Ciron Black for one not to mention the top kids committed to OSU will undoubtedly come to LSU and play their asses off....unlike those wanting it all handed to them at the U or some other place.


(parts was already posted by jvincent)

Some recruits still are sold on LSU, others pondering
New coach Miles draws good reviews for wooing talent
Tuesday, January 04, 2005
By Bill Bumgarner
Staff writer

Ciron Black of Tyler, Texas, had not heard the news from Baton Rouge.

"Les Miles? That's unbelievable," he said.


Black, a 6-foot-4, 320-pound offensive guard from Robert E. Lee High, committed to LSU and former coach Nick Saban before his senior season. He had also received recruiting interest from Oklahoma State and its head coach, Les Miles, who was chosen as Saban's successor Monday.

"I love the guy," Black said of Miles. "I was down a little bit when Coach Saban left. But I am unbelievably happy now. I am still talking to Texas, but I am coming to LSU."

Said Robert E. Lee coach Mike Owens, who played at Tulane: "LSU has itself a great coach. Coach Miles won without nearly the hosses those other schools had. He is down to earth like Nick was. He's hard-nosed, and he's a no-BS guy.

"And he does not go around thinking he's something special."

Under Saban, LSU secured 11 early pledges, but the Tigers have lost the nation's top-rated tight end, DajLeon Farr (6-6, 250) of North Shore in Houston, who switched to Miami (Fla.).

Two of Miles' priorities will be to retain the 10 remaining commitments and soothe other prospects unsettled by the departures of Saban to the Miami Dolphins and some of his staff.

Another early LSU commitment, Kyle Anderson, a 6-5, 260-pound tight end from The Woodlands near Houston, said he will wait and see.

"He (Miles) has not contacted me, so I have not had a chance to talk to him," Anderson said. "Oklahoma State offered me, but I did not see them play any games this year. It's still early (to make a final decision), and it's hard to say what I am going to do. I want to see who he brings in as new coaches."

Anderson said two of his alternative choices would be Nebraska and Texas Tech.

Chris Keys, a 6-2, 210-pound safety from Port Barre who attended North Jackson High in Stevenson, Ala., as a senior, is an LSU commitment who plans to visit Baton Rouge and Alabama this month. During the summer, Keys befriended North Jackson running back Ali Shariff, who first committed to Auburn but has since changed his choice to Alabama.

"This was hard on him when a coaching staff leaves," Port Barre coach Donnie Perron said of his former two-time All-State quarterback. "He plans to visit both schools. I think it is 50-50 what he will do. But his family still lives here."

Linebacker Luther Brown (6-2, 230) of Lakewood, Calif., had scheduled a visit to LSU on Jan. 14 before the coaching change, his coach, Mike Christianson, said.

"Losing Coach Saban has to impact his decision," said Christianson, who believed LSU was a finalist for Brown before Saban's departure. "Luther played in an all-star game Sunday, so I have not talked with him today about his visit and whether he will take it. LSU's staff was on this kid for two years, so losing those coaches has to hurt their chances."

Five of LSU's state commitments -- running backs Antonio Robinson of Winnfield and Steven Korte of Fontainebleau, defensive end Lyle Hitt and linebacker Darry Beckwith of Parkview Baptist and cornerback Chris Hawkins of Walker -- are believed to be solid in their decisions, although commitments are not binding until the Feb. 2 national signing date.

Analyst Randy Rogers of the Rogers Recruiting Service in Houston gives Miles high marks.

"Miles is a terrific guy," Rogers said. "As a recruiter, he is known as a great closer. He really comes on strong the last two or three weeks.

"He is especially effective in Texas. Oklahoma State signed three or four players from North Shore the past few years, so even though Farr has committed to Miami, I would not shut the door on LSU's chances of getting him to change his mind back."

. . . . . . .

Bill Bumgarner can be reached at [email protected] or (504) 883-7057.

I am curious as to where we will end up this year in recruiting rankings.

I really think that a Top 15 class is not out ot the realm of possibility

Amazing, I'm pretty impressed!

Yeah, now you guys just freaking love him. But it wasn't even a week ago when 3/4 of you were just bashing him and ready to hang your AD.

Most of us bashed the system or that everything was "hurried" when we thought a few other top name candidates or assistants should've been interviewed.
Some may have bashed him, I never did and I'm more than willing to give the
guy a chance.
I am a bit scared of the unknown since I didn't know anything about Coach Miles and his DC does scare me.

Some people are scared and gun shy about this because of our history when
Arnsbarger left and Archer took over, the rest is history.

Does anyone know what assistant coach's are penciled in yet?

Amazing, isn't it?

I expected most of it though....whoever was hired was going to get a lot hell for anything negative about himself.

i think what happened in this situation was that some fans help their expectations entirely too high. what most of them failed to realize was that you're NOT going to get a coach to leave a top 10 program for another top 10 program, barring some sort of allegiance.

i'll admit, when i first heard miles mentioned as a possible replacement during the alamo bowl, i was quite surprised. not disappointed, just surprised b/c it wasn't a name that had been tossed around AT ALL before saban left. just goes to show you what kind of stock to put into rumors. anywho, it seems like many are ticked b/c we didnt go steal stoops, spurrier, carr, etc. for some reason, many believed that we were in a position to do this, which was not the case.

personally, i trust skip bertman. anyone who has ever heard him speak about excellence knows that he is a genius. i learned immeasurable amounts from him by attending his baseball camps as a youngster...not just about baseball, but sports, education, and life in general. he had a much closer relationship w/ saban than any of us on this board, and has a much more thorough understanding of the football program in general. he knows how to spot success, or genius. he knows what kind of man/person it takes to excel. he is WAY better at pinpointing those characteristics than any of us could ever hope to be. the more i learn about miles, the more i see how well he fits into bertmans idealogy. and that, regardless of what the naysayers think, is plenty for me! :thumb:

:geaux:

I'll admit, when his name surfaced as the front runner I wasn't jumping up & down with joy. MT presented some compelling arguments and the more research I did, the more impressed I became with his credentials. The video clips showing his passion and emotion didn't hurt either :lol:

Sure, I'll admit it also. I was very underwhelmed when he was announced as the new HC. Like most others, I was po'd about the loss to Iowa and the last I saw of Miles was the drubbing at the hands of Ohio state.

I'm coming around, but as far as 'Freaking love', I will reserve judgement on that once his staff is announced.