan game than a Lions game. Up or down, the college spectacle is much more entertaining.

As far as income not paving the way for a kid to get an education....you're blowing smoke out of your orifices. What do you think the money made in football is used for? It's not just to run the programs, but to provide money for all the scholarships....men's and women's. It is TOTALLY about kids getting educations....and there are thousands upon thousands of kids out there who have gotten educations because of football. My Dad recruited a player from my high school team to play at Michigan. He ended up being on the very early Schembechler teams. He was one who spoke at Dad's funeral and he actually came to tears because of the opportunity that he'd had to play football at Michigan....to be an M Man, and the opportunities it provided him post graduation. As a sophomore in h.s., he was thrilled to have gotten a letter from Bump Elliott....a Big Ten coach....all at Dad's behest.

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

The NCAA likes College Football and Basketball just the way it is. A group of football players from Northwestern University tried to Unionize a couple of years ago, just to get a modest allowance. It was crushed by the NCAA. Some say it was the wrong elite University to experiment with this issue. But the attempts to get some form of free modest financial assistance, outside of a Scholarship, is not dead yet. The NCAA argument is that they would have to provide this free allowance to all students participating in any sports. Despite not bringing in the biggest revenues such as football and basketball.

Cykdelic Loc: Now outside of Chiraq & Santa Fe, NM

Taint happenin jay!

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Not necessarily true. I do understand it is your and possibly your Dad's experience. However, there is a plethora of writing and research that indicates it is not the case. You may be interested in reading: http://www.ethosreview.org/intellectual-spaces/is-college-football-profitable/ or http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/10/the-shame-of-college-sports/308643/. Many other articles and books from the library that indicate the contrary. Just Google the topic.

Respectfully,
Mark