Michigan Man Les Miles Discusses Heartbreaking Reality of Never Becoming Wolverines Head Coach

Les Miles has carved out a solid coaching career for himself. He's spent time as a head coach of some prestigious programs in Oklahoma State and LSU, amassing a 142-55 record and nine bowl wins.

But, through all his experiences as a head coach, one thing has nagged at him. He's always been a Michigan man at heart, and through his career, he's had to come to terms with the unfortunate reality that he will never land his dream job of being Michigan's head coach.

Miles played football for the Wolverines in 1974 and 1975 under head coach Bo Schembechler. It was from him that he found the desire to become a coach. After spending years as an assistant with Michigan, Colorado, Oklahoma State and even the Dallas Cowboys, he accepted a head coaching position with OSU in 2001.

In 2007, his name cropped up as one of the top candidates to replace the head coaching vacancy left by Lloyd Carr. Unfortunately, he was passed over in exchange for Rich Rodriguez, and since then, he's come to grips with the heartbreaking notion that he'll never coach at his alma mater.

"I love Michigan,” Miles said. “We just didn’t have the opportunity. It does break my heart. I love the place...I don’t know that I was ever really close (to getting the job)."

Now 65 years old, his new gig as the head coach at Kansas will likely be his last.

And though he may experience success with the Jayhawks, there's no getting around the harsh notion that he was never given the chance to lead the school that he fell in love with.