Watch a new and earlier report on Harry Miller in the player above.
This article discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline available 24/7. To reach the 24/7 Crisis Text Helpline, text 4HOPE to 741741.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – An Ohio State football player who quit the team to address his mental health will be a special guest at tonight’s State of the Union address.
Former Buckeyes offensive lineman Harry Miller, a senior mechanical engineering major, will attend the address as a guest of first lady Jill Biden.
Miller announced last March that he was medically retiring from football to deal with a mental health battle he was dealing with.
“Prior to the season last year, I told Coach [Ryan] Day of my intention to kill myself. He immediately had me touch with [two doctors] and I received the support I needed,” Miller wrote on Twitter at the time. “I am a life preserved by the kindness that was offered to me by other when I could not produce kindness for myself.”
Since then, Miller has become an advocate for mental health and emotional wellness, appearing on the Today show to discuss his fight and being honored at the annual Art of Recovery Art Auction at the Columbus Museum of Art.
Guests of the First Lady and Second Gentleman are chosen by the White House “because they personify issues or themes to be addressed by the President in his speech, or they embody the Biden-Harris Administration’s policies at work for the American people,” according to the guest announcement.
Miller, from Upper Arlington, was projected to be Ohio State’s starting center in 2021 after starting six games on the Buckeyes’ offensive line in 2020. But Miller only played two games that season as he dealt with his issues.
