Army football players felt 'scared' for teammate Andre Miller, relieved he's doing better
If you play football long enough, you’re bound to get hurt but most players don’t give it a second thought.
“When I was young they used to say, ‘If you’re scared to get hurt, you’re going to get hurt.’ I think that holds true,’’ said Army football senior captain Austin Hill.
Hill said he’s been fortunate so far in his career and trusts the good Lord to “take care of me, and just control what I can control.’’
That’s why Hill felt a bit helpless, like his teammates and 30,000 other spectators packed in the JMA Dome at Syracuse University last Saturday as teammate Andre Miller lay motionless on the turf following an inadvertent collision of helmets.
“It was definitely scary,’’ Hill said. “I saw him hit the ground. He rolled a little bit but then he didn’t get up. It was scary, you know. It was quiet in there. It was dead silent in there.’’
“In the moment, you hate to see a person, especially in that capacity, with what that injury looked like on the field,’’ said senior captain Jimmy Ciarlo. “It is definitely scary.’’
Watching the reactions of his teammates was a lot to bear for Hill.
“Honestly, it’s just a true testament to the Brotherhood we have, just how heartbroken guys were,’’ he said.
“There’s so many emotions,’’ said sophomore receiver Noah Short. “Everything kind of gets put aside when someone’s injured. Everyone was really hoping for the best.’’
“Unfortunately, there’s not much we could do at that point,’’ Ciarlo said, “but it really fired us up. We really just wanted to hear the news that he was doing okay.’’
The good news is Miller is on the mend and back to his old self, Hill said.
“Andre is doing well, same guy as before, great spirits,’’ Hill said. “Andre is a great kid. Obviously, it's great to see him doing better. He’s a kid you love to be around and his attitude is contagious, his personality is contagious.’’
“He's In good shape, not along the lines of what they had anticipated,’’ Ciarlo said.
West Point has not released any detailed information about Miller’s condition since the weekend, but he was released from a Syracuse hospital trauma center and returned to the Academy on Sunday.
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“We saw him in the locker room,’’ Short said “and that big old smile, so everyone’s just really grateful.’’
Watching the whole episode provided a lot of perspective.
“You never know when your last play is,’’ Short said. “The game is so violent and so physical. You really never know when or if you’re going to get injured. It made me appreciate the game a little more.’’
Hill wanted to recognize the Syracuse team for the sportsmanship it showed following Miller’s injury. “I honestly appreciate that from them,’’ he said. Both teams knelt in prayerful silence on the field as medical personnel tended to Miller for about 10 minutes, placing him on a backboard and taking him off the field on a motorized cart – at that point, players from both teams got up close and offered their well wishes. At that time, Miller was conscious and felt tingles in his extremities, said head coach Jeff Monken.
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Army has a bye week and will host Boston College on October 7.
Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army football teammates happy to see Andre Miller on the mend
