Source: 'Good possibility' that LSU buys out Les Miles' contract
— -- There is "a very good possibility" that LSU will buy out Les Miles' contract, a high-ranking source involved in the decision regarding the coach's future told ESPN on Monday.
"In Louisiana, we expect national championships, and we're not in it," the source told ESPN, adding that meetings are occurring Monday that could lead to a quick resolution.
The Tigers' 30-16 loss to Alabama on Nov. 7 and what is believed to be an underachieving, vanilla offense are major factors that could lead to Miles' departure, according to the source.
Miles said Monday afternoon that he's "going to go on to work" and confirmed that he'll meet with his players later in the day.
"The information that I have is, do your job as you would do it," Miles said. "And that is something that I took when I took this job 11 years ago. If somebody is asking me if I'm coaching for my job, I think I've done that for 11 years. ...
"I guess what I'm telling you is that you can have a flat tire for a while. But here at LSU ... this is an elite program. We expect to regroup and get going fast. That's really where we're at."
Despite published reports to the contrary, Miles has not met privately with LSU athletic department officials last week to discuss potential termination options and exit strategies, another source told ESPN's Mark Schlabach.
Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher, who is rumored to be a candidate for the LSU job if Miles is out, declined comment Monday, saying only that it's "unfair to the players that are there, the players that are here, the coaches there and here."
The Tigers (7-3, 4-3) are coming off consecutive losses to Alabama, Arkansas and Ole Miss -- the first time the program has lost three in a row since 1999. LSU gave up at least 30 points in those losses, marking the first time since 1948 that's happened in three successive losses.
LSU, which dropped out of The Associated Press poll on Sunday, also was unranked at the end of the 2014 season.
The Tigers host Texas A&M on Friday.
"I'm going to go on to work," Miles said. "I think the question is valid. At some point in time, there's a me in this. Not while I'm coaching. This will always be about our players and the team, and I am a separate piece. I orchestrate and move with them, and hopefully I'm successful. And that's the only way I know how to do it."
Boosters have already agreed to pay the $15 million to $20 million needed to buy out Miles and his staff, the source said.
Miles, coming to the end of his 11th season at LSU, has won a national championship and two SEC championships and averaged 10 wins per season while producing 64 NFL draft choices.
He has a 110-32 record at LSU, and his .775 winning percentage is the best of any LSU coach -- including Nick Saban (.750) -- in the past century. Miles has a 60-27 career record in SEC play.
Miles and his staff, meanwhile, currently have the No. 1 class in the 2016 ESPN Recruiting Nation rankings, with 19 commitments. The Tigers have had eight top-10 recruiting classes since 2006.
"If we were competing for a national championship this year, well then, we wouldn't be having this conversation," the source said.
ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach contributed to this report.
