It sounds crazy, but Twitter rabble or not, the Internet has struck again.
LSU head coach Les Miles was said to be
out recruiting Tuesday night and unavailable for comment as a website
reported via
Twitter that he had been offered a substantial raise from Arkansas
to become the head coach of the Razorback team his Tigers
just beat 20-13 on Friday.
It was reported by SportsbyBrooks.com
that Miles, who in his time at LSU has twice turned down offers from his
alma mater,
Michigan, had been offered a five-year deal worth $27.5 million,
or roughly $ 5.5 million per year by Arkansas. His current
contract at LSU is worth $3.75 million per year before incentives.
Miles had scheduled a press conference for today at 2 p.m. long before the story broke on Tuesday afternoon, reportedly to
do nothing more than review the Arkansas victory and discuss his team’s bowl prospects.
It is not uncommon for coaches’ agents to use an offer from another school — real or imagined — to get their clients a raise
at their current post.
Newspapers in Arkansas quickly shot down the story of the offer, with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette quoting Miles’ agent,
George Bass, as saying, “There’s nothing like that going on.”
Bass is also the agent for TCU coach Gary Patterson, whose name has also come up in speculation for the open Arkansas job.
LSU officials, including sports information director Michael Bonnette, refused to comment, other than to acknowledge that
Miles was aware of the reports and did not care to comment.
But NOLA.com, the website of the
Times-Picayune of New Orleans, quoted an anonymous source within the LSU
athletic department
as confirming that Arkansas had made “a serious offer” and that
LSU athletic director Joe Alleva was meeting with Miles’ agent.
Part of the speculation centers around
the fact that Miles and Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long are
longtime friends.
Long worked in the Michigan athletic department during the eight
years that Miles was an assistant coach there after his playing
days.