March 8, 2007
Release courtesy of Mark Adkins, Wartburg College sports information director

WAVERLY, IOWA . . . Wartburg College wrestling coach Jim Miller and his son, T.J., each earned post-season wrestling accolades from several sources Wednesday, March 7.

Head coach Jim Miller was tabbed Amateur Wrestling News’ Man of the Year, according to AWN editor-in-chief Ron Good. Wartburg’s second-place finish at last weekend’s NCAA Division III national championships marked the 13th time in the last 15 years that the Knights have ended either first or second on the national stage. They also continued impressive strings of having at least one All-American in 20 straight national tourneys, three-or-more All-Americans in 17 straight national meets, and earning at least one individual title in five straight national championships.

Wartburg has an incredible run through the tough Iowa Conference, reeling off a remarkable string of 115 consecutive dual meet wins within the conference as well as gaining the conference’s title in each of the last 15 seasons. Out of Waterloo East High School and Northern Iowa University, Miller came to Wartburg in 1991 and coached his team to an eighth-place NCAA finish. Wartburg had finished a distant 12th and 40th at the two previous NCAA tournaments. That squad also went 17-3 in duals and, for his efforts, Miller was named National “Rookie Coach of the Year” by AWN in 1992. To date, his teams have compiled an amazing overall mark of 286-28-3.

Miller’s son, T.J., the 2007 NCAA Division III 197-pound champion, was placed in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd” section in the March 12 edition, available on newsstands today, and was named the TheMat.com’s Athlete of the Week Wednesday. Miller ran the proverbial table in 2006-07 with a 26-0 record, his second Iowa Conference title and All-American honor, and the national title last weekend at the Five Flags Center in Dubuque. He is the third Wartburg wrestling-related individual to be included in SI’s “Faces” section joining his father and former three-time national 141-pound champion Dustin Hinschberger. Miller’s Mat.com AOW award is the first for Wartburg in 2006-07.

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