Dean Miller is readying for his redshirt senior season as a defensive end with Kansas football. Here’s more on his mindset ahead of the fall opener.
FRISCO, Texas — As Dean Miller went through Big 12 Conference media days earlier this month, he thought back to his decision to commit to Kansas football in the first place.
Miller, in Frisco, Texas, recalled how he’d pledged to join a program that was coming off a 2-10 season in 2021. He highlighted how far the team’s come since then, alluding to back-to-back bowl appearances in 2022 and 2023. He mentioned he came to KU for a reason, and has stayed there for one as well, as he’s played a role in the program’s rebuild under coach Lance Leipold.
But while Miller had the chance to tell reporters how honored he felt to be able to represent the Jayhawks at media days, he also had the opportunity to speak on what could be another source of momentum ahead of the 2025 season. The redshirt senior defensive end, an All-Big 12 second team honoree in 2024, didn’t make the preseason all-conference team this fall. And as Kansas looks to prove as a team that last year’s disappointment is not the first moment of a sustained setback, he’ll have something to prove as well.
“I mean, yeah, obviously you want to see your name on that list,” Miller said. “But, I mean, at the end of the day, you all are going to see what I do this season, and wherever I end up is where I end up. And at that point, the preseason, all this talk, like it suddenly doesn’t matter as much.”
Miller acknowledged there’s something cool about being a part of a team that is expected, publicly, to be a Big 12 contender like last season’s Kansas team was. But he also thinks it’s cool to be the underdog, as he’s felt he’s been his whole life. From his perspective, if you doubt the Jayhawks, he and his teammates will just look to prove you wrong.
Of course,e Miller has his own goals, like trying to capture a sack or more each game, but in the end, he wants the team to succeed and the defense to perform. He’s embraced the energy D.K. McDonald’s had since taking over as defensive coordinator, after Brian Borland’s retirement. Miller’s also praised both the experience McDonald brings to the college ranks as someone with NFL coaching experience, and how McDonald’s efforts to simplify some things have allowed them to think less and play as fast as possible.
Thriving off of those decisions will help put KU in a position to succeed during a non-conference slate that includes a road game at rival Missouri. It’ll do the same during Big 12 play, where Kansas has a home game against rival Kansas State. Both games have been circled by the Jayhawks’ fan base for some time.
“I would say Missouri, to people who live in the Kansas area, I would say that’s definitely their biggest rivalry,” Miller said. “I mean, me personally, coming from southern California, not necessarily being a true Kansas kid by the books, I would say K-State is still at the top of my list. I mean, we have yet to take them down in my time being here. So, that’s definitely something I got on my calendar. But as with any other game, there’s key points to it.”
Pair team and individual success together, and Miller could have the opportunity to be an NFL draft prospect in 2026. It’s something that’s on his mind, as he looks to capitalize on one more fall at Kansas. It’s something that’ll require continued physical development, as he works with director of sports performance Matt Gildersleeve and the nutrition staff at KU.
Despite the gains Miller feels he’s made, as he’s now listed at 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds, it’s not as if making that progress makes the future work he’ll put in any easier. In fact, he noted, it might actually become more difficult because he has to continue to meet a new standard. But while he’s put on weight, he said he hasn’t lost the speed that makes him an effective pass rusher, and during the offseason, he volunteered he’s set new personal records in that regard.
“Kind of the main thing I started my career with, is just like continuing to add good mass onto my frame just so I could really hold that firm edge,” Miller said. “That’s been something that agents and scouts, whatever, they’ve preached to me ever since I started football. And that continues to be an area that I work on every single day.”
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at [email protected] or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas football DE Dean Miller's confidence is high ahead of the fall
Category: General Sports
