les miles HOUSTON, TX – DECEMBER 29: Head coach Les Miles of the LSU Tigers waits near the bench area before the start of their game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl at NRG Stadium on December 29, 2015 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images)

If former LSU football coach Les Miles can’t find another job in coaching, he’s got a fallback plan. According to FootballScoop.com, ESPN is “very interested” in hiring Miles as a college football analyst.

This makes tons of sense, as Miles is a super-successful coach who also happens to be funny, honest and engaging on camera. That’s a rare combination in the unemployment line.

As we’ve written before, Miles would be a perfect replacement for the retiring Lee Corso on ESPN’s College GameDay. Here’s how our Ian Casselberry put it back in September:

Fortuntately for ESPN, Miles might be the ideal replacement for Corso. He certainly seems capable of filling the role of wacky older coach talking football and trading quips with the younger former players that GameDay has among its staff of analysts. Yes, there could be some times when no one is exactly clear just what Miles is talking about or what sort of joke he’s trying to make. But that would make for fun television, and it would best fit in theGameDay environment, surrounded by the frenzy of being on campus (along with Rece Davis easily able to throw it to another reporter or analyst, if necessary).

But besides the potential of being an entertaining mascot — Miles would likely be willing to don those mascot heads at the end of every show, though it’s really Corso’s thing — and theGameDay equivalent of your crazy old uncle who’s good for some amusing and occasionally unpredictable behavior, Miles could also lend some great insight into gameday preparations for teams and their coaches. Who could explain the SEC landscape better than someone freshly removed from those battles? As a top-notch recruiter during his tenure at LSU, perhaps he could also offer a glimpse into that process as well.

The problem for ESPN is that Miles could easily land a head coaching position if he wants one. He was a rumored candidate for the opening at Purdue and a finalist for the job at Houston. The current vacancies are beginning to dry up, but Miles will be floated as a candidate for any job that becomes available between now and the start of next season. Can ESPN convince him that talking about college football is more enjoyable than coaching it?

Miles seems like he’d be a genuinely great addition for ESPN, so let’s hope no other athletic directors come calling before John Skipper and company can get to him.

[FootballScoop]

Comments are closed.

About Alex Putterman

Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.