Florida QB still has Ole Miss aspirations

Give West Palm Beach (King's), Fla. quarterback Mike Miller credit for two things - being a realist and for also being patient.

Miller tripped to Ole Miss for Junior Day last winter, for the Rebels' spring game in April, and for Houston Nutt's senior camp, and while there's no offer on the horizon, Miller hasn't given up hope.

"I don't know if I'm an SEC-level quarterback right now," he said on Wednesday evening. "But I've had plenty of college recruiters tell me that I can play at the Division I level and I think in two or three years, I could develop into an SEC quarterback."

Miller's aspiration to play in the SEC was not helped along by two recent camp experiences. He went to Vanderbilt a day or two before showing up at Ole Miss on July 25 for the Rebels' camp.

"The Ole Miss camp was good, but I didn't do as well as I wanted to," he said. "I seem to do better in games. At the camp, I would say that I pressed too much. I did alright, but not as good as I could have."

Miller, a 6-foot-2, 191 pound prospect whose father played football as a wide receiver at Ole Miss in the 1970s, said his chances with Vanderbilt likely slipped away with a performance in Nashville similar to what he had at Ole Miss.

"Vanderbilt had been sending me a lot of handwritten stuff and wanted to get me up for camp," he said. "The coaches were nice and everything, but they are going to take two quarterbacks and already have one committed (Nash Nance) and have offered another quarterback since their camp from Alabama (Darren Daniel) and if he doesn't work out at quarterback, he could play receiver or defense, something I can't do."

Miller said he felt any opportunity at Vanderbilt is gone, but he's still holding out hope from Ole Miss.

"Coach (Kent) Austin told me after the spring game that if Jevan (Snead) goes to the NFL after this season, they are going to sign two quarterbacks," Miller said. "I know that I'm not in their top two or three, but if some guys go somewhere else, may I'll move up and be able to get that second position."

It's a situation that Miller is willing to allow to develop.

"If Ole Miss works out, that would be awesome," Miller said. "I know that it will be in January or maybe right before signing day that I get an Ole Miss offer, if I get one at all. But I think, going in my favor, is that Coach Austin likes me as a person and he knows how hard I work and am willing to work."

Miller currently doesn't have any offers, but he feels two schools are really close.

He stopped by Memphis unannounced, sandwiched between his stops at Vanderbilt and Ole Miss, and was impressed with the way he was received.

"They said they had heard about me and were really interested," Miller said. "I've since sent up video from my spring game and they're showing even more interest and said they'll be down early in the season to look at me at one of my games."

Miller also said Florida Atlantic has been showing interest and could be close to offering.

Miller said that Austin told him it's unlikely he'll be able to get down to Florida for one of Miller's games this fall - a situation not helped along by Ole Miss not playing in the state of Florida this year and going from mid-September until late November without an open date - a period when football staffs arrange to see prospects personally in game action.

He did, however, say that recruiting coordinator Chris Vaughn, likely will scout one of his games.

Meanwhile, Miller plans to focus on his season and build on an outstanding spring game where he hit on 12 of 14 passes for over 240 yards - a scrimmage game played against 5-A level competition and one that was shortened to just one half due to lightning in the area.

"I just want to focus on my season and let recruiting take care of itself," he said. "That's what all the coaches tell me to do."