Sunday, May 27, 2012

97 Julian Miller

Hometown: Sherrodsville, OH
Career: 2008-2011
Record: 37-15, Bowl Record: 2-2 including a BCS win
JMillz (as he calls himself in the twitterverse) was a 3 year starter along the West Virginia defensive front for Coach Jeff Casteel. Miller played primarily at defensive end during his sophomore and junior seasons before switching to defensive tackle for his senior season. Sometimes over-shadowed by some of the other WVU defensive greats he played with (Nield, Williams, Thomas, etc), Miller made his presence known to opposing quarterbacks. Miller registered 29.5 career sacks, good enough to earn him the 4th spot on WVU’s all-time sack leader list.
Memorable Game: Probably Miller’s most complete performance came in last year’s Backyard Brawl. Miller, along with the rest of the West Virginia defensive front gave the Panthers fits as the defense registered 10 sacks and held Pitt’s offense to 296 yards of offense. Miller registered 10 tackles and 4 sacks in WVU’s 21-20 victory. The win kept WVU’s slim Big East Championship hopes alive as the team would band together the following week to put away USF, earning a trip to the BCS. We all know how this story ended…
Competition: This selection was pretty cut and dry. Julian Miller was clearly the best ever at #97, but I will give honorable mention to Steve Perkins, Lonnie Brockman, and John Bendana. I also have to give a nod to one of the few Mountaineer players I have personally been friends with: Andrae Wright.
Teaser: Tomorrow’s selection was an All-American at WVU. Following a stellar career at WVU, this player went on to be part of the Tennessee Titans squad that participated in Super Bowl XXXIV. For those with a bad memory, this is the game that ended with Kevin Dyson being stopped at the 1-yard line by who?... Mike Jones

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