Nobody knows exactly what happened Saturday, or throughout the latter part of last week, but as of yesterday, Louisiana State coach Les Miles was still Louisiana State coach Les Miles.

Some how, some way, Michigan didn't get its man. And now it's left with no apparent options in its search for a head football coach.

So how did this happen?

How did Michigan miss out on its favorite son, a highly esteemed coach who has practically begged for the job his entire career?

Four separate reasons, when put together, seem to have forced Miles to stay in Baton Rouge.

First, LSU athletic director Skip Bertman's strategy.

On Wednesday, word escaped (apparently from the Michigan camp) that Michigan Athletic Director Bill Martin had requested and been granted permission to speak with Miles, albeit after Saturday's game. Bertman confirmed these reports through a spokesman, saying that LSU would meet with Miles post-SEC Championship Game as well.

"We're just looking forward to the game Saturday, and that's the focus of the entire program right now, Saturday's game against Tennessee," LSU spokesman Herb Vincent said.

Not quite true.

Sources reported that Miles's agent was already meeting with LSU officials in Baton Rouge on Wednesday. By asking Martin to wait until Saturday, Bertman knew he had bought himself a week to negotiate with Miles and hammer out an extension without Michigan getting its own offer in. Martin respected basketball coach John Beilein's run in the NIT last year with West Virginia, and Bertman knew he'd do the same with Miles. That's why Bertman extended Miles a more than substantial, one-day-only offer that the coach eventually had to accept.

The second reason Miles won't be coaching the Wolverines is former coach Lloyd Carr's opposition to hiring Miles, and a small group of people who agreed with him. Carr said at his final press conference he wasn't going to try to handpick his successor. But he certainly had influence in the search. I suspect Miles knew Carr didn't want him to be the coach and he didn't want Carr, in his new position as an associate athletic director, scrutinizing every move Miles made.

Miles also worried that Carr and others would persuade Martin not to offer him the job. Martin wanted a face-to-face interview with Miles, just as he had with Beilein, before he hired him. Miles might have thought this need was prompted by Carr and Co. and wondered if he would get a job offer.

Martin's old-school approach - the third reason Miles won't coach Michigan - likely hurt the process in other ways, too. Depending on whom you believe, Martin either "played by the rules" and didn't talk to Miles or his agent all week or had the entire deal orchestrated and arranged through back channels but wanted to interview Miles before hiring him. Martin stuck to this strategy and didn't make it absolutely clear to Miles that he was far and away the top choice, even though he knew LSU was negotiating with Miles' agent late in the week, putting Miles in an uncomfortable spot. Miles knew he had an offer from LSU, and he knew the offer would beat the potential Michigan offer. The problem was, he didn't know if the Michigan offer would come.

I'll return to this in a bit.

ESPN analyst (and Ohio State alum) Kirk Herbstreit reported Saturday morning that sources confirmed Miles would take the Michigan job early this week. This report seems to have been the last straw, the fourth reason Miles had to accept LSU's one-day-only offer. With an SEC Championship Game to coach and a possible national championship game berth in the balance, Herbstreit's report forced Miles to hold a press conference before the game to debunk the story. But he didn't.

Instead, he left some wiggle room, not mentioning Michigan and not saying definitively that he would coach LSU next season. Apparently, Miles's agent attempted to contact Martin, trying to find out if his client was going to get an offer or not. He couldn't reach Martin, and Miles had to accept the LSU offer.

Because of Martin's old-school tendencies and a faction, including Carr, opposed to his hiring, Miles never knew whether he would get the Michigan job. Combined with LSU's offer being one-day-only and Herbstreit's report on Saturday morning that forced Miles to say something definitive that day, Miles didn't have a choice. He said he was "embarrassed that (his) name was on ESPN," and he felt for his team, which deserved better than to be left in limbo any longer.

"(Michigan's) a proud tradition, and they have to do the things they have to do," Miles said. "I'm for them, and if there's any way I can help them, I'd love to help them. But I'm not going there."