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GoDuke.com Q&A With Men's Soccer Defender Danny Miller
10/26/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
DURHAM, N.C. - GoDuke.com sat down with men's soccer defender Danny Miller for a question and answer session. Miller, a senior from East Brunswick, N.J., is a major reason why Duke has achieved the No. 2 national ranking this season as the post season nears. Duke is in action again Friday at Clemson. The 7 p.m. start will be aired by ACC Select and can be viewed online at http://duke.accselect.com.
GoDuke.com: How do you feel about the team's performance this season?
Danny Miller: I think that right now we started off really well. We hit a little patch which I think ended up being a really good thing for us. Now we've hit a peak where we're right where we want to be going into the post season. We still have a couple of tough games before we hit the post season but we have team camaraderie and we're playing really well and the combination of those two are something we really want going into the postseason.
GD: Describe your most memorable college soccer experience.
DM: The UNC game my sophomore year where we had over 6,000 people in the stands cheering like they were at a basketball game; it was something that gave you a tingly feeling when you're on the field. Before our program was a little bit on the downhill, and [going into the game] we were undefeated and to have over 6,000 people there was a staple in what we were trying to do here at Duke.
GD: How did playing against professional teams in Germany affect you?
DM: I think more than anything it gave us confidence. Although we didn't get some of the results that we wanted to it showed us that we could play against some of the better teams in the world. I think that when we came back it really helped us in ACC play where it's just as physical. Also, it let us know that if we could play at a higher level then we could obviously play at the ACC level.
GD: What was it like to watch the World Cup in person?
DM: The World Cup in person was great. It was more significant for me because some of the 1994 World Cup was in the United States at Giants Stadium, and I lived twenty minutes away and I got to go to four games there. It was great to make a comparison of soccer in Europe and in the United States and take it all in together, and really make an informed decision about what the differences are between the two cultures. I saw a culture in Europe where they live and breathe soccer and that's something special.
GD: Besides Duke, where is the best place to play in the ACC?
DM: I'd say I'm torn between Virginia and Maryland. Maryland is new and their fans are really crazy and they really get after you. Virginia has historical tradition, and I have a lot of great memories there, as well as at Maryland, and I'm torn between the two.
GD: Who is the team in the ACC you would like to beat the most?
DM: I would say Maryland for sure. They're a tough team, top-to-bottom. They have great line-ups and they have a great crowd there. I think that their fans and their tradition really care about soccer more than any other team in the ACC, at least as much as we do.
GD: Do you have any pre-game superstitions or routines?
DM: I can't really say I do. I wake up at the same time before every game at 5:00 ? we have to meet in the locker room at 5:40. I like to keep it really relaxed. I try to be the fun guy in the locker room, you know dance around or listen to music. I'm not really the guy that needs to be seriously thinking to myself before the game. I like to converse with the other guys to see how they're doing- nothing too strenuous.
GD: What are your plans after graduation?
DM: Right now I am interviewing for a job in Investment Banking and considering Real Estate. We'll see what happens. I had a great internship this summer that really helped me. I really want to go into business and the financial market.
GD: What do you like to do in your free time? Hobbies?
DM: I like to play a lot of golf, play a lot of cards with teammates, and play FIFA soccer on the Play Station 2. Other than that, there is a lot of schoolwork here.
GD: What are some of your favorite bands?
DM: My favorite band recently is Panic at the Disco, but I also like Counting Crows ? those are my favorite right now.
GD: Who in history would you want to sit down to dinner with?
DM: I'd definitely like to sit down with Christopher Columbus because he had a lot going against him ? he had to persevere through a lot of adversity when everyone was saying that the world was flat and instead he was saying that it was round and he really believed it and he was willing to go out there in the Atlantic Ocean based on what he believed. Also, Abraham Lincoln because of some of the same reasons. He was willing to go against a lot of people that were maybe his friends at the time because he also believed in something.
GD: If you could travel any where in the world, where would you go?
DM: Either Italy or Australia. I would like Italy because I'm pretty functional in Italian and I would like to see how I would do there and test my language skills. Australia because the United States has the same language but it's halfway around the world and I think that it would be a great time.
GD: Who is your favorite athlete and why?
DM: Right now there is a U.S. soccer player playing in England that used to play for the Chicago Fire. He plays the same position that I do. He plays the same kind of way ? he tries to play with a little bit of skill and a little bit of tackle. He plays hard and I really admire that in an athlete.
GD: Who is your role model, and why?
DM: Definitely my mother because she was able to not only work hard and have a big job but when it came time for the family she was always there no matter what ? whether it was staying up to like 2 o'clock in the morning helping me or always being at every single soccer game. Both my parents were just great in raising me and were at every single soccer game even though they worked tremendous hours and that was something that I really admired and I was really grateful and thankful that they did.
GD: If you could play and sport other than soccer, what would it be?
DM: I'd say I'd like to play golf because right now it's just a leisure sport for me. I am not really competitive to the point where if I miss a shot I am going to get really upset. Golf is really relaxing when I have to get away from school or soccer. But if I had to play competitively, it might be a different story.
GD: What is your favorite movie?
DM: I'd say Wall Street, because I am really interested in that type of lifestyle: living in New York and working in the stock market. I can really relate to that right now.
GD: Who is your favorite professional sports team?
DM: Right now, the Mets, definitely. It's something special to root for a team that has just always been in a slump, and now it's paying its dividends. They did well this year.
GD: What is your favorite TV show?
DM: Nip/Tuck because it brings out the fun lifestyle in Miami, and also brings in the corporate world where you have to be able to balance having a good time in your social life, but also getting your job done and making money as well.
GD: What is your favorite food?
DM: My mother's chicken parmesan, and you can ask some of my teammates who have had it: they love it.
GD: What is your prediction for the team the rest of the season?
DM: The team is right now on the up slope. I have no predictions of what we can possibly do, but I think if we play the way we are playing right now, and stay together as a team, the potential is endless.
GD: What is your favorite memory of Duke University?
DM: I have met a lot of people here, including the coaches and my teammates. But I think going to the Final Four during the 2004 season, because it was something where we could represent our school on a national level. We had people from all over the country screaming our names and cheering us on. That was a big draw for me to come to Duke: its fame and being able to represent that on a national level.
Players Mentioned
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