Kansas City, Kan. — Kansas defensive end Dean Miller saw the effects of his offseason body transformation borne out in a couple ways on Thursday night.
First, sartorially.
“Our guys wear suits to the game, and he’s a guy that says ‘My suit doesn’t fit anymore,'” head coach Lance Leipold said. “And I said, ‘Well, OK, we’ll get you another one, because you’ve earned that.'”
And second, on the field, as Miller showed exactly why he had earned himself a new suit: Within 10 minutes of his first start as a Jayhawk, the much-improved redshirt junior zoomed past Lindenwood right tackle Gavin Hulet and threw quarterback Nate Glantz to the ground.
That was the newly minted starter’s first sack as a Jayhawk after two years toiling on special teams, and after a pivotal conversation with Lance Leipold last November had impressed upon him that KU needed him for much more than that sort of responsibility.
“It just feels like all that work that I put in the offseason, it’s kind of starting to pay off,” he said.
As Leipold put it, the coaching staff believed in Miller from the start, “it just hasn’t taken place quite as fast as we hoped, but it is now.”
“Like he said, when he started recruiting me, he recruited me to play defense, not special teams, you know?” Miller recalled. “So it was time to flip that switch, put my head down, grind and do what I got to do to get on the field.”
The details of that offseason work are well documented at this point, as Miller embraced KU’s nutrition and strength programs to a greater degree than ever before and got his weight to the point that he was not just playable on defense, but a starting-caliber pass-rush end — he’s now listed at 235 pounds.
On Thursday, albeit against a lower-level foe, he certainly looked the part of a big-time defensive lineman, tallying four early tackles before KU began to rotate in its reserves.
That included the sack, which happened to come on a fourth down with Lindenwood in KU territory, and which precipitated some moments of pure jubilation from Miller and teammate D.J. Withers.
“If you guys saw me, I was pretty hyped after that, throwing a little flex down,” Miller said. “I was so excited I didn’t really know what to do, what to celebrate, so I just kind of let it out.”
Next time around, he’ll have a new suit before the game, as well as a new sack celebration during it.
“I’m going to keep my composure a little more next time,” Miller said. “You might see me throw up something y’all haven’t seen before. You just got to stay tuned in.”
Kansas defensive end Dean Miller (45) and defensive tackle D.J. Withers (52) after Lindenwood quarterback Nate Glantz (18) was sacked during the first half of an NCAA college football game Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan.
Lindenwood quarterback Nate Glantz is sacked by Kansas defensive end Dean Miller, bottom, during the first half of an NCAA college football game Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan.
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel