Photo by: Matthew Mitchell Photography
Grayson Miller Feature: Spartan Honor
10/11/2018 5:09:00 PM | Football
Long lines of families run through the Spartan football program and the Miller family is no exception. For senior linebacker, Grayson Miller, playing at his family's alma mater couldn't mean more.
Miller grew up in Georgetown, Kentucky, a town whose population doesn't compete with the Michigan State student body, yet the MSU campus was not foreign to him. Both of Miller's parents, John and Julie Miller, attended Michigan State and his father was a member of the football team from 1985-88.
Growing up, Miller would travel north to watch the Spartans battle on Saturdays. Since this school meant so much to him and his family, it made for an easy decision when he was offered a scholarship to play Spartan football.
"You always want to make your parents proud, and it's just special to wear the same number as my dad and relatively play the same position as him. It's just something that not a lot of fathers and sons get to have and it's something that he and I will always have and be able to share and that makes it a really special relationship," Miller said.
As a freshman, Miller represented #44 with great honor. His name and number are ones that will always be associated with one of the greatest battles in the history of Michigan State versus Michigan rivalry.
A moment no Spartan fan, coach or player will ever forget is the game that the Michigan punter mishandled the snap, and it was recovered by Jalen Watts-Jackson for a touchdown to win the game.
Miller, an unsung hero of that game, was one of the defensive backs that jumped on the punter and allowed the ball to get free for Watts-Jackson to grab. It is a moment for which Miller will always carry with him and be proud.
"I didn't know I was going to start that week until a couple days in. It was a surprise, there was excitement," Miller said. "The year before I hadn't played my senior year of high school, I was hurt so this was my first real game action in over almost two years and so that was just an experience I will never forget."
As spring practices of his senior year rolled around, Miller would be thrown into some new positions and take on new challenges.
With teammates injured and his experience level on the field, it was decided by the Spartan football coaching staff that Miller be moved from safety to linebacker. Miller was prepared and ready to take on the transition for the season ahead.
"I felt like I was just kind of doing my part to the team, filling in a role that was needed and I really enjoy myself, and I'm still playing there. I know more about football from the last eight months than I did in the three years before," Miller said. "At linebacker, you just have to know so much more, and I've just really enjoyed getting new skills and having a different position coach and all that. It's been a great transition."
As he takes on this new role, Miller continues to be a leader of this team and is a member of the Eagles Leadership Council. The council members are voted on by the team, and Miller has been among the few that are chosen the past two seasons.
For Miller, being able to hold this position and provide guidance to his teammates means just as much to him as what he does out there on the field.
"I would probably say the thing I'm most proud of in my time here is that honor. I remember being a freshman voting on Eagles, and I thought it was just the coolest thing in the entire world and to just be able to tell younger guys about my experiences and help them through because I've been through just about every situation you can be here and so just being a guy in a position of leadership and to help whoever I can," Miller said.
Players come through Michigan State and every one of them leaves describing the family atmosphere that this school was able to give them.
Miller looks back at his time here at Michigan State and could not feel more blessed to have been a part of it all. For the family he left at home and for the family he made on the field.
"There's been ups, downs with me personally, with the team. Just the relationships we've built, and I just know that they're going to last a lifetime," Miller said. "I've just had the absolute best three and a half years somebody could possibly have."
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Miller grew up in Georgetown, Kentucky, a town whose population doesn't compete with the Michigan State student body, yet the MSU campus was not foreign to him. Both of Miller's parents, John and Julie Miller, attended Michigan State and his father was a member of the football team from 1985-88.
Growing up, Miller would travel north to watch the Spartans battle on Saturdays. Since this school meant so much to him and his family, it made for an easy decision when he was offered a scholarship to play Spartan football.
"You always want to make your parents proud, and it's just special to wear the same number as my dad and relatively play the same position as him. It's just something that not a lot of fathers and sons get to have and it's something that he and I will always have and be able to share and that makes it a really special relationship," Miller said.
As a freshman, Miller represented #44 with great honor. His name and number are ones that will always be associated with one of the greatest battles in the history of Michigan State versus Michigan rivalry.
A moment no Spartan fan, coach or player will ever forget is the game that the Michigan punter mishandled the snap, and it was recovered by Jalen Watts-Jackson for a touchdown to win the game.
Miller, an unsung hero of that game, was one of the defensive backs that jumped on the punter and allowed the ball to get free for Watts-Jackson to grab. It is a moment for which Miller will always carry with him and be proud.
"I didn't know I was going to start that week until a couple days in. It was a surprise, there was excitement," Miller said. "The year before I hadn't played my senior year of high school, I was hurt so this was my first real game action in over almost two years and so that was just an experience I will never forget."
As spring practices of his senior year rolled around, Miller would be thrown into some new positions and take on new challenges.
With teammates injured and his experience level on the field, it was decided by the Spartan football coaching staff that Miller be moved from safety to linebacker. Miller was prepared and ready to take on the transition for the season ahead.
"I felt like I was just kind of doing my part to the team, filling in a role that was needed and I really enjoy myself, and I'm still playing there. I know more about football from the last eight months than I did in the three years before," Miller said. "At linebacker, you just have to know so much more, and I've just really enjoyed getting new skills and having a different position coach and all that. It's been a great transition."
As he takes on this new role, Miller continues to be a leader of this team and is a member of the Eagles Leadership Council. The council members are voted on by the team, and Miller has been among the few that are chosen the past two seasons.
For Miller, being able to hold this position and provide guidance to his teammates means just as much to him as what he does out there on the field.
"I would probably say the thing I'm most proud of in my time here is that honor. I remember being a freshman voting on Eagles, and I thought it was just the coolest thing in the entire world and to just be able to tell younger guys about my experiences and help them through because I've been through just about every situation you can be here and so just being a guy in a position of leadership and to help whoever I can," Miller said.
Players come through Michigan State and every one of them leaves describing the family atmosphere that this school was able to give them.
Miller looks back at his time here at Michigan State and could not feel more blessed to have been a part of it all. For the family he left at home and for the family he made on the field.
"There's been ups, downs with me personally, with the team. Just the relationships we've built, and I just know that they're going to last a lifetime," Miller said. "I've just had the absolute best three and a half years somebody could possibly have."
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