Syracuse Lacrosse Player Jovan Miller Joins Jim Brown

The All-America lists came out weeks ago, but one selection that was made reigns momentous for Syracuse history. Syracuse registered 10 names on the list. One name was Jovan Miller. He is the first African American All-American at Syracuse since the great Jim Brown. The Post-Standard in Syracuse published a great article about the feat.

"Coach (Roy) Simmons Jr. sat me down on a bus ride home from one of our games," Miller, a junior midfielder on the Syracuse University lacrosse team, recalled. "He looked me in the eye and told me I was having an unbelievable season, that I would be the first African-American All-American at Syracuse since Jim Brown by the time it was over. I never looked at myself that way. I’ll always remember that conversation."

Miller rarely steps off the field.

"One of the things people don’t realize about Jovan is what great physical condition he is in," SU head coach John Desko said. "It is one thing to see a midfielder play a bunch of offense and defense in the first and second quarters. It is another to see one do it into the fourth quarter and just keep going and going. Jovan works hard on his own."

"And that was on a Saturday night after we had played a game that afternoon," Desko said. "This is a kid who has his priorities in order. He is very focused and driven, both in the classroom and on the lacrosse field."

Miller motivates.

"Winning a couple of national championships when I got here was a nice way to break in my college career," he said. "But the biggest kick I get out of going out there and twirling a stick is motivating another kid to play. It hasn’t been about scoring a bunch of goals. It’s about a kid watching me and saying, ‘Wow, he really enjoys it.’ More than anything, that’s what I want to do – motivate others to enjoy it as much as I do."

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