College Football: 25 greatest head coaches of the 21st century

Best college football coaches of 21st century: 7. Les Miles

• Oklahoma State Cowboys (2001-04)
• LSU Tigers (2005-16)
• Kansas Jayhawks (2019-Present)

Although some of Les Miles’ best moments involved things off the field, you can’t argue with his results on the field. After taking over Nick Saban’s LSU team, he managed to win a BCS title in his third year in Baton Rouge. He also made it back for a chance at a second title, but he was beaten by Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

While coaching in the competitive SEC for years, Miles still carried LSU to seven seasons of 10 or more wins. He sent plenty of players to the NFL, cementing LSU as DBU. He also went 8-4 in his bowl games with LSU.

Although Miles had plenty of success with the Tigers, he also had some years of struggles. He lost 10 out of his last 29 games, and he was fired after four games into his last season in 2016.

Miles also had some struggles at Oklahoma State before going to LSU. His best season with the Cowboys ended with a 9-4 record. Some questioned if “The Mad Hatter” was the right man for the job.

No matter how many bad years Miles had, he will always be remembered by the good moments. Whether he’s eating grass during a game or hoisting a trophy in the air, there were plenty of good times. Even in his bad years, he had quality records for the Tigers. The only bad thing on his résumé that stuck with him was his inability to change with the times on offense.

Miles is now in charge of Kansas, and he has quite the task on his hands. Rebuilding the Jayhawks was never going to be easy, and Miles has struggled. Thankfully, expectations are incredibly low. Any success he has at this stop will just be icing to his coaching career.