PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers will honor a former offensive lineman ahead of their road game vs. the Louisville Cardinals in Week 13.
The Panthers announced that their honorary captain is Ed Miller, who played offensive lineman from 1984-87 and was a four-year Letterman.
Miller played for David Brealey High School in Kenilworth, N.J., about 10 miles from downtown Newark. He would join Pitt in the Class of 1984 and the team would steadily improve during his time wth the program.
They went 3-7-1 in 1984, 5-5-1 in both 1985 and 1986 and then 8-4 in 1987, his senior season.
Miller started at center as a senior, playing a role as running back Craig “Ironhead” Heyward rushed for 1,791 yards on 387 carries, 4.6 yards per carry. His rushing total ranks third in a season all-time for Pitt, and his carries are the most in a single season for any Pitt running back.
He finished with 12 games over 100 rushing yards, joining just Heisman winner Tony Dorsett with 12 games over 100 yards rushing yards himself in 1976, the last season the Panthers won a National Championship.
Miller helped Heyward rush for a career-high 259 yards in a 28-5 win over Kent State on Nov. 21, which ranks as the 10th-most rushing yards in a single game in Pitt history.
Pitt also had two ranked wins against rivals that season at home, with a 30-22 victory over then ranked No. 4 Notre Dame on Oct. 10 and 10-0 over then ranked No. 15 Penn State on Nov. 14.
Heyward finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting and the New Orleans took him as the No. 24 overall pick in the 1988 NFL Draft.
Miller would join Heyward, along with five other Pitt players, with seven total going in that draft class. The San Diego Chargers took Miller with the eighth pick in the 11th round, No. 285 overall.
He would spend some time with the Chargers and then the Cleveland Browns in the 1989 season for his NFL career.
Pitt will kickoff against Louisville at 4:00 p.m. on ESPN2, as they look to end their three-game losing streak.
