Missouri freshman Mekhi Miller has prepared for his chance for years
Mizzou freshman wide receiver Mekhi Miller’s stat line won’t pop out to you and say that he is Missouri’s next breakout wide receiver, but try telling that to Missouri sophomore wide receiver Dominic Lovett.
Entering the week seven bye, Lovett is second in both receptions (31) and receiving yards (499) in the Southeastern Conference, and now has the attention of his SEC counterparts. But Lovett said that people should also be on the lookout for Miller.
“It could be something we go over a thousand times and I may not get it, and I would ask Mekhi and he would know it just like that,” Lovett said. “He prepares like a pro and he always stays humble. … So, remember that name.”
Lovett’s comments come days after Miller played key snaps in the 24-17 loss to Florida in week six.
Down 24-10, with wide receivers Luther Burden III and Barrett Banister out with injury, on Missouri’s second to last offensive drive, Miller converted on a third and 15 to keep the drive alive. The Tigers would later narrow their deficit to 24-17 by the end of the drive.
On Missouri's last drive, Miller converted a third and 18 to keep the chains moving. Miller made a couple of the biggest plays of the game and he hadn't had a target since week one.
“It was great to see Mekhi Miller step up and make some plays,” Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz said following after the game. ”We’re pretty beat up right now at wideout with Luther down and Barrett and Chance out. So, we got to get some other people to step up.”
Miller’s former head coach at Blue Valley North, Adam Pummill, said that for a lot of guys it takes a while to adjust from high school ball to Power 5 football, but he said Miller’s intangibles have him ready to be an impact player right away.
“I have no question that Mekhi could be an immediate contributor and that’s because of his IQ,” Pummill said. “Some kids are incredibly talented, but maybe aren’t ready. His football IQ is so advanced that I think the transition would be easier for a guy like him.”
That isn’t to say Miller isn’t an exceptional athlete. In fact, one of Miller’s catches from a season ago is one of the hallmark photos at Blue Valley North. Miller ran a vertical route out of the slot and laid out one-handed for a gain of more than 40 yards.
“That was pretty neat, but the things from the coaching side that are cooler than that I would say his ability to set up defenders and understand the intricate parts of running route is at an elite level relative to the highest level,” Pummill said. “Obviously, he’s talented and has good speed and quickness, but he’s just a top-of-the-line route runner for anybody I’ve ever been around.”
Miller’s dad, Greg Miller, said that he and Mekhi were always preparing for the next level and that he’s always preached to his son to be prepared.
“I tell him all the time to stay ready so you won’t have to get ready,” Greg said. “Once he got to seventh grade we started preparing for varsity high school football mentally and physically. Once he got to high school, his freshman year, we were no longer preparing for high school. Our preparation was college. We studied his favorite players, movements, and mindsets to make sure he had an understanding of what he wanted for his future.”
Staying ready so he wouldn’t have to get ready wasn’t just an expression that Mekhi followed. He actually had to put this thinking to the test. After Mekhi’s freshman season at Topeka High School, he transferred to Blue Valley North, but was deemed ineligible to play his sophomore season. It didn’t stop Mekhi’s preparation for that season, and it actually opened Pummill's eyes more to the type of player Mekhi would become.
“That’s when we saw the character of him because he showed up every single day working relentlessly knowing he was the best player on the field, and also knowing he was not going to play,” Pummill said. “He would just work and not just for himself, but to make the team better.”
“That season helped me build myself mentally and emotionally,” Mekhi said. “If I’m not getting the playing time I want, I still have to be a great teammate. I can’t be selfish. I can’t be down in the dumps. It just would bring everybody else down, and I have to motivate my teammates as well.”
Missouri has been banged up at wide receiver all season with Chance Luper being ruled out indefinitely before the start of the season, the aforementioned absence of Banister for all of week six with an undisclosed injury, Burden going down with a lower leg injury in the third quarter against Florida and Lovett being less than 100%. It all added up to an opportunity for Miller to be a part of the rotation.
“The main thing is just trusting the process,” Mekhi said. “One thing that is preached a lot is practice makes game day reality. So, it wasn’t a surprise to me because I just fell back on my habits and when my name is called it’s a good opportunity to go out there and have fun.”
Pummill, who started his coaching career as a graduate assistant with the University of Tennessee in 2007, said that he sees similarities in Mekhi that he saw in a former NFL All-Pro he used to coach as a member of the Volunteers.
“Believe it or not him and Eric Berry have similar tendencies 一 practice wise,” Pummill said. “I think it's just that maturity level and recognizing that, whatever it takes in every instance, he's going to maximize the opportunity that he's got. In their brains, they're playing at the highest level one day and they're going to do everything they can to make it happen.”
Week six was Miller's first step. He hopes there's more to come. And he'll be ready when it does.
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