Miller made mark at Armstrong Central, Pitt

The former Armstrong Central High School's existence was short-lived.

But some of the athletic contributions to the school are long-lasting.

Jared Miller, a 1992 graduate, will be inducted into the Armstrong County Sports Hall of Fame for his contribution to football at Armstrong Central and Pitt.

Miller played tight end and linebacker for the Cougars under Hall of Fame coach Harry Beckwith.

The 43rd Armstrong induction banquet will be April 26 at Laube Hall in Freeport.

Though the high school lasted just three years, no one around at the time will forget that glorious 1990 first season when Armstrong Central came on the scene almost overnight and became the talk of WPIAL football with an 8-3 record.

Kittanning and Ford City high schools came together when the school board consolidated the schools as part of budgetary concerns about six weeks before the official start of WPIAL football practice.

Players who were once rivals had to join forces on short notice.

But Beckwith made the transition easier for the athletes involved.

“Harry was a great coach and a family friend,” Miller said. “I was excited when I found out he was taking over Armstrong Central. That Wing-T offense he ran was right for me.”

The Cougars made the WPIAL playoffs as a conference runner-up — only two teams from each conference made the playoffs in those days.

Armstrong Central lost in the opening round to Kiski Area, then fell short of the playoffs in 1991.

By then, however, Miller was being recruited by a number of major college programs.

But Miller's collegiate decision was an easy one: “I was born and raised a Pitt football fan,” Miller said.

In fact, Pitt was the only school Miller visited. West Virginia and Wisconsin were among the other schools scouting Miller.

It didn't take Miller long to make his mark at Pitt. He started at guard as a redshirt freshman, helping to pave the way for running back Curtis Martin's 1,000-yard season in 1993.

“I started nine games at guard, then the next year I went over to defensive end and started there for three years,” Miller said. “They were looking for players that could help out at defensive positions.”

The mystery of Miller's tenure at Pitt was, despite some great players, the teams just couldn't click and won four, two and three games twice during Miller's time.

Besides NFL Hall of Famer Martin, the Panthers had tackle Ruben Brown, a College Football Hall of Famer, Tom Tumulty from Penn Hills, Eric Kasperowicz from North Hills and others.

“Still, I had a fabulous experience,” Miller said of his time at Pitt. “And I'd do it all over again.”

Miller has remained friends with Tumulty and Kiski Area's Mike Halapin, whom Miller played against in that 1990 playoff game.

Miller is a health and physical education teacher in the Pittsburgh Public Schools system. He is also defensive line coach at Pine-Richland, which won the WPIAL title this season and was PIAA runner-up to St. Joseph's Prep.

He was coaching youth football in the Pine-Richland School District, where he lives. When Kasperowicz took over as Rams coach, he asked Miller to be an assistant.

Miller said it was another move he was glad to make.

George Guido is a freelance writer.