LSU Football Coach Les Miles reportedly turned down the opportunity to return as head coach to his alma mater, the University of Michigan, saying he’s got it good at LSU, he thinks good things are ahead for the football program, and saying how much he and his family enjoy living in Louisiana.

It sounds a bit as if a guy who has in the past referred to himself as a “Michigan man” has now started to consider himself a bit of a “Louisiana man.”

It’s interesting how comments about him swung from negative to positive this season. After the confused finish with a lucky extra-chance win against Tennessee, there were plenty of LSU fans ready to pay Michigan to take Les Miles.

But after his team beat Alabama, finished the regular season with 10 wins and then got an impressive 11th win in last week’s Cotton Bowl over Texas A&M, and word got out he was being considered for the Michigan job, it’s interesting that Coach Miles’ popularity on the sports call-in shows and on the blogs swung so far toward positive.

I think he’s a good coach and perhaps even a better man, seemingly to be of good character, a good family man, a coach who cares about his players and who has their respect.

You can bet should LSU lose the season opener to Oregon next season or suffer other defeats, you’ll quickly hear, “We wish Michigan had got him.”

Coach Miles reminds me of longtime LSU basketball coach Dale Brown, quirky in many ways, but a guy who was loved by his players and respected as an individual.

Many used to say of Coach Brown that he might be a bit nutty, but he was our nut.

Certainly among Coach Miles’ quirks are his oft-mentioned high-riding hat, how he has been caught eating grass from the playing field during a game, and especially how he can offer an answer to a question that leaves you wondering, “What’d he say?”

Some of his more off-beat quotes have been collected and are displayed on an interesting Web site at www.thequotablelesmiles.com.

It says it has to date 540 Les Miles quotes worth another look. Some leave you wondering what the heck the guy was trying to say, like “Being in the (SEC) Championship game puts you in a position where if you achieve victory, you can still gain something.”

Or there was, “I enjoy him and I enjoy his leadership, so we are going to work to that eventuality.”

I’m glad he’s staying at LSU. I have a want, as Coach Miles might say, to see him and the program continue to have success in the future.

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I clipped a news items a few weeks back, originally reported by The Dallas Morning News, out of Mesquite, Texas, where police had to twice — not just once, but twice — use pepper spray to try to settle down an estimated 400 to 500 shoppers fighting to be the first to get some of the limited pairs of Cool Grey 11s.

I had no clue what Cool Grey 11s were but read they were new Air Jordan sneakers. Heck, Michael Jordan doesn’t even play basketball anymore. Clearly he left too few shoes to fill?

WILL CHAPMAN is publisher of The Daily Iberian.