#TeamUSATuesday: Greco-Roman National Team member Daniel Miller
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by JD Rader, USA Wrestling
Daniel Miller is currently the No. 2 wrestler at 97 kg/213 lbs. for Team USA’s National Greco-Roman Team.
The Ocean City, Md. native was a NCAA national qualifier for the United States Naval Academy before graduating in 2013. While in college, he competed in the Junior World Championships for the United States. After college, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps and switched over to wrestling Greco-Roman.
Since making the transition, Miller has become an 2016 Olympic Trials qualifier, 2016 University Nationals All-American, 2018 Armed Forces double champion, 2018 U.S. Open champion, and multiple-time international tournament medalist.
Miller took time out of his busy schedule to answer some questions. Here are his top 15 responses…
What is your favorite movie?
If I had to choose one, I’d probably go with Braveheart. It’s about a guy who believes in something and stays true to that belief.
What is your favorite food when you’re not watching your weight?
When I’m home, my mom makes this dish called roulade. It’s basically these real thin steak strips wrapped up in bacon and it’s cooked in beef base with some seasoning. It’s phenomenal.
What is your favorite sport other than wrestling to watch?
Probably hockey. I think hockey requires a certain skill set that I don’t have. It’s hard enough for me to just skate on the ice. To go out there and watch this little puck traveling at however many miles an hour. Top that off with fights and all the strategy.
Did you play any other sports growing up?
When I was a kid, I played soccer, lacrosse, and baseball. Then when I got to high school, I just did football and wrestling. That’s actually when I started both football and wrestling.
Who is your favorite wrestler (past or present) to watch?
The person I look up to the most is Rulon (Gardner) because he went out there and did the impossible.
What was your favorite class in college?
My favorite class was probably combustion engines. I’m a mechanical engineer, so that was in my field. I kind of grew up with that and it’s still a hobby of mine to work with old cars and motorcycles and anything with an engine. If its got a motor, I pretty much tinker with it.
How did the Naval Academy differ from a normal college experience?
I think the biggest thing to capture all of it is that you have all of your regular classroom demands, if not more, because it’s such a rigorous school academically. Then you have all these military requirements as well. Some of that is physical fitness tests they do. The Navy does a physical readiness test. So, I’m wrestling heavyweight doing these runs for score and stuff. The balance of academics with the military side of things, throw-in a Division I sport, and that was the biggest difference.
If you could have dinner with three people (dead or alive), who would they be?
Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, and (Aleksandr) Karelin if I could understand him.
What is something you’re afraid of?
Spiders. I’m deathly afraid of spiders. A spider bite can kill you but they’re silent. I’ve been at TBS (The Basic School) and I’ve had dudes open up their pack and if they would have reached their hand in there before they noticed a black widow spun a web across the top, they would have gotten bit by a black widow. They’re little ninjas, so deadly but so quiet.
How did you get involved in wrestling?
I was wrestling at the after-school program and the high school wrestling coach asked me to wrestle for the high school. Since I didn’t have a winter sport that I play, I said sure.
What kind of advice would you give a younger wrestler?
If I had one piece of advice, I’d say it would be stay true to who you are. Set your goals, establish a foundation to reach those goals, and stick to it. That doesn’t mean if obstacles show up that you can’t alter your path but establish that foundation to reach your goals whatever they may be.
What motivates you?
A lot of things motivate me. I think at the end of the day, the one thing that motivates me is getting better every day or helping someone get better every day. In the Marine Corps, we base our program on three pillars: personal, professional, and athletic. My goal every day is to be better every day and set stuff up every day to be better tomorrow in one, two, or three of those pillars. If I haven’t gotten better in one of those areas, then I have failed for the day.
What is your favorite thing about wrestling?
The fact that you’re out there one-on-one asserting your skill on another human being. It’s the ultimate display of one-on-one skill, whether that be technical, physical, or mental.
What made you choose to wrestle Greco-Roman after college?
I decided I want to wrestle for the Marine Corps. I finally got orders to come over to the Marine Corps wrestling team after asking for two years and they were like, “by the way, we wrestle Greco.” I had never wrestled Greco a day in my life, but they basically said, “you can wrestle Greco, or you can go back to the fleet.” So, I started wrestling Greco that day. I wouldn’t go back though. As defiant as I was for the first probably nine or ten months, I’m happy that I was forced into that scenario and I have fallen in love with Greco since then.
What made you want to become a Marine?
When you finish up at the Naval Academy, you have to either go Navy or Marines. When I went to the Naval Academy, my mom made me promise her that I wasn’t going to become a Marine, but once I got there and started interacting with people from different services, I just felt like I identified with people in the Marine Corps a lot better than people in the Navy. It’s cliché but there’s a certain brotherhood you find in the Marine Corps that you don’t find anywhere else. When I was at the Naval Academy and saw the way Marines interacted and talked about other Marines, I wanted to be a part of that.
The Miller File
Born: February 21, 1992
High School: Berlin, Md. (Stephen Decatur)
College: United States Naval Academy
Club: U.S. Marine Corps
Residence: Sneads Ferry, N.C.
Instagram: @chasingthedreammarine
• 2018 U.S. Open champion
• 2018 Armed Forces double champion
• 2017 Haavisto Cup bronze medalist (Finland)
• 2017 Hungarian Grand Prix bronze medalist
• 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials qualifier
• Third in 2107 University Nationals
• 2013 NCAA national qualifier
• 2011 Junior World Freestyle Team member
The Ocean City, Md. native was a NCAA national qualifier for the United States Naval Academy before graduating in 2013. While in college, he competed in the Junior World Championships for the United States. After college, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps and switched over to wrestling Greco-Roman.
Since making the transition, Miller has become an 2016 Olympic Trials qualifier, 2016 University Nationals All-American, 2018 Armed Forces double champion, 2018 U.S. Open champion, and multiple-time international tournament medalist.
Miller took time out of his busy schedule to answer some questions. Here are his top 15 responses…
What is your favorite movie?
If I had to choose one, I’d probably go with Braveheart. It’s about a guy who believes in something and stays true to that belief.
What is your favorite food when you’re not watching your weight?
When I’m home, my mom makes this dish called roulade. It’s basically these real thin steak strips wrapped up in bacon and it’s cooked in beef base with some seasoning. It’s phenomenal.
What is your favorite sport other than wrestling to watch?
Probably hockey. I think hockey requires a certain skill set that I don’t have. It’s hard enough for me to just skate on the ice. To go out there and watch this little puck traveling at however many miles an hour. Top that off with fights and all the strategy.
Did you play any other sports growing up?
When I was a kid, I played soccer, lacrosse, and baseball. Then when I got to high school, I just did football and wrestling. That’s actually when I started both football and wrestling.
Who is your favorite wrestler (past or present) to watch?
The person I look up to the most is Rulon (Gardner) because he went out there and did the impossible.
What was your favorite class in college?
My favorite class was probably combustion engines. I’m a mechanical engineer, so that was in my field. I kind of grew up with that and it’s still a hobby of mine to work with old cars and motorcycles and anything with an engine. If its got a motor, I pretty much tinker with it.
How did the Naval Academy differ from a normal college experience?
I think the biggest thing to capture all of it is that you have all of your regular classroom demands, if not more, because it’s such a rigorous school academically. Then you have all these military requirements as well. Some of that is physical fitness tests they do. The Navy does a physical readiness test. So, I’m wrestling heavyweight doing these runs for score and stuff. The balance of academics with the military side of things, throw-in a Division I sport, and that was the biggest difference.
If you could have dinner with three people (dead or alive), who would they be?
Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, and (Aleksandr) Karelin if I could understand him.
What is something you’re afraid of?
Spiders. I’m deathly afraid of spiders. A spider bite can kill you but they’re silent. I’ve been at TBS (The Basic School) and I’ve had dudes open up their pack and if they would have reached their hand in there before they noticed a black widow spun a web across the top, they would have gotten bit by a black widow. They’re little ninjas, so deadly but so quiet.
How did you get involved in wrestling?
I was wrestling at the after-school program and the high school wrestling coach asked me to wrestle for the high school. Since I didn’t have a winter sport that I play, I said sure.
What kind of advice would you give a younger wrestler?
If I had one piece of advice, I’d say it would be stay true to who you are. Set your goals, establish a foundation to reach those goals, and stick to it. That doesn’t mean if obstacles show up that you can’t alter your path but establish that foundation to reach your goals whatever they may be.
What motivates you?
A lot of things motivate me. I think at the end of the day, the one thing that motivates me is getting better every day or helping someone get better every day. In the Marine Corps, we base our program on three pillars: personal, professional, and athletic. My goal every day is to be better every day and set stuff up every day to be better tomorrow in one, two, or three of those pillars. If I haven’t gotten better in one of those areas, then I have failed for the day.
What is your favorite thing about wrestling?
The fact that you’re out there one-on-one asserting your skill on another human being. It’s the ultimate display of one-on-one skill, whether that be technical, physical, or mental.
What made you choose to wrestle Greco-Roman after college?
I decided I want to wrestle for the Marine Corps. I finally got orders to come over to the Marine Corps wrestling team after asking for two years and they were like, “by the way, we wrestle Greco.” I had never wrestled Greco a day in my life, but they basically said, “you can wrestle Greco, or you can go back to the fleet.” So, I started wrestling Greco that day. I wouldn’t go back though. As defiant as I was for the first probably nine or ten months, I’m happy that I was forced into that scenario and I have fallen in love with Greco since then.
What made you want to become a Marine?
When you finish up at the Naval Academy, you have to either go Navy or Marines. When I went to the Naval Academy, my mom made me promise her that I wasn’t going to become a Marine, but once I got there and started interacting with people from different services, I just felt like I identified with people in the Marine Corps a lot better than people in the Navy. It’s cliché but there’s a certain brotherhood you find in the Marine Corps that you don’t find anywhere else. When I was at the Naval Academy and saw the way Marines interacted and talked about other Marines, I wanted to be a part of that.
The Miller File
Born: February 21, 1992
High School: Berlin, Md. (Stephen Decatur)
College: United States Naval Academy
Club: U.S. Marine Corps
Residence: Sneads Ferry, N.C.
Instagram: @chasingthedreammarine
• 2018 U.S. Open champion
• 2018 Armed Forces double champion
• 2017 Haavisto Cup bronze medalist (Finland)
• 2017 Hungarian Grand Prix bronze medalist
• 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials qualifier
• Third in 2107 University Nationals
• 2013 NCAA national qualifier
• 2011 Junior World Freestyle Team member
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