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LSU-Miles
11/17/08 - 10:07 PM
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    BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Two days after watching his team put
together the greatest comeback in school history, LSU coach Les
Miles was still stunned.
    The Tigers found themselves trailing Troy 31-3 in the third
quarter Saturday but scored a touchdown late in the third and 30
points in the fourth for a 40-31 victory.
    “I’ve been around these kinds of games,” said Miles at his
weekly media luncheon Monday afternoon. “I’ve enjoyed the memory
of that game and said ‘Wow’ to myself. Great teams find ways to
win.”
    Miles had been on the opposite end of such a game while coaching
at Oklahoma State. His 2004 Cowboys team had a 35-7 halftime lead
against Texas. The Longhorns scored seven second-half touchdowns
for a 56-35 victory.
    The game against Troy came one week after the Tigers lost in
overtime to top-ranked Alabama and former LSU coach Nick Saban.
That set the stage for Saturday’s near upset.
    “One plays a very, very emotional game in front of a record
crowd,” Miles said. “You give a maximum effort, but fall short.
Then, your next opponent is not a well-known name and the coaches
do a poor job in telling the players that this is a good team.
    “You take the field and it’s cold. There’s a good crowd there,
but it dwindles. You play less inspired. Also, you set out to
control your quarterback. That plan falls into the hands of the
opposition. For 30-plus minutes, the game didn’t look much like our
Tigers.”
    According to Miles, the result of those issues was a 31-3 Troy
lead. But, LSU scored on six of its last seven possessions - five
touchdowns and a field goal - to rally for the victory.
    “I’ve seen teams in all sports make great runs and just can’t
get over the hump,” Miles said. “But, it was full bore for this
team. I liked the momentum of our finish. I like how we came off
this game. I like the position of our team right now.”
    A team that has been used to playing for divisional titles in
November will be competing with its opponent this Saturday for
second place in the Southeastern Conference Western Division.
    LSU and Ole Miss are tied for second in the West with 3-3
records. The winner of the game at Tiger Stadium will have a leg up
on a bid to the Cotton Bowl.
    “I think we’ll be very focused on our next opponent,” Miles
said. “That team beat Florida in Gainesville. Our team understands
what that means.”
    The Rebels edged the Gators 31-30 earlier this season. LSU was
crushed 51-21 on its trip to The Swamp. Miles hopes the players
take something out of the historic comeback against Troy.
    “The issue is the matchup with the next opponent and the want
to improve,” Miles said. “But, the team that played in the second
half against Troy and how it executed and how it went down the
field, I don’t want to lose that.”