Recruiting Report: Dominic McMillian (2021)

When Dominic McMillian first moved from Georgia to North Minneapolis a couple years ago, he had no idea what to expect, nor where to go for high school. Luckily, McMillian had a familiarly liable and trustworthy supporter in his corner: his mother. While McMillian himself did have some say in the decision, his mother ultimately chose for him. He told me that "North is also not so big of a school and when I moved here from Atlanta my mom was like 'yeah, you're going to North.'" The Polars, led by Coach Charles "OA" Adams, had a reputation that preceded itself. McMillian said he had heeded that North was a "great football school" upon his arrival to the 612. What else turned out to be great for him however, was the community involved with the high school. "I like the atmosphere. I like the people. Not only my team but also the people that help me get through with things like the counselors and my coaches. They are all great people." McMillian told me over the phone. The welcoming spirit and positivity of the community paid off not only for the Polars but for McMillian himself. As he told me, "the season went well. [We] went 11-1 and got into U.S. Bank Stadium but didn't do as well there." In-regard to their state semifinal loss to Barnseville, the 6'3 206 lb WR/SS/OLB told me that "I just feel like we just failed in some parts because we weren't ready for their run game...I wasn't really happy at all because we could have beat them." This bitter feeling to what could be considered a successful season for his team was also echoed by McMillian when talking about his individual performance during 2018, as although the rising junior posted 54 tackles, 7 TFLs, and 3.5 sacks, he reiterated that just like his teams performance last year, he was just scratching the surface: "I just want to come out with a bang. I had 54 tackles last year and I need 100 tackles this year, I had 7 TFLs last year and need 15 this year." [caption id="attachment_8984" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Credit: Dominic McMillian[/caption] This hunger is mirrored by McMillian's high school teammates, who according to him have been on the grind. "We've been putting that work in...the team is just coming together because we only have like 6 seniors returning this year. But we're getting that ring. We'll do whatever we can for it. We have to trust the process." That small returning senior class has left a void in leadership that needs to be filled come August, and McMillian is using his natural leadership skills to help fill that need. As he told me, "I like being a leader. It's good to just lead people in the right direction. I have to be ready for some of the kids at practice who don't want to do nothing and think we can win but not show up to practice. Usually [I] just have to encourage them a lot to get to practice." If the Polars can find some leadership, they should have another great shot at winning that coveted state championship ring. The confidence is there, as McMillian reported to me that "we're not worried about anybody. Southwest might be the only competition but we're going to come ready. We wanted to play Washburn and Edison though because the players talk so much [laughing emoji face.] He also conceded a wish that I have heard some of his teammates say as well, that they also want to play Robbinsdale Cooper. Another familiar sentiment shared with me was the respect shown for Coach Adams, who McMillian told me "is great. I can literally tell him anything. We have talks like everyday. He's real with everybody and will tell you straight up what you need to work on or if you're just not ready. [He's a] great coach. [caption id="attachment_8988" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Credit: Dominic McMillian[/caption] Not only is Adams a great coach, he also knows how to get his players into college. This will be incredibly useful for McMillian as his recruiting process will begin to heat-up shortly. When watching McMillian's tape, his size and ability to cover ground stood-out to me first and foremost. Second was his aggression and his impact at the point of contact. When McMillian gets his hands on you, you're going down. Chances are that you will also be going down hard, and I mean hard. This aggression and skillful tackling make him easily one of the best defensive players in the Twin Cities. Another important piece of his game that stands out is his versatility. In his Hudl (<a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/9712243/5c42011938643610d8265780">https://www.hudl.com/video/3/9712243/5c42011938643610d8265780</a>) you can see that McMillian can play multiple spots on a defense, and can play them all well. Whether it's his quick first step that helps him efficiently rush the passer, his ability to set the edge on outside zones and tosses, the success of his running downhill through alleys, or his coverage skills that help him match-up on both TEs as well as slot receivers, McMillian can get the job done. When asked where he wants to play college football, McMillian told me without hesitation that he "wants that Big 10 offer" and that "Minnesota is where I want to be. I'm going to the prospect camp July 27th, and I went to their camp already [in June]. I just want to go again and do the same good things." The coaches at the U told him that "I am D1 material and [they] just said to not show my feelings if something is wrong. Just keep working and really show out this year." With South Dakota State, South Dakota, and UNI also in contact, McMillian has a great chance of lengthening the list of Minneapolis North athletes playing Division 1 football. He left me with a final message, hopefully foreshadowing his and his teams future success: "We getting that ring."