Fred David Miller

1940 - 2023

Fred David Miller, 82, of Westminster, Maryland passed away on February 25th. He passed away in Timonium, Maryland while in hospice care. Fred David Miller was born in Homer, Louisiana to Will T., a sharecropper, and Lorenia Miller, a nurse, on August 8, 1940. He grew up with his only sibling, Sister Mary Lynne. As a teen, he worked with his father, who was a sharecropper, and attended Homer High School, where he played football for the Homer Pelicans. A local sportswriter coined the term "Iron Men" after the Pelicans, playing eleven starters and two subs out of 18 dressed for the game, outplayed a supposedly superior Bossier team. He graduated from Homer High School in 1958 after being a four-year football letterman. With multiple colleges offering Fred scholarships to come play for them, he eventually decided to attend Louisiana State University (LSU). At Louisiana State, Fred started for three years as part of the "Chinese Bandits", LSU's defensive team. By his second year he was captaining the Bandit defense. During this time, he met the woman that would be his wife, Charlene Coco of Marksville, Louisiana. They were married in 1963, and she became Charlene Miller. In 1963 LSU finished with a 10-1 record, including a shutout of Texas in the Cotton Bowl. Fred graduated with a Bachelor's in Agriculture on January 29, 1963. During that time, the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) were competing against each other to acquire the best available talent, so Fred was picked in both drafts in 1962. He was selected by the NFL's Baltimore Colts in the 7th round and the AFL's Oakland Raiders in the 26th round. He eventually signed with the Baltimore Colts. The first game in Fred's rookie year was the only game he didn't start in his entire career with Baltimore. During his time with the Colts he won Pro Bowl recognition three times (1967 through 1969) and played in 3 world championship games: the 1964 NFL championship game against the Browns, Super Bowl III against the Jets, and Super Bowl V against the Cowboys. After a short run with the Washington Redskins, Fred retired from professional Football after the 1973 season. He once told a reporter, "Football is the reason I got an education. It's the reason I met many, many people. I've had lunch at the White House. I've met a lot of folks in politics, and movies, and everything else. It's been a good life. We've got four wonderful boys and seven wonderful grandchildren. My wife Charlene and I were married 40 years on February 2, 2003." They were eventually married a total of 54 years when Charlene passed in 2017. Fred had numerous careers in the Baltimore area after football ended, but his real love was his family and spending time outside working on the farm he purchased in Upperco, Maryland in 1973. By 1973, Fred and Charlene had four sons and had begun to purchase livestock to populate the farm, dubbed 'Angel Acres'. His sons would come to value this as one of the most important times they would experience, learning that hard work had rewards that would shape their adult lives. Some of Fred's biggest accomplishments were being an incredible father, husband, and friend. His sons knew him as the strongest man they'd ever known, and even as adults, still see him that way. He was always there for them through their ups and downs, and taught them how to survive in a world that can often be challenging. Being a kind and dependable father was of the most amazing traits Fred maintained, and he certainly did not disappoint when it came to wholeheartedly loving his family. His friends also knew him as an honest, straightforward, and true friend, willing to help out whenever and wherever it was needed. Fred spent the last several years of his life living with son, David, at his home in Westminster, Maryland before being moved to an assisted living facility in Timonium, Maryland. Fred was inducted into the LSU Hall of Fame for 1964, The Louisiana State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1990, and the Southeastern Conference Football Legends Class in 2010, and as part of LSU's Modern Day Team of the Century. Fred is survived by his sons, David, Danny, Jake, and Luke, and numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was preceded in passing by his wife of 54 years, Charlene, and his granddaughter Erin, who passed in 2021. He was deeply loved, and will be even more deeply missed. There will be visitation at the Eline Funeral Home, 934 South Main Street, Hampstead, Maryland from 2 – 4PM and 6 - 8PM, Thursday, March 2, 2023. The funeral service will be held at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church, 2930 Hanover Pike, Manchester, Maryland on Friday, March 3rd, 2023 at 10:00AM. His family will be present to welcome loved ones. Donations can be made in lieu of flowers to Bridging Life Hospice of Westminster, Maryland.