This story originally appeared in the Jan. 26 edition of the weekly LINK Reader. To get these stories first, subscribe here.
Caden Miller’s initial visit to Covington Catholic High School came last spring. He traveled from his home in Arkansas to get a first-hand look at the school near his father’s old stomping ground in Cincinnati.
The 6-foot-9, 215-pound Miller, son of former Bengals linebacker Caleb Miller, was taller than everybody else in the building, and his spirits were just as high.
“When I toured the school, I could tell they took brotherhood very seriously,” said Miller, an Arkansas Class 6A all-state player as a junior.
Surrounded by academia and more than two dozen state championship trophies, it was also clear to Miller that CovCath took learning and athletics seriously. This was appealing to Miller, who at the time was attending classes at Bentonville High School, nearly 700 miles from CovCath.
Ten months later, he’s grown fond of his new landing spot.
“I look forward to school,” Miller said. “I love the culture. You don’t really find that everywhere.”
Being the son of a former professional athlete and having played sports most of his life, Miller is in tune with nuanced aspects of competitive athletics. Possessing this knowledge along with an impressive skill set and a solid work ethic, Miller knows a lot about how a team and its players can be the best versions of themselves. But he had no idea how good CovCath is at bringing this about until he arrived.
“When he got here, the players were quick to accept him,” Colonels coach Scott Ruthsatz said of the left-hander. “It allowed him to get comfortable with us much quicker, and that enabled him to step up as a leader.”
This was a crucial development. Graduation departures left CovCath with just three seniors and one experienced leader. Miller’s arrival gave the Colonels one more senior, and so much more.
“Before school, he gets some shots in, and others have joined,” Ruthsatz said. “He’s super athletic. He gives us a big presence in the interior. He can really jump (36-inch vertical leap) and he gets off the floor quickly. He’s taken to the coaching. It’s been such an easy fit with his personality. The players love him.”
The feeling is mutual.
“A school like this is new to me. I love it. I love to play for the Crazies,” said Miller, whose mother played college basketball at Arkansas. Miller’s stepmother’s father is local restaurateur Jeff Ruby.
With some well-known people in his life, Miller has seen a lot, but he had never seen anything like the Colonel Crazies, CovCath’s clever student section. He was so intrigued he decided to join them and started cheering for the football team. He showed up for the traditional Braveheart-themed walk to neighboring Beechwood High School wearing white-and-blue paint.
Playing basketball in front of the Colonel Crazies was entirely different.
“It’s incredible,” said Miller, who has several NCAA Division I offers, including from Missouri, Mississippi State, DePaul and Eastern Kentucky. “The Crazies made an impression on me right away.”
Speaking of first impressions, Miller made his home debut in a win against Simon Kenton and had team highs of 19 points and 17 rebounds. The Colonel Crazies went bonkers at the sheer spectacle of a near-7-foot fellow student manhandling an entire team.
“He’s made a big difference,” said Ruthsatz, who doesn’t like to think about the alternative. His Colonels would be vastly different without Miller.
Near the regular season’s halfway point, Miller was leading CovCath with 14.5 points and 9.8 rebounds. The rebounding average ranked fourth in Northern Kentucky. Miller had more rebounds than the next three Colonels combined. He was averaging about 3.0 blocks, a team high. He ranked 10th in Kentucky with 67.9% field goal shooting accuracy, many of those shots coming on putbacks, dunks and drives with a variety of post moves involving pivots and ball fakes.
“On offense, he gives you a great option,” Ruthsatz said. “You can throw it up to him. He’s a good passer and a willing passer, especially when he’s double-teamed. He gives us an offensive rebounding presence. On defense, he just makes them think twice.”
Miller set a program single-game record Jan. 14 with nine blocks against Lakota East, breaking a 19-year-old mark. Nine days later he set a new mark with 11 blocks and recording a triple-double of 13 points, 10 rebounds and the 11 swats against Cooper.
“He alters more shots than he blocks,” Ruthsatz said. “He can block with either hand, which is rare. Against a scoring five (center), we like him to be more aggressive and deny the ball. Against a screening five, we tell him to play off the ball and help our guards.”
Miller revels in the responsibility. After such a warm welcome to CovCath, he wants to play with a spirit that will not die.
“I obviously want to succeed, but I don’t want to let them down,” Miller said. “I fell in love with this team and the fans. The culture is incredible, and it’s been a very big part of my success.”