Columbus East’s Brody Miller, left, grabs ahold of Columbus North quarterback Asher Ratliff for a sack Aug. 29 at Columbus East High School.
Mike Wolanin | The Republic
Brody Miller added to his versatility over the summer, and he has been utilized in a big way this season.
The Columbus East senior has played defense the past several years, but now has been part of the running back rotation for the Olympians’ offense, as well, this year.
Miller has played linebacker for East, but with many injuries for the Olympians this season, Miller moved to the safety position. So far, it’s been working. Defensively, Miller has had four interceptions, a fumble recovery and a pass deflection this year. Two of those interceptions came in Friday’s 20-17 upset win against Bedford North Lawrence.
“I like being on the field as much as I can,” Miller said. “I think it was just being prepared for them, and the mentality going into the game was very good, so we wanted to make the game ugly, and that’s exactly what we did. We went out there and played our best.”
Brody Miller
Over the summer, Miller possessed much more speed and caught the attention of the coaching staff. After all, he was a regional qualifier in track as part of East’s4x100-meter relay team in the spring.
“He’s a great runner. It’s tough to get through a season injury-wise just having one (running back), and JD (Rotert) has done a great job of it. Brody is just as explosive. He’s fast, and we needed to get him some reps,” East coach Eddie Vogel said. “In the scrimmage against Whiteland, he ripped off a big run right out of the gate. We haven’t had to use him a lot. The last couple of weeks, we rotated him, JD and Joel Murphy back there, and it’s been working. If he gets five or six touches during the game, and he’s one of those guys that if he touches it, he can take it to the house. We’ve got to continue to find ways to get him in the game.”
Miller is third leading rusher on the Olympians with 152 yards on 25 carries with two touchdowns, trailing Rotert (566) and quarterback Kyson Villarreal (333).
“He’s our hardest worker. He’s a tremendous guy in the weight room and has the work ethic good players have,” Vogel said. “He’s extremely versatile, and we feel fortunate enough to have him on our football team. He’s very unselfish, as well. He’s one of those guys that will do anything to try and help the football team win games.”
It was an adjustment at the beginning of the season for Miller playing both sides of the ball, but he now has the stamina, strength and conditioning needed to play on the field for several minutes at a time.
“It started from the beginning of the season, just conditioning and doing it in practice, too, helps trying to get used to it,” he said. “So near the end of the season, it wasn’t as bad as it was at the beginning. You get used to it.”
East will play the winner from Friday night’s contest between Whiteland and Seymour. Should the Warriors win, Whiteland will be the designated host. Should the Owls win, East will be hosting Seymour. According to the Jeff Sagarin Rating, it seems like the former is inevitable, with the Warriors a 39-point favorite over the Owls.
“Our goal at the beginning of the year was to win sectional this year. I think all we’ve done throughout the year has led to this moment,” Miller said. “I think we’re prepared, especially with that win (against BNL). It was really good for our mentality and to get us in the right mindset. We have that confidence now going into either Whiteland or Seymour next (Friday). We’re prepared, and we’re ready to go back out there and make the game ugly again.”
