After losing Saquon Barkley to free agency, the New York Giants had a big hole to fill. Signing Devin Singletary was a good start, but they knew they needed more than that to fill the void.
Most thought it would be handled in the 2024 NFL draft, but a loophole allowed Dante Miller to sign before the draft even gets underway, reports Andy Staples of on3.
Miller isn’t your standard running back. He grew up in foster care after his mother left him with a neighbor and didn’t return. His grandmother already had his two siblings but was unable to get custody of Miller before she passed.
So he bounced around foster care in Connecticut until his mom’s first cousin, Antoinette Flowers, found him and jumped through the hoops required to gain custody of a child in the foster care system.
Eventually, Miller learned to trust Flowers and she learned how to help him channel his boundless energy into sports. He played a variety of sports, earning the nickname ‘Lil Turbo,’ and did well enough in school to earn his way into Columbia University.
Miller played three years of football there, but during the pandemic, he lost a year. In the Ivy League, you only get four years, there’s no red-shirting. He had a choice to make, and thinking he had two years of eligibility, ended up at the University of South Carolina.
There was a lot of confusion around Miller’s eligibility. He had two years to play one season, not two full years of eligibility. In 2022, he played six games for the Gamecocks. The NCAA only lets you redshirt if you’ve played four or fewer. They tried to get a waiver from the NCAA and Miller stopped playing in 2022 hoping they would accept it. They didn’t.
“It was my saving glory,” Miller said. “I love ball. I love to compete. I don’t take it lightly.”
When the NCAA handed down its decision, South Carolina did everything they could to keep Miller in football shape so he could enter the 2024 NFL draft. He didn’t attend the combine but showed up at South Carolina’s pro day and he turned more heads than he realized when he ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash. He also benched 225 pounds 28 times, which would have been the most by any running back at the combine.
Then the question was asked, because of Miller’s eligibility issues, if he was even eligible for the draft. Turns out, he’s not eligible for the 2024 draft, he should have been in the 2023 draft. This means he was essentially a free agent and could sign with any team and negotiate a salary that’s separate from a standard rookie contract.
The NCAA dragging their feet inadvertently put Miller in a place where he has the ability to earn more money than he otherwise would have. And the Giants took advantage of it.
Miller’s life began in New York, he attended Columbia University and he still has extended family in the area. It was really a no-brainer for Miller to want to sign with the Giants after they showed a high interest in the running back.
It’s hard to say whether Miller’s ability will translate to the NFL, but one thing is certain: If it’s something Turbo wants, it’s something Turbo will get.
Miller’s determination and perseverance to overcome the odds stacked against him up to this point bode well for his ability to adapt and improve in the future.
