Miller Bugliari Memory Book - Page 20

[Home][Next]
 

What a guy Miller is!  I am not going to be able to make the ceremony.  One fond memory…

My name is Michael DiChiara, Class of 1988 (Captain, 1988)

We got clobbered 4 or 5 to 1 against Lawrenceville in a regular season game @ Pingry in Martinsville in ’88 (my senior year).  We ended up meeting them, however, in the Prep State Finals at the end of the season.  Tied at 1-1, I was taken down behind the 18 and a penalty kick was going to put us up by a goal with only 8 minutes or so left in the game.  Well, I’m the first to acknowledge there were certainly better penalty kickers on our side than me, the leader of the team, captain and, of course, the one who got taken down in the first place.  I’ll never forget the various arms waving and players shouting, “me coach, me coach, let me take it Miller, let me take it, I’ll put it in, I’ll put it in!!!”  Well, Miller scanned the scene with that all-knowing look as though he had made up his mind the day before the game just in case a dire, last-minute situation like this did indeed arise…and, of course, here we were.  Minutes left…tie score…and he waved me on, “Deech, take the kick.”  Needless to say, I was unbelievably nervous!  Here was a chance not just to win a game, it was a chance to exact revenge upon a team that was always our biggest nemesis, always standing in our way and one that had taken us apart in the regular season.  This was one of the roughest, most aggressive games I’d played in my entire career and it all came down to this one unbelievably tense moment…not just for me, but for what seemed the entire Pingry student body and teaching staff lining the side of the field and yelling from the bleachers.  It wasn’t a pretty shot…it wasn’t that postage stamp you always hope for and seemingly always hit when you’re in practice but it went in.  It squirmed by the keeper and the team piled on top of me and the rest is history.  We stunned Lawrenceville and, I’m pretty sure I can speak for anyone there that day, we stunned ourselves.

I’ll never forget that feeling of accomplishment and I don’t think that ’88 team will ever forget what we did that day.  Thanks to Miller who had such confidence in me…sometimes, I think, more than I had in myself.

Congratulations Miller Bugliari from one of your biggest fans and proudest players!
Best,
Michael

My memory is sort of a visual.. but here goes...

I'll always remember Miller in front of the team at practices telling the group to stay focused on what is really important in life.  Gesturing with his hands -- showing from top to bottom the following items in order of importance:

Hand motioning forward in front of his head -- "Family"
Hand motioning forward in front of his throat -- "School"
Hand motioning forward in front of his chest -- "Soccer"
Hand motioning forward in front of his feet -- "Social"
Eric B. Miller ‘92

Frank Puleo
Graduated in 1991
I Played Varsity Soccer for Miller and was Captain my Senior Year

One of many funny memories
One day while leading the team for the usual campus jog as a warm up for practice we got back to the field quicker than Miller expected.  He did not see us come up over the hill and we got to see how he was passing the time.  He was running and jumping up in the air trying to kick a bee that was flying around him.  The sight of him running and yelling at the bee and then jumping up in the air trying to kick it had to be one of the funniest things I have seen him do. But even funnier was the fact that he acted like nothing had happened and yelled at us for coming back too early.  It was Fantastic.

Favorite Sayings
"Frank!, phone call"
"GET HIM OUT, HE'S TIRED" (usually screemed on the side-line 2 minutes after a game started)

Miller's Legacy to me
Miller had the GREATEST impact on me of anyone that I ever encountered in my academic and sports career, which includes Pingry, Williams College and Columbia University.  He explained to me that grades and academics created opportunities and that I was quickly closing my window by not applying myself in school.  This was my freshman year of high school and I was a solid C - D student and perfectly content on continuing that performance.  Miller woke me up and for that I am forever grateful.  He opened my eyes to the happiness of performing on all levels and creating the opportunity to attend Williams and all the great things that would come from college.  Not only did he have this huge impact on my life, but he was also able to become my friend while he was doing it, he has a gift.  Even more impressive was the fact that he extended his generosity to someone that I cared about in high school very much.  She was not getting into college and as usual one call from Miller to someone changed that, forever positively affecting yet another person's life.  Miller is a once in a lifetime individual, some one Pingry was lucky to have and some one I feel very lucky to have as a friend and mentor.  Congratulations Coach!!!!