Shawn Miller made a name for himself with a prime performance against a Division III power. Delaware Valley athletics photo

Sometimes in life you don’t get a second chance. But Delaware Valley safety Shawn Miller wasn’t about to let his slip away.

As a freshman, back in 2012, he wasn’t ready for college and left school. After moving back home to Laurel, Del., he joined the National Guard. He had a lot of growing up to do.

Coming back to Delaware Valley after a two-year absence?

“That was the toughest and easiest decision of my life,” Miller said. “Tough, because I had to work so hard to get back, get my grades up. I had to become a better student before I became an athlete again. Getting back was the easiest part, all I had to do was the right thing. I knew I was lucky and needed to take advantage of it”

Fortunately, for Miller, Aggie coach Duke Greco knows about second chances himself.

“My journey at DelVal is similar,” said Greco, who also left the school after his freshman year in the late-90s but returned to be a prolific quarterback. “I feel like I needed those years to mature and realize what I had and how important school and football were to me. I think Shawn’s the same way.”

After earning All-MAC honors after his return last season, Miller put together an All-American type performance in the Aggies 21-14 victory over Wesley on Friday night.

The junior posted three second half interceptions, while posting a game-high 14 tackles, a sack, and a pass break up against a team that led the nation in total offense last year with nearly 600 yards a game.

“Sean’s a great leader,” Greco said. “I think it would be hard to find a better safety at this level. He plays with passion and we feed off that.”

It seemed at times that he was all over the field. He dropped into coverage, he blitzed, and he was always there on run support.

Wesley did manage 405 yards but it took them 82 plays. The Wolverines had more than 60 plays of 20 or more yards in 2015 but managed just two on Friday.

“Our coaches had a great game plan,” Miller said. “Our goal was to give up no big plays, to make them beat us by driving all the way down the field. We buckled down when we need to buckle down. We were able to make plays and get away (with the win.)”

Making the night even more special was playing his first college game in his home state of Delaware.

“It’s just a beautiful feeling,” he said. “I had family and friends there to support me You dream of moments like this. They all get to see you in one of the best games of my career. I can’t imagine anything better honestly.”

The victory shows the Aggies are a contender to win the MAC this season. But the team was in the driver’s seat for the title late last season before blowing a 21-point second half lead to Lycoming cost them the championship.

As of now though, this team appears to have matured as much as Miller has with a tough nonconference win on the road against a nationally-ranked opponent.

“Coming into a hostile environment, there’s no tougher place to play than in Dover, Del.,” Miller said. “If we come out with the same intensity in the MAC, we’ll be just fine.”

Top 25

Delaware Valley (1-0) made the biggest jump in the D3football.com Top 25 after defeating Wesley. The Aggies moved up eleven spots to rank No. 14. The Wolverines dropped 10 spots to No. 17.

Salisbury jumped from No. 23 to the 15th spot after a 34-18 victory over then-No. 16 Albright. Despite being outgained (390-351), the Sea Gulls got a big play to open the game on special teams in a 92-yard kickoff return by Sean Rowland. While winning the turnover battle (plus-two), Gull quarterback Ryan Jones broke open by 14-10 game by leading three second half scoring drives. The senior rushed for 118 yards and a pair of touchdowns while hitting five of eight passes for 74. The Lions dropped out of the poll but are still receiving the second most votes (43) of anyone outside the top 25.

Cortland jumped one spot to No. 16 after building beating Heidelberg 30-28 on the road in Ohio. Steven Ferreira, the more decorated returning quarterback in the east, passed for 292 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but picked intercepted a couple of times too.

St. John Fisher moved into the poll at #24 after plastering an Olivet team that went 9-1 last season 52 to 10. The Cardinals put 500 yards of total offense while the defense added five sacks and forced three turnovers.

Following Albright in the others receiving votes category are: Stevenson (35), Hobart (34), St. Lawrence (26), RPI (24), Rowan (9), Kean (8) and Alfred (3). Each of these teams scored opening week victories, the exception of Kean, who lost 26-7 on the road on Sunday afternoon at Christopher Newport, after most of the ballots had been cast.

What to Watch This Week

Frostburg State (1-0, 0-0 NJAC) at Wesley (0-1, 0-0 NJAC) The Bobcats will never find the Wolverines more vulnerable as Wesley seeks to find an identity on offense. FSU got steady play from quarterback Connor Cox, but will need to run the better and hold onto the football to win. The conference opener for both teams.

Framingham St. (1-0, 0-0 MASCAC) at Cortland (1-0, 0-0 E8) These two teams, both who made playoff appearances in 2015 combined to score 110 points in last year’s 61-49 Red Dragon victory. It could be a shoot out again. Cortland returns most of its key offensive pieces including receiver Jon Mannix. Despite graduating All-East quarterback Matt Silva, replacement Zackery Walker completed 22-of-29 for 325 yards and four touchdowns in the Rams 32-21 win over Endicott.

Alfred (1-0, 0-0 E8) at RPI (1-0, 0-0 LL) Both teams won ECAC bowl games last season. The Saxons needed a late touchdown to put away last season’s Liberty League co-champs 32-20 in 2015. After the graduation of quarterback Jeff Avery, the Engineers relied heavily on the run game last week in a 31-17 victory over Norwich. They’ll need to throw the ball more consistently to a defeat Alfred and quarterback Tyler Johnson, who racked up nearly 300 yards in total offense last week.

Ohio Northern (0-0, 0-0 OAC) at Utica (1-0, 0-0 E8) This is a huge nonconference test for the Pioneers. Utica has shown it can be competitive with anyone in the Liberty League on any given day. After drubbing Misericordia in their opener (40-6), they’ll host an Ohio Athletic Conference team that won a playoff game last year.

Stevenson (1-0, 0-0 MAC) at Albright (0-1, 0-0 MAC) There is really so much on the line so early for both these teams. The Mustangs have been knocking on the door in the MAC for the past couple of seasons. They lost to Albright by four and DVU by three last season. The Lions, defending MAC champions, are coming off a disappointing performance against Salisbury last week. The road won’t get any easier with Lycoming and Delaware Valley coming up the next two weeks either.

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