Lunch with Les

Les Miles had his weekly press luncheon and in between talk of hurricanes and game sites, he actually talked some about his football team.

One point of emphasis for the offense will be going more vertical in the passing game. Here's Miles' take:

“We want to throw the ball down the field more than we did. I think it’s something that was not specific to our quarterbacks trying to force the balls. I think it was more specific to the calls, and now I think we’re ready to take the next step and throw the ball down the field.”

Miles said his team used a scrimmage on Thursday to try to replace the game work that was needed.

“Our young linebackers needed to make the checks. Our special teams' guys needed to be put in situations and make plays. Our offense needed to be managed. The clock needed to be managed by our quarterbacks. We did all that Thursday, just so you know. Everything that we could have gotten accomplished in a game, we weren’t able to get as accomplished certainly as a game situation, but we got it accomplished on Thursday. The position that we’re in right now is, in my opinion, a pretty good one. We’re healthy. We’re coming off a week where we’ve taken a weekend off, and our guys have gone home to be with their families and help get their families squared away along with their personal lives. Whatever things they could do to address personal issues, they’ve done.''