Les Miles has been a coach for 35 years but if he'd listened to former Michigan head coach Bo Schembechler back in 1980, his life would have taken a very different path.
In an interview with Seth Davis on Campus Insiders, Miles said Schembechler advised him to avoid coaching because it's difficult and doesn't pay much:
"I wanted to help young guys play championship football and get a degree. It was something brought out in me during that time (away from it)," Miles said. "So I called Bo. I don't know that he took my call. Then he probably did take my call. I showed up there, and he said, 'Les, come on in. You don't want to be a coach. Way too hard. It's not going to pay you a dime. Unless you absolutely have to coach, you need not coach.'
"I kept bugging him and bugging him, and he says OK. ... I enjoyed my stay at Michigan. I enjoyed the college experience, and I realized that's something I wanted to be a part of for years. As soon as I got to Michigan under Bo, I remember being on a bus at a bowl practice and thinking to myself, 'Are you kidding me? They're paying me for this?' They were only paying me $8,200 a year."
Fortunately for No. 2 LSU Miles didn't listen and the Mad Hatter will be roaming the sidelines when the Tigers (7-0, 4-0 SEC) take on No. 4 Alabama Saturday at 8 p.m. EST on CBS. The Crimson Tide (7-1, 4-1 SEC) have won its last four games against LSU and lead the all-time series 49-25-5.
