Ahmad Miller’s breakthrough at Jackson State moves him out of sibling’s shadow

From the moment running back Ahmad Miller arrived at Jackson State, expectations followed him like a shadow he couldn’t shake. Some came from within, stemming from an unrelenting drive to prove himself, but most were inherited, stitched into his last name long before he ever took a snap.

As the younger brother of former Jackson State All-America linebacker Aubrey Miller, who helped the Tigers capture back-to-back Southwestern Athletic Conference titles (2021 and 2022) and Celebration Bowl berths, Ahmad Miller never had the luxury of anonymity. Known for years as “Little Miller,” the nickname carried both pride and pressure.

Now, in his redshirt sophomore season, Miller is stepping out from under his brother’s legacy and writing his own. The Memphis, Tennessee, native has powered Jackson State’s ground game, leading the Tigers in rushing yards (704) and carries (96) while ranking second in rushing touchdowns (four). His production has fueled a JSU rushing attack that ranks second nationally among FCS programs — trailing only Delaware State — and first in the SWAC with 273.8 yards per game.

Still, for all the breakout numbers and highlight runs, Miller isn’t satisfied.

“He [Aubrey] did some tremendous stuff here,” Miller said. “I got some more work to do. People are starting to know who I am, but personally I haven’t really done anything yet.”

Aubrey Miller, now with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League, said there was never pressure for his brother to follow in his footsteps.

“It wasn’t an expectation for him to keep up with me,” the elder Miller said. “I’m nobody to keep up with. Ahmad has been making his own lane since he was a kid.”

As Ahmad Miller forges his own path, the Tigers face a pivotal stretch. Jackson State (6-2, 4-1 SWAC) entered November with four critical games — three against SWAC East opponents — that began last weekend with a dominant 41-16 win over Florida A&M in which Miller finished with 165 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown.

The timing couldn’t have been more crucial, following Jackson State’s 26-24 loss to Grambling State — its first conference defeat — on Oct. 25 in the inaugural Las Vegas HBCU Classic.

The win against the Rattlers restored Jackson State’s momentum and kept alive the Tigers’ pursuit of consecutive Celebration Bowl titles. To earn them, though, Jackson State will need players like Ahmad Miller to embody the program’s standard of dominance and toughness, the same traits his brother instilled in him as a kid.

“He [Ahmad] has to run the football; he has to be physical; he has to be decisive for us to get back to the SWAC championship game,” running backs coach Eric Gallon said. “I tell him that every week. I don’t care what anybody says. We can pass the ball all around the field. But to win a SWAC title, we have to be able to run between the tackles.”

The Miller brothers’ rivalry started like most football dreams do, in backyards and living rooms that doubled as makeshift fields.

Aubrey, the instigator, said he was always “horseplaying around” no matter where they were. Ahmad, quieter and more reserved, tried to keep his distance, though that never lasted long.

“Whether at home, outside in the street or at my grandma’s house, he [Aubrey] always liked to play,” Ahmad Miller said with a laugh. “I didn’t want to play. He was a bully growing up, but in a brotherly-love type of way. I found myself running from him, and I didn’t like getting caught or being touched. … Now, he will remind me that he’s the reason I play running back.”

Aubrey Miller doesn’t deny it.

“He’s [Ahmad] really quick on his feet,” he said, laughing. “Whenever I would chase that man on the carpet, dude would be in socks bending corners. … The more he learned certain landscapes and pivots on the floor, the harder it got to catch him. He never got tired and always found a way to get away.”

Those playful battles became the foundation of Ahmad Miller’s edge, speed and balance that define him as one of JSU’s featured backs. Inside a loaded backfield known as the “yard boys,” Miller is part of a unit that prides itself on producing positive yards every snap.

The group runs deep. There’s 2024 SWAC Freshman of the Year Travis Terrell Jr.; transfer Donerio Davenport, who leads the team in rushing touchdowns; and versatile runners such as Desmond Moultrie and Emari Matthews.

“Our room is a little bit different from others,” Gallon said. “We’re tone-setters. Any one of them [running backs] can get the job done. They celebrate, joke with each other, but they are also detailed in their accountability.

“If someone is running an inside zone and doesn’t step with the right foot, or someone’s toe is on the ground or their heel is not high enough, they will call you out. When we are in our room for meetings, I don’t even really have to say a whole lot because they know the standard.”

Within that room, Miller’s leadership stands out. Where his older brother once commanded attention with fire and volume, Ahmad Miller leads with quiet conviction, a standard that speaks for itself.

Graduate student Moultrie, who learned under Aubrey Miller as a freshman, sees both the similarities and differences between the brothers.

“He [Aubrey] was an enforcer, very vocal and he was going to bark at you,” Moultrie said. “Ahmad is going to show you what to do.”

Moultrie chuckled, recalling one morning that captured Ahmad Miller’s quiet intensity.

“I called myself getting to the field early for a workout session before practice around 6:15,” he said. “Ahmad had already been running the hills, muddied up and was headed to take a shower, all before practice started at 7:45.”

Miller’s work ethic and discipline were sharpened through hardship, especially after his true freshman season in 2023.

Just three games into the 2024 campaign, Miller suffered a partial ligament tear in his right big toe, ending his season. For weeks, he pushed through pain and rehab, desperate to return. But nothing went according to plan.

“It was tough. … Depression is real,” said Miller, who is 6-foot and 207 pounds. “Not having football to go to after finishing classes for the day. I didn’t want to believe my season was over. But God sat me down. He humbled me, forced me to grow spiritually and allowed me to perfect my craft.”

From the sideline, he watched former running back Irv Mulligan carry JSU to a conference title and the program’s first Celebration Bowl win. Proud but yearning to contribute, Miller redirected his focus toward patience and faith.

He leaned into church and Scripture, journaling sermon notes and studying the Bible daily, especially passages from the Book of Job. One verse, Isaiah 41:10 (which offers reassurance), became his anchor while his brother urged him to stay disciplined and use the setback as fuel.

“He persevered,” Aubrey Miller said. “We talk about this all the time. What makes a man is the hard times he goes through when it seems like no one supports you, nobody’s looking at you, nobody’s believing in you. He needed his own relationship with God. … It makes me happy to see him do what I already knew he could do, even when others didn’t believe he could.”

The younger Miller listened to his big brother and rebuilt his self-confidence one drill at a time, improving his footwork, vision and blitz pickup. The injury had sidelined him physically, but mentally and spiritually, he grew stronger.

“I’m so grateful for the injury,” Ahmad Miller said. “It opened my eyes to life itself. … I never want to take another down for granted. I realized I have the ability to play this game, so let me go all in.”

Ten weeks into this season, Miller’s numbers nearly mirror Mulligan’s from a year ago. By the second week of November last fall, Mulligan had 103 carries for 709 yards and seven touchdowns. Now, Miller is right there with him.

Head coach T.C. Taylor saw it coming.

“He’s that workhorse type of back, a big running back with elite speed, can run and do everything and showed great signs of growth through [fall] camp,” Taylor said.

Gallon agreed, crediting Miller’s maturity and preparation.

“He [Miller] took it upon himself to be more focused, more attentive in meetings and understanding the concepts of what we’re trying to achieve,” Gallon said. “He’s always been a strong, fast runner and one that’s hard to tackle. I don’t think he realizes that sometimes. But his attention to detail, his offseason workouts and footwork have made him a better football player this year than last year.”

Last December, Miller watched the Celebration Bowl from Memphis. Cleared medically but still in recovery, he watched while his teammates won a championship. The experience stung, not from envy, but from longing. 

This year, that same stage is within reach, and Miller is determined to earn his way back. For him, it’s about more than redemption. It’s about fulfilling what faith, family and perseverance have prepared him for.

“After we recently got our championship rings, I told my teammates we got to get back to the SWAC championship and Celebration Bowl,” Miller said. “Being on the team last year was a blessing. But it is a different feeling having a role in the process.”

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