Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

SOLON – For more than two decades Kevin Miller put everything he had into making Solon football successful.

That is what made it so difficult after 18 seasons for Miller to determine whether he should remain the head coach at his alma mater.

It was the same commitment that Miller poured into the Solon program, first as a player then later as a coach, that led to his decision to announce his resignation as head coach on Wednesday.

“I just want to have the flexibility in my schedule to do what I need to do and go where I want to go and if I can’t give this program 100 percent of what I have to give it then I can’t do it,” Miller said. “My motto has always been don’t expect kids to do things you aren’t willing to do yourself. I just kept coming back to not being able to give the necessary time to this program that it really needs to flourish to the extent that is has in the past.”

Miller won 190 games in 18 seasons at Solon, directing the Spartans to four consecutive state titles from 2007-2010.

Solon won 42 consecutive games from 2007 to 2010, winning 2A titles in 2007, 2008 and 2009 and adding a 3A crown in 2010.

Miller had stints at Boscobel, Wisconsin, MFL Mar-Mac and Regina prior to his 18 years leading the program at Solon and steps away from coaching with a 197-52 career record.

“It was agonizing, I’m not going to lie,” Miller said of the decision to retire. “It was flat out agonizing.”

Miller led Solon to its first state title as a quarterback in 1988.

He took over as the head coach at Solon in 2002 and helped turn the program into a perennial power.

The Spartans reached the 2A title game in 2003 and 2006 before winning 54-of-55 games and claiming four consecutive titles from 2007-2010.

“It was 1983 when I was a junior high player and my nephew will graduate in 2022 so there will be a Miller involved in the program in some capacity for nearly 40 years,” Miller said. “That says a lot about the investment of our family in this program and this community and so to leave that was something that you don’t just wake up and leave.”

Solon reached the playoffs in 17 of the 18 seasons Miller was head coach including each of the last 15 seasons.

The Spartans went 12-1 last season and finished as the Class 3A runner-up with Miller’s son Cam as the starting quarterback.

A three-year starter, Cam Miller helped Solon to a 32-3 record over the past season seasons with his father as his head coach.  

“Sharing that experience with Cam was extremely memorable not many people are able to experience something like that, a state championship game, a state runner-up finish as a player or as a coach,” Kevin Miller said. “It’s not even about that, it was the process over the last three or four years that we have been able to share.”

Miller is one of only 10 coaches in state history with more than three state titles but it wasn’t wins or championships that drew Miller to coaching.

“It’s never been about winning championships it’s always been about the process of developing young men and if you do those things well then winning will take care of itself in the long run,” Miller said. “I’ve always believed in that.”

“For me it’s always been about making an eternal impact, long after I am gone I hope that the men that have played within this program will continue to make an impact and have influence over people’s lives in their own communities. Hopefully that will continue on for many, many years.”

Miller’s daughter McKenna is a student at Iowa State and Cam will play football at North Dakota State next season.

Miller, who will remain a teacher at Solon, is looking forward to enjoying time with both his children in the future.

“I don’t want to miss out on any opportunities, I want to be there to share in those experiences with them and I just don’t to have any regrets,” Miller said. “When my kids were younger I sacrificed a lot and they sacrificed a lot to be away from me. I don’t to miss out on any opportunities with them now.”

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