Sept. 3, 2007

by Louis Bonnette

John Miller was a mess when he came off the football field following McNeese State's loss to Syracuse in the 1979 Independence Bowl in Shreveport.

"It looked like he had been in one of those down and dirty fights and there wasn't any two ways about it," said Cowboy athletic trainer Jim Murphy. "He looked like he had lost."

What Miller, a defensive tackle, had just gotten finished with was a battle with Syracuse offensive lineman Craig Wolfley who would go on to an outstanding career in the NFL.

"John had a quizzical look on his face when he came to the sidelines after the game," Murphy added. "He said that he just got some bad news. He had been congratulated by Wolfley for playing a good game and that Wolfley had asked him what his plans were.

"He had told him that he had been invited to play in the Blue-Gray all-star game and Wolfley said that so had he, so the two would be meeting up again on opposite sides of the ball and I don't think that John was looking forward to another matchup."

It was a little different in the Blue-Gray game as Miller played an up lineman - like a defensive end - and didn't go against Wolfley as much.

His selection for the the Blue-Gray, which is no longer played but back then was a top post season all-star game and played on Christmas Day in Montgomery, AL, was a surprise. That contest, along with the Senior Bowl in Mobile and the East-West game on the west coast were the all-star games that drew the seniors who would go on to play in the NFL the next year.

"I really don't know how I got picked for the game," Miller said. "I think that the Gray team needed a defensive tackle and Coach Duplechin (then head coach Ernie) recommended me. Our other defensive tackle Clay Carroll was a junior and I was a senior so I got the invite. We had had a good season, going undefeated in the regular season, winning the conference title and playing in the bowl game."

Back then the Cowboys were also with the big boys, being a member of NCAA Division I.

Miller would become a starter for the Gray team for the all-star game, the first and only McNeese player to ever earn such an honor.

"When I got there everyone there knew about McNeese and what we had done during the season. The head coach was Vince Dooley and he was a real nice guy. I had some good practices and got the start," Miller said.

He also had a good game, getting a couple of sacks and a few other tackles.

Miller, who played at 6-0 and 245 pounds, had not gotten many looks from the NFL scouts during the regular season but following the all-star game did get some offers of tryouts from Canadian Football League teams.

"But, I was done," he said. "I had decided that the Blue-Gray game would be my final game. I felt that I could play with these guys and that was all I needed. I was six foot, 245 pounds, quick but a little slow."

He spent his final year at McNeese serving as a graduate assistant coach on Duplechin's staff and then entered into the business field, now serving as a vice president for national sales with Lamar Advertising in his hometown of Baton Rouge.

Miller was probably the heart and soul of that 1979 Cowboy football game.

"We were a bunch of average players," Miller said, "but we played as a team and we played with a lot of heart."

Last Saturday, Miller earned a place in the McNeese State Hall of Fame and he accepted his award on behalf of all of the members of that 1979 team.