Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Senior season filled with memories for Millner-Criss
3/4/2021 11:30:00 AM | Men's Basketball, BRAA
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — This college basketball season will be a memorable one in many ways. Middle Tennessee senior Jo'Vontae Millner-Criss might have more to remember than just about anyone.
Battling through the season marred by COVID-19, injuries for some of his teammates and a week off in late February because of a freak winter storm are just some of what has made this season unique for the forward from Burlington, North Carolina. The back of his jersey has also changed.
Millner-Criss had a special gift for Lindsey Criss last Mother's Day. She and her husband, Chas, and their two sons have become his family since he started living with them when he was in high school. When they opened a letter from him on Mother's Day, included were adoption papers.
"I sent my mom a letter on Mother's Day, so when she opened it, she would see the 'Happy Mother's Day' and also see the adoption papers. … As soon as she opened it, she FaceTimed me and she was in tears, and right away she said yes," Millner-Criss said at a recent MT basketball coaches show.
He officially changed his name from Millner to Millner-Criss over the summer, meaning the back of his jersey also had to change.
Seeing his last name on his son's jersey for the first time was quite a moment for Chas, a former college player at Gardner-Webb and the head coach at Hugh M. Cummings High School in Burlington, North Carolina.
"You just hate finding out at the last minute that you aren't going to play a home game, let alone senior night," head coach Nick McDevitt said. "It's been a tough year, and that's another part of it right there."
Even getting to his college senior night is a dream come true for Millner-Criss, though, even without the game taking place.
There were many times during his high school days and while battling through injuries at both his first collegiate stop, Presbyterian, and at MT last year when he didn't think he'd get to this point.
"I never thought that I would touch a college campus … but I graduated," he said. "That was a great feeling.
"The biggest thing that was a little upsetting was my parents weren't going to get to see me play my last home game. They were going to come down the day before."
When this season ends, Millner-Criss wants to play professional ball and maybe start his own clothing business.
Whatever challenges he encounters in the future, he knows he'll have his new family behind him.
Battling through the season marred by COVID-19, injuries for some of his teammates and a week off in late February because of a freak winter storm are just some of what has made this season unique for the forward from Burlington, North Carolina. The back of his jersey has also changed.
Millner-Criss had a special gift for Lindsey Criss last Mother's Day. She and her husband, Chas, and their two sons have become his family since he started living with them when he was in high school. When they opened a letter from him on Mother's Day, included were adoption papers.
"I sent my mom a letter on Mother's Day, so when she opened it, she would see the 'Happy Mother's Day' and also see the adoption papers. … As soon as she opened it, she FaceTimed me and she was in tears, and right away she said yes," Millner-Criss said at a recent MT basketball coaches show.
He officially changed his name from Millner to Millner-Criss over the summer, meaning the back of his jersey also had to change.
Seeing his last name on his son's jersey for the first time was quite a moment for Chas, a former college player at Gardner-Webb and the head coach at Hugh M. Cummings High School in Burlington, North Carolina.
| It was at Hugh M. Cummings where the two met. Millner-Criss was in a tough spot off the court, going through a period where he was homeless with seemingly nowhere to turn. The Crisses invited him into their home, and for a while, Millner-Criss didn't feel comfortable. Eventually, though, he started to settle in and feel more like a member of their family. "I'll never forget when [Chas] told me I was his son, and ever since then, I've never looked at him any different. … He's my real dad, and [Lindsey] is my real mother," he said. The Blue Raiders weren't able to hold proper senior day festivities because of Winter Storm Uri cancelling their weekend series with LA Tech — fitting for what has been a tough, strange year for Middle Tennessee. |
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"You just hate finding out at the last minute that you aren't going to play a home game, let alone senior night," head coach Nick McDevitt said. "It's been a tough year, and that's another part of it right there."
Even getting to his college senior night is a dream come true for Millner-Criss, though, even without the game taking place.
There were many times during his high school days and while battling through injuries at both his first collegiate stop, Presbyterian, and at MT last year when he didn't think he'd get to this point.
"I never thought that I would touch a college campus … but I graduated," he said. "That was a great feeling.
"The biggest thing that was a little upsetting was my parents weren't going to get to see me play my last home game. They were going to come down the day before."
When this season ends, Millner-Criss wants to play professional ball and maybe start his own clothing business.
Whatever challenges he encounters in the future, he knows he'll have his new family behind him.
Players Mentioned
F
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MTSU Men's Basketball Post Game Press Conference vs Chattanooga NIT 3/18/25
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