John Miller was hired on Jan. 19, 2021, as an assistant coach with the James Madison University program, working primarily with the running backs.
Miller, a 2018 graduate of JMU, was a standout athlete for the Dukes from 2014-17, which included him being voted 2017 Colonial Athletic Association Special Teams Player of the Year.
This past season, his running backs group ranked 37th in the FBS in rushing yards per game (186.7). That total was fourth-best in the Sun Belt Conference and the team’s 24 rushing touchdowns was third in the conference.
He coached Percy Agyei-Obese to Third Team All-Sun Belt status, after he ranked third in the Sun Belt in rushing yards per game (908) and fifth in yards per carry (5.7). Agyei-Obese finished his JMU career ranking second in both career rushing touchdowns (39) and rush attempts (694), third in both rushing yards (3,503) and total touchdowns (39) and fourth in scoring (234).
Agyei-Obese was also voted 2022 First Team All-State while Kaelon Black was voted Virginia Sports Information Directors Offensive Rookie of the Year after rushing for 333 yards and three scores, averaging 4.8 per rush. His running backs combined for 1,991 rushing yards and 17 rushing scores, helping JMU’s offense rank 13th nationally in scoring (37.0) and 29th in total offense (452.5).
His 2021 running backs corps was plagued with injuries, but still managed to rank top 50 nationally in rushing per game (159.1), complimenting one of the best passing attacks in the nation. Latrele Palmer stepped up, running for 947 yards and three scores, while Solomon Vanhorse was a dual threat in the passing game, reeling in five touchdown catches, which was third-best for JMU.
In his first season back in Harrisonburg, his running backs helped the Dukes lead the CAA and rank sixth nationally in rushing yards per game (232.6) during the spring 2020-21 season. The stacked room was led by All-American Agyei-Obese and All-Conference back Jawon Hamilton, as the two combined for over 1,250 yards and 13 scores in eight games.
Agyei-Obese was seventh in the FCS with eight rushing touchdowns while ranking 11th with 102.4 rushing yards per outing. Hamilton was also top 50 nationally in rushing yards, as he was 10th-best in yards per carry, at nearly 6.1 per attempt.
Miller returned to his alma mater after spending the previous two seasons as offensive quality control coach at the University of Texas. While with the Longhorns, he worked primarily with the wide receivers. In that role, he was responsible for defensive film breakdown, scouting reports, pass-game plan drawings and self-scout while also assisting daily operations with the receivers.
He helped coach a pair of Longhorns to the NFL ranks in 2020 in Devin Duvernay, a third-round pick to Baltimore, and Collin Johnson, a fifth-round selection to Jacksonville. Miller also worked with a pair of former JMU coaches at Texas in Everett Withers and Drew Mehringer.
Prior to Texas, Miller had a short stint during the 2019 spring season at ECU, where he was an offensive graduate assistant with the receivers and tight ends. He began his coaching career with the Dukes, serving as a grad assistant during the 2018 season and working with the same position groups.
As a student-athlete, Miller helped JMU to back-to-back appearances in the national championship game, which included winning the 2016 title. In addition to him being Special Teams Player of the Year as a senior, Miller was a First Team All-CAA punt returner in 2017.
Miller produced arguably two of the biggest catches over the past decade for JMU, scoring the game-winning touchdown in 2015 at FBS foe SMU and recording the insurance touchdown at North Dakota State in the 2016 semifinals.
He finished his career with 86 receptions for 865 yards and five touchdowns in 46 games played. He also scored a pair of touchdowns on punt return and ranks tied for eighth all-time at JMU with 489 punt-return yards. Miller began his career as a running back, accruing 473 rushing yards and five scores.
