It wasn't just what he has done at WVU...remember, he was an assistant for Tommy Bowden at Tulane and Clemson and did a bang up job then as well. Plus West Virginia was in the toilet when he arrived. I can honestly say i wondered why he didn't get more attention at the time. No, i didn't see the UGA win coming, but i have always thought of him as a very very good coach.

LSU was a longshot to get Del Rio but his agent and the LSU AD's office ****ed that up by not keeping it behind close doors. I suspect he wanted to use the LSU job to leverage for more money with Jacksonville. Petrino turned down more money then LSU could ever offer last year to coach the Raiders. Granted it was the Raiders but still. Petrino isn't going to leave UL until a good NFL coaching situation comes along.

Maybe your right about Petrino...but Del Rio has strong Louisiana ties and I think strongly would have considered taking the job if we had brought the full court press and done it the right way.

Why would you give a coach 2 mil when he was about to get his team on probation? We can get that type of a lot less.

Ok...true, WVU was in the toilet at that time. But Okla St has NEVER BEEN OUT of the toilet--and the best times that program ever experienced was under Miles.

Back then, I'll be honest, if you gave me the option of either Rodriguez or Miles, I probably would have gone with Rodriguez based on the fact that I really didn't know anything on Miles. Rodriguez, I was at least familiar with because of, like you said, his affiliation with Tulane. But I still never would have offered Rodriguez 2 million--not back then.

Del Rio was actually the coach I was hoping to land back then.

the point on Del Rio is in a situation like that, he has got to be your #1 priority. You have to put together a presentation and an offer that will blow him away, because he would be the kind of guy that would and could be a very successfull coach for a very long time. Who knows, if things keep going downhill maybe he will be available in 2 and a half years.

You guys are just in dreamland, not many coaches leave the NFL for college.
Unsuccessful NFL coaches mainly leave pros for college.
Pete Carroll, Steve Spurrier.
John Robinson did but I don't remember how successful he was in the pros.

Del Rio was using the LSU thing as a bargaining chip only, you will never convince me he was serious!
Besides we have what we have, Les Miles and you have to live with it like
it or not!

Sadly you're right about that.

Don't read this as a defense of Miles as I personally never had much confidence in him as our hire, but throwing money at the head coach position doesn't automatically make your program a winner either. Refer to Franchione at TX A&M; he's got a very pricey contract and their program reeks. Aggies are the most delusional, kool-aid drinking fans anywhere and even he is feeling a lot heat now.