Impressive Collegiate Career for Spartan Grad
By MIKE MOGUIN
GTR Sports Writer
Photo Courtesy University of Tulsa Sports Information Department
Chandler Miller is blocking for the University of Tulsa these days. He has been an integral part of the offensive line in the role of center and is in his fourth year as a starter.
Although the Golden Hurricane have struggled the past two years, Miller has been a part of two Bowl (2015 and 2016) teams, is a two-time American Athletic Conference performer and was named to the 2018 Rimington Trophy Watch List last spring.
But, before Miller was making waves at TU, he was part of another success story: the rise of Bixby as a Class 6A Division II power.
Miller graduated from Bixby High School in 2014 before the program won the first of a three consecutive state championships in 6AII the following December.
You can bet Miller is happy to see his alma mater having success. The Spartans came close to making it four straight last year but settled for a runner-up finish after losing by one touchdown to Booker T. Washington. Now, after losing its opener, Bixby has won seven straight and ranks No. 1 in the Class 6AII poll.
“I’m a huge fan of head coach (Loren) Montgomery,” Miller said. “He’s done a lot of great things. Unfortunately, I was a year away from having all this success come together, but he was building up before then. He has created a powerhouse there. I’ve also been following along throughout the years.”
The biggest thing Montgomery taught Miller, he said, was installing a work ethic in him.
“From an early age, he installed a confidence in me that I could play for him and that I would be a contributing factor,” Miller said. “He really pushed me to work hard, gain weight, get stronger and develop into the kind of player I am today.”
Montgomery, not to be confused with Philip Montgomery, the head coach at TU, also credits Miller for helping Bixby become the program it is.
“Chandler was one of the original guys who bought into our program whole-heartedly,” Montgomery said. “He was quiet, coachable and a tremendously hard worker. As a sophomore, he started every varsity and JV game at right tackle and he began the season at 196 lbs. By the time he graduated, he weighed 270 lbs. and set the school power clean record that stood for several years. It has been fun to see Chandler develop and become dominant at the next level. I hope he has a chance to play on Sundays.”
Miller might have that chance soon as he is wrapping up his senior year.
Earlier in the season, Tulsa went to Austin and gave Texas a challenge before succumbing to a 28-21 defeat to the Longhorns, who have since surged to a Top 10 ranking. TU was actually down 21-0 before attempting a rally.
“It was disappointing because we went in there fully expecting to win that game,” Miller said. “It did show some resiliency of the team and some fight that I think that is really nice to see. You don’t know what kind of team you have until you go against other teams, so it shows some resiliency and it shows we can compete with anybody in the country. It’s all about execution and making sure we are efficient on every drive.”
Miller and the rest of the Golden Hurricane are hoping to counter a struggling start with a strong finish.
“We need to perform better in a couple of areas and just need to get things fixed,” Miller said. “We have some hungry guys in there who are looking to get better every week.”
The experience of impacting Tulsa has been meaningful for Miller.
“It’s awesome,” he said. “This is the city I was kind of born and raised in. This city means a lot to me, obviously. To be able to play in front of friends, grandparents, parents, family, just everything like that has been awesome.”
As for his thoughts on Bixby possibly winning a fourth state title in five years?
“I hope so. They looked pretty good from what I’ve heard,” he said.
Updated 11-16-2018
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