Earl Heath Miller Jr. (born October 22, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons from 2005 to 2015. Miller played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers, where he earned All-American honors and won the John Mackey Award. The Steelers selected him in the first round with the 30th overall pick of the 2005 NFL Draft. Early years Miller was born in Richlands, Virginia. He attended Honaker High School and lived in Swords Creek, Virginia. He played quarterback for the Honaker Tigers high school football team, where he earned the Associated Press Player of the Year honor as a senior and was a two-time AP All-State selection. He also earned the All-Southwest Virginia first-team honors at quarterback and was a second-team all-state selection at defensive back, adding Region D Offensive Player of the Year accolades. He set several school records in passing and leading the team to its first state championship game his senior year, in which they lost to King William High School, 25–15. While attending high school, Miller also played first base for the baseball team where he earned the Black Diamond District first-team honors, and was an All-Region and All-State selection. He was also a forward on the basketball team where he earned the All-District and All-Region honors. College career Freshman season Miller attended the University of Virginia, where he played for coach Al Groh's Virginia Cavaliers football team from 2001 to 2004. Originally signed to play quarterback, Miller made the transition to the tight end position during his redshirt freshman year. After sitting out in 2001, he started every game in 2002 at tight end. In his first game against Colorado State, he had 4 receptions, 42 receiving yards, and 1 touchdown. He scored touchdowns in each of his first five games at Virginia, setting a school season record for tight ends and led Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) tight ends in receiving all three seasons of his college career. It took him seven games to set the school record for touchdowns by a tight end. He also threw one pass during his college career, connecting with fellow tight end Patrick Estes for a touchdown against South Carolina in 2002. He also caught a touchdown pass in the same game. In a win against Wake Forest he was held