Christopher James Miller (born August 9, 1965)
is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
coach and former
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
who was selected by the
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
in the 1st round (13th overall) of the
1987 NFL Draft
The 1987 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 28–29, 1987, at the Marriot Marq ...
. He played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at the
University of Oregon
The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...
.
Early life
Born in
Pomona,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
,
Miller was raised in
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
. He attended
Sheldon High School in
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.
As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...
. He was star athlete in three sports: baseball, football and basketball.
College athlete
Miller attended
University of Oregon
The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...
where he played quarterback for the
Oregon Ducks football team.
He was considered a risky recruit for higher ranked college teams due to concerns about a knee injury he suffered in high school.
College statistics
*1983: 17/41 for 229 yards with 2 TD vs 3 INT
*1984: 145/289 for 1,712 yards with 10 TD vs 10 INT
*1985: 182/329 for 2,237 yards with 18 TD vs 13 INT; 45 carries for 81 yards with 4 TD
*1986: 216/356 for 2,503 yards with 12 TD vs 13 INT
Professional athlete
Miller played in 10 NFL seasons from 1987 to 1995 and 1999. His best year as a pro came during the 1991 season for the Falcons when he threw for over 3,000 yards and 26
touchdown
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...
s.
Concussion
A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...
s prevented him from playing longer. After he suffered five in a span of 14 months, he left the league for the first time. A concussion during his comeback with the
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
in 1999 convinced him that it was best to retire for good. He was inducted into the
Oregon Sports Hall of Fame The Oregon Sports Hall of Fame honors Oregon athletes, teams, coaches, and others who have made a significant contribution to sports in Oregon. The first class was inducted in 1980, with new inductees added in the fall. Operated by the Oregon Sports ...
in 2005.
Coaching career
Miller was the
head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...
for
South Eugene High School
South Eugene High School is a public high school located in Eugene, Oregon, United States.
History
The school was founded as Eugene High School around 1900, and was located at Willamette Street and West 11th Avenue in a brick building that late ...
in Eugene, Oregon, from 2001 to 2006.
He was also the quarterback coach for the
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...
from 2009 to 2011.
In 2013, Miller returned to South Eugene as head coach. In 2014, he was named the head football coach at
West Linn High School
West Linn High School is a public high school in West Linn, Oregon, United States. It is one of two high schools in the West Linn-Wilsonville School District, the other being Wilsonville High School.
Academics
In 1984, West Linn High School wa ...
.
Before the 2019 season, Miller announced he would depart West Linn at year's end to join the
Houston Roughnecks
The Houston Roughnecks are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The team is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL founded by Vince McMahon's Alpha Entertainment and plays its home games at TDECU Stadium.
History
...
of the
XFL
XFL may refer to:
Sports
* XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001
* XFL (2020), a professional American football league
Vehicles
* Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...
as offensive coordinator.
In May 2020, he was named head coach of
Franklin High School in Portland, Oregon. He never coached a game for the Lightning, however, as his former position at West Linn opened up a few weeks later and Miller returned to the Lions on July 8, 2020.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Chris
1965 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Eugene, Oregon
Sportspeople from Pomona, California
Players of American football from Oregon
American football quarterbacks
Sheldon High School (Eugene, Oregon) alumni
Oregon Ducks football players
Atlanta Falcons players
Los Angeles Rams players
St. Louis Rams players
Denver Broncos players
National Conference Pro Bowl players
High school football coaches in Oregon
Houston Roughnecks coaches