Amanda Valle is a Cronkite School of Journalism student coverig Coronado for AZPreps365.com

“If you build it, they will come.” Sports fans are more than familiar with this phrase from one of the most renowned baseball movies in the history of films, Field of Dreams. Coronado athletic director Anthony Miller, used these seven words to describe his mindset when he took over the position in 2019. 

Coronado was known as a powerhouse filled with talent and community during the ‘70s and ‘80s but began to lose its electricity as time went on. Miller has lit a spark and began to bring Coronado back. 

Admirable coaches, teachers, and athletic directors come and go, but only a few start a legacy. That is what Miller has already initiated at Coronado being the fifth athletic director in 20 years. 

“I have been coaching at Coronado for 20 years,” said Coronado golf coach Richard Vernezze. “I have never seen someone have such passion for creating the best possible environment for coaches and players. He has made a point to be a friend with everyone and show how much he cares.” 

COVID put sports on pause last spring and fall which made this semester jam-packed with events and games. Vernezze shared how Miller still can be found at almost every Coronado athletic event, including standing out on the greens of a 120-degree weather golf match. Miller also encourages other coaches to go out and support teams other than their own to bring back the ties of the community. 

“It is a condensed schedule right now,” said Miller. “You know usually in a regular year there are two or three games a week. This semester it is an everyday grind for all the athletes and myself, but it is extremely important to me to be there and show my support no matter what.”

Miller has shown his coaches, athletes, and parents the new Coronado way of community and support. Miller has hit the ground running ever since he started.

Miller came back to the Valley because of personal family reasons two years ago, when he was then hired as the athletic director. Since stepping onto the campus he never looked back in his newfound role. His first year was unlike any other with a global pandemic taking the world by storm in March of his first school year. No one could prepare for that.

Miller could have taken a seat on the sideline to admit COVID, but instead, he went to work. He has brought nothing but changes to the hall of Coronado, both athletically and academically. 

Miller’s reign started with the creation of Coronado’s Hall of Fame, the first hall of fame in the district. He has lined the walls outside the gym with all of Coronado’s athletic achievements and has worked to show off all of the exceptional talents that has come in and out of Coronado.

Miller has worked with former Coronado soccer player Art Velarde, who runs the Coronado alumni Facebook and helped coach the men’s soccer team, to create a bond between the former alumni and current students and their families at Coronado.

Coronado is full of rich history and tradition. Miller’s Hall of Fame has helped show that off. He has established a way to connect those from decades ago with the community he is working to build now that he is at Coronado. 

Coming from competing as a high school athlete, to a long-time coach, moving to the office side of high school sports was difficult for Miller at first. It created a barrier between the athlete and coach at first, but Miller pushed past it and figured out a way to build connections with every athlete and coach. 

“You know I am not able to be out there anymore playing because my time is over,” said Miller. “I am not even coaching, so I have taken it into my hands to do everything I can to help these athletes and coaches so they can perform their best and succeed in more ways than sports.”

Miller has worked to create a way to build a place where people can succeed on and off the field. Athletics can help people succeed in life, but guiding a person to be their best doesn’t always involve sports.

That is what Miller has put his time into, a way to shape players into the best person they can be outside of athletics.

This past school year Miller has made changes. One major change was to create a study hall and tutoring program that every athlete can attend. 

“He has taken the focus away from the sports to be more student-centered,” said Veralde. “He has instituted tutoring after school, paying for the attention to grades. Making sure that we are servicing the whole child and not just the athlete.”

Miller has taken it a step further than most athletic directors. If he knows that a student-athlete is struggling day to day, he is right there to help them get back on their feet. 

“You know I have never seen someone put so much effort into their students,” said Velarde. “He continues to go out of his way to make time to reach out to his students that he knows have been struggling. That shows character.”

Miller has also put in the works to create a booster club to help support the various sports teams at the school. Coronado is not blessed with endless amounts of donations like some of the other programs around the state, which places them at a disadvantage when it comes to competition. 

The world is Miller’s oyster and he is beyond ready to bring back the rich pride, talent, and tradition to Coronado. Miller continues to work every day to make Coronado better than it was the day before.