Another Miller at St. Johns

It is still early in the recruiting process for Toledo (Ohio) St. John's class of 2013 defensive end Matt Miller, but the 6-5, 250-pound prospect already has a good idea of what to expect after watching his older brother, current Michigan freshman Jack Miller, navigate the process a year ago.

"I saw after awhile he would start to get a little stressed out, so a big thing I learned from Jack is to always keep your head level and always evaluate each option during the recruiting process," Miller said.

Miller will likely have many options before all is said and done. He picked up his first offer of the process from Toledo earlier this summer and has several more schools showing interest.

"Just to get that first one in was a sigh of relief for me, especially before the season started," Miller said. "Another thing I learned from Jack is [the first offer] is good, but use it as motivation, have a great junior year and keep building on that."

Bowling Green, Kent State, Michigan, Michigan State, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota and West Virginia are among the schools showing interest in Miller. With his older brother already in Ann Arbor, interest from the Wolverines is welcomed by the Toledo native.

"I've always been a fan of Michigan and Jack and I have always rooted for them," Miller said. "Obviously it is nice having Jack up there and I get to see what's going on up there. On the other side of it, having Jack up there kind of reminds me I need to do my own thing and keep moving with my personal stuff."

Miller expects to attend several games at Michigan this fall, including the Wolverine's night game against Notre Dame on Sept. 10. He would like to get out and see games at other schools this fall as well.

"I've looked at a few more schedules and Jack and I are very good friends with Iowa [freshman] Ray Hamilton," Miller said. "Iowa and Michigan are playing each other this year in Iowa City, and I was talking with our two families about going out there."

Something else Miller gleaned from his older brother was how to get after it in the weight room in the off-season. He feels prepared for a big season at defensive end and offensive tackle this fall after the work he put in since his sophomore season ended.

"I think [coaches] are going to see a lot out of me this fall," Miller said. "I'll be playing on both sides of the ball this year, and what they will see is that I am always competing."