Thoughts of transferring entered the mind of Omarion Miller during his first two seasons at Colorado.
As he enters his third season with the Buffaloes, however, Miller is happy he’s stayed put.
CU will open the season against Georgia Tech on Aug. 29 (6 p.m., ESPN) at Folsom Field and Miller is one of the leaders of a revamped group of receivers.
“I’m definitely glad I stayed here,” said Miller, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound junior from Vivian, La. “I love being here. I could have been transferring and went other places after my freshman season, but I decided to stay here because I love Boulder, love everything around Colorado.”
A four-star prospect coming out of North Caddo (La.) High School in 2023, Miller was committed to LSU for several months as a high school junior. Then, he spent five months committed to Nebraska during his senior year before flipping to CU.
With the Buffs, Miller has flashed his potential, but he has yet to be a featured receiver.
Playing behind several future pros in 2023, including Travis Hunter and Xavier Weaver, Miller was called upon during the second half of a game against USC and caught seven passes for 196 yards and a touchdown. He caught just four passes the rest of the season, though.
Last year, he was behind Hunter – who won the Heisman Trophy and Biletnikoff Award – LaJohntay Wester, Jimmy Horn Jr., and Will Sheppard, who are all now in the NFL. He had a pivotal 58-yard touchdown reception against Baylor on Sept. 21 and then caught eight passes for 145 yards against Kansas State on Oct. 12, but an ankle injury in that K-State game ended his season.
For a player who racked up 3,492 yards and 43 touchdowns in high school, Miller’s production through two college seasons (21 catches for 450 yards, two TDs) hasn’t been what he expected.
“I wouldn’t say frustrating, but it got to a point to where I used to think a lot, and I didn’t really know what to say about it, or how to go about it,” he said of adjusting to a backup role.
Miller admitted there were times he wondered if this was the right place for him.
“I wasn’t getting the right play time that I wanted but I definitely think that was a big learning process for me, too,” he said. “To learn from that, and to bounce back from it, for sure.”
Rather than focus on the lack of playing time, Miller said he chose to take a different view and soak up whatever lessons he could learn from the veterans he was playing behind.
“Now I feel like it was a great place for me to start off; from me being that guy all my life, to where now I’ve got to come in and learn from a bunch of guys, to the point where I’m at that place now,” he said. “So I can do it to the young guys that’s in my room right now.”
This year, there are no experienced veterans standing in his way. The Buffs are loaded with talent, but a lead role is there for the taking for Miller. He has some work to do, however, to prove himself to receivers coach Jason Phillips.
“He’s got to practice better,” Phillip said. “He’s got to practice with the level of consistency that we’re asking him to do, the expectation. Like I told him (Tuesday) morning, man, we get ups and downs, we get blips and glimpses of what he’s capable on game day. If he can practice that way, then he will be a much better player. So he needs to continue to just work hard and practice at a consistent level.”
Living up to that high standard is part of why Miller stayed, because he knows the potential of where success in this offense can take him. And, he’s hoping this is finally the year he busts loose.
“I’m excited, man,” he said. “I’m excited to start off this role that I’m taking on this year of being the leader in the room. I’m excited to prove a lot of people wrong. I’ve been seeing a lot of things where it’s like, I can’t play a full season, and I’m just excited to prove them wrong.”
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