Culture

http://www.al.com/sports/birminghamnews/kscarbinsky.ssf?/base/sports/121680107723450.xml&coll=2&thispage=1 Are you giddy, like a little girl in the front row at a Hannah Montana concert, or a grown man in a small boat with Nick Saban? Me too. Les Miles is coming, and you know what that means. Everyone within earshot of the LSU coach at SEC Kickoff 2008 this afternoon is going to have a great day. The newest member of the SEC's national championship club, which is becoming less exclusive every year, is a human pinata. Poke him, and unexpected treats spill out. Just the other night, Miles delighted a crowd of more than 500 LSU fans at the Hilton Riverside in New Orleans. Returning to the scene of the SEC's latest BCS beatdown of Ohio State, the current LSU coach managed to stick a needle right between the steely eyes of his predecessor without mentioning his name. LSU 38, Ohio State 24 was the ultimate victory last season. LSU 41, Alabama 34 was the most dramatic, significant, stick-that-in-your-process-and-smoke-it, gotta-have-it win of all. For the LSU coach, his team, the program and maybe the entire state. They'd all been waiting to exhale from the moment Saban boarded a private plane in south Florida with Mal Moore. Miles stuck out his tongue at Saban's shadow again Sunday. According to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, he told the crowd "not to make too much of that (Alabama) game as it seems like a lot of teams in Louisiana beat that team." Ouch. Turn this cheek, and get slapped by Louisiana State. Turn the other cheek, and it's Louisiana-Monroe. al.com 7/23/08