Les Miles probably went a bit too far with his recent comments about Gunner Kiel.

So Gunner Kiel, smartly, takes the high road on LSU head coach Les Miles’s recent comments.

You may remember that before Kiel committed and signed with Notre Dame, he was going to sign and enroll early at LSU. Well, Miles didn’t take too kindly to that and during a team rally before spring workouts and took a shot at Kiel: “We needed a quarterback in this class. There was a gentleman in Indiana that thought about coming to the Bayou State. He did not necessarily have the chest and the ability to lead a program.”

Wasn’t it just a few years ago that Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy was ripping apart a local columnist after that writer criticized an OSU player (that’s the famous, “I’m A MAN! I’m 40!” speech), with Gundy basically telling the columnist to back off? Shouldn’t coaches be held to the same standard when it comes to talking about these kids? Miles obviously forgot that as he pandered to the LSU faithful, who cheered loudly after Miles said this.

Kiel, fortunately, took the higher road when asked about Miles’ remarks, saying he would just use it as fuel to become a better player. Good for him, because it’s just plain sad when an 18-year-old kid can outclass a grown man like Miles, who should really know better. You could put some of this on Kiel, but when the system is designed to allow kids to change their minds about their future on a daily basis, well, it’s hard to blame the kid for exercising that right.

I’ll say this – I think Kiel made the right call. Brian Kelly’s offense at Notre Dame is better suited for his skill set. And it’s not like LSU is hurting with Zach Metterberger. It just sounds like sour grapes on Miles’ part.

Other things I’m pondering as I try to determine why I was dumb enough to take Missouri in my NCAA bracket …

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Even if you’re a die-hard college football fan, keeping with conference realignment is a monumental task. In just the last month, Temple has bolted for the Big East and the Mountain West and Conference USA are contemplating an insane merger, even for conference realignment. They’re courting Sun Belt schools, and in turn the Sun Belt Conference is courting schools they may need to stay viable.

This is the trickle-down effect we anticipated when conference realignment started in earnest a couple of years ago. Remember when Nebraska bolted for the Big Ten and Colorado bolted for the Pac-12? That seems like a decade ago.

Larger conferences are bolstering their coffers. Smaller conferences are scrambling to survive. And it all seems patently unfair, though we are a country that prides itself on survival of the fittest.

But all of this conference realignment leads to instability in college football, instability the game doesn’t need. What’s worse is that it’s disorganized instability. Every man for himself.

So what if we embrace the chaos? What if we bring organization to the instability of conference realignment and make it a little more fair? Or at least a little more fun? Here are a few ideas that have been percolating in my mind as of late:

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Spring practice question No. 6: Is Michigan back?

It seems to be almost an annual question since Lloyd Carr departed the program. I think most people would agree that college football is a more exciting place when the Wolverines are a national contender, and Michigan took a giant leap forward last year under first-year coach Brady Hoke. The Wolverines went 11-2, won the Sugar Bowl and were a Michigan State loss away from going to the Big Ten title game.

Thanks in part to that great season, Michigan had an exceptional recruiting class. But can the Wolverines sustain it in the short term?

Even Hoke would admit that there were some highly motivated seniors, recruited by Rich Rodriguez, who had a huge hand in what happened last season. Quarterback Denard Robinson is back for another season, but he’s lost some of the supporting cast that helped make him successful last season. Frankly, Hoke would probably like a more diverse (see pro-style) offense, but with Robinson on the trigger everything is going to run through him until he graduates. In fact, Hoke didn’t even recruit a quarterback for the 2012 class, clouding the direction he’ll take the program when Robinson departs.

Defensively the Wolverines still have some work to do, and Hoke acknowledged that by gathering 14 defensive signings last month and securing verbal commitments from six defensive players for the 2013 class.

Michigan has a less favorable schedule this year, including road trips to Arlington, texas, to face Alabama, South Bend to face Notre Dame and Lincoln to face Nebraska. And, of course, there’s that “School down South” with that new head coach in Columbus.

Am I saying that Michigan is going to take a giant step back in 2012? No, but there is potential for this Wolverines team to be out of the national title picture before they really have a chance to gather momentum. We’ll start to see if that Sugar Bowl momentum will carry the Wolverines during spring workouts.

What other Spring practice questions are out there? Find out after the jump

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New head coach Bill O'Brien has some things working against him in Happy Valley as he takes over for Joe Paterno.

In texas, where I live, the joke is that there are two kinds of athletics – football and spring football. That’s nearly as true in college football. And as programs around the country gear up for workouts, we tackled the spring practice questions that mean the most.

Spring practice question No. 1: Can Bill O’Brien get off on the right foot at Penn State?

Replacing any head coach is hard enough. Replacing a legend is nearly folly. Replacing a beloved, revered, figure like Joe Paterno is a job few would want to tackle. Replacing Joe Paterno amid his death and the Jerry Sandusky scandal – which led to Paterno’s firing and put a black eye on the entire athletic program – just seems like an opportunity doomed to fail.

These are the conditions under which Bill O’Brien will be starting his tenure at Penn State. When you’re a new coach, spring workouts is usually a time to get acquainted with your new players and install your new system. For O’Brien it’s that much and more. He’ll have to start courting the Penn State faithful from the first day. He’ll have to get his message out there without insulting those who are still loyal to Paterno, and there are plenty of them. The PR element of O’Brien’s early tenure shouldn’t be underestimated.

On the field, O’Brien must install the attack he ran at New England with a group of athletes who don’t seem suited to it. How much will O’Brien give on his philosophy to put his players in the best position to win?

No coach faces more questions entering spring workouts than O’Brien. Whether he gets off on the right foot with the Nittany Lions is going to come down to his people skills. And that’s almost as important as the on-field product right now.

What other Spring practice questions are out there? Find out after the jump

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As the Big East prepares to vote on yet another invitation to join its league, Temple has no choice but to return to the Big East.

Remember several years ago when the Big East told Temple to go away? Yeah, that was back when Temple’s football program stunk. Not even Bill Cosby could keep the Owls in the Big East for football. So the Owls ended up in the Mid-American Conference, a place I thought they would remain in perpetuity.

But this enormous shake-up in conference realignment has changed things significantly. So has the fact that Temple’s program is actually good now, thanks to current Miami (Fla.) coach Al Golden and his successor, Steve Addazio, who piloted the Owls to a 9-4 record and bowl win in 2011.

Now the Big East WANTS Temple. Frankly, if I were Temple, I’d thumb my nose at the Big East. But, frankly, what can you do? In the current system the Big East has a BCS bowl berth and Temple plays in a league that doesn’t and never will. A BCS berth is worth $23 million, and all Temple has to do is win the league. That’s a concept that’s actually achievable now. It’s a no-brainer.

The Big East meets Wednesday and, theoretically, Temple’s jump to the Big East this year is on the agenda. If it’s approved, surely the Owls will accept. But where else will the impact be felt?

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