Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Hometown Hero Jason Millard to Join the Blue Raider Hall of Fame
9/28/2021 6:00:00 PM | General, Men's Golf, BRAA
The four-time All-American was a standout on the links during his time as a Blue Raider
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Whit Turnbow knew Jason Millard always had a shot to be a Blue Raider. From the time he was 10 years old, the Murfreesboro native would always find his way near the MT head coach's team when the Blue Raiders were out practicing in the area. Millard would practice near them, often alongside them when time allowed. So when Millard got older, and his game grew up with him, it made Turnbow's recruiting pitch easy.
"I went to Clarksville Country Club the summer of his junior year (of high school) to watch him play in a tournament, watched him shoot 63 and follow it up with 65 the next day," Turnbow said. "I offered him the next week."
The offer would prove to be one of Turnbow's best at Middle Tennessee, as Millard quickly established himself as one of the best freshman golfers in the country, helping catapult MT to the NCAA Championship that spring in 2008, eventually finishing 18th in tournament to earn All-American honors. Named to four different All-American teams during the course of his four years as a Blue Raider, Millard made the NCAA Championships twice during his career, and was named to the All-Sun Belt three times.
"I had a few offers, but MTSU stood out to me, just because I knew there was a lot of good young talent," Millard said. "I thought we were going to be really good, and it ended up being a really good fit for me."
The 2008 NCAA Championship was hosted by Purdue at the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex, a windy, high rough course that proved tough for all participants. But a subtle swing adjustment Turnbow helped Millard implement, switching his ball flight from a right-to-left draw to a left-to-right cut, gave Millard the consistency to avoid bad shots.
"As athletic and as talented as he is, it really wasn't much of a transition," Turnbow said. "It was just a matter of him getting comfortable hitting that shot under pressure. Start to finish, that transition didn't take 60 days."
That transition, coupled with Millard's already elite ball striking ability, kept the freshman in the top quarter of the field all weekend.
"I actually probably had my best tournament ever at that event," Millard said. "Which really gave me the confidence going forward for the next three years after that finish."
It wasn't just a great week for Millard, but also for his teammates, as Middle Tennessee rallied after an average day one to shoot great rounds on days two and three and make the cut. The Blue Raiders' 15th place finish as a team remains the highest ever finish for a Middle Tennessee team at an NCAA Championship across the entire athletic department.
Millard said some of his fondest memories of his time at Middle Tennessee are the long hours on the range, on the putting green and in the gym with his teammates. But his favorite ones are when that hard work paid off with success for the team, like the 2008 NCAA Championship, or the 2009 Sun Belt title.
"I owe a lot of my success to my teammates, they pushed me every single day," Millard said. "We were all pretty close, we would go out and compete against each other in practice, in a two vs two match. And that's just how we all got better. Just to share those moments with your teammates is everything. I'll remember those moments forever."
The Murfreesboro native's name still decorates the Blue Raiders' record book to this day. Millard owns five of the top 10 and two of the top five lowest rounds in school history, including the school record for lowest round (63) at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate (2011). He's also one of just two Blue Raiders (Brett Patterson) to compete in three separate U.S. Amateurs, and just the second Blue Raider to make the cut for match play at the final 65 when he did so in 2008.
Turnbow said that Millard being inducted to the hall of fame is appropriate, because he was the first in a long line of Blue Raider golfers that put the program into a different level of success to become eligible for induction. Millard has played professionally since his graduation in 2011, winning a tournament on the Canadian Tour in 2015, and reaching as high as the Korn Ferry Tour, one step below the PGA.
"He's one of the best that's ever walked those hallways," Turnbow said. "I think he feels a great sense of pride. Murfreesboro is home for him, it still is today, even as much traveling as he does. He still lives to the right of 18th green at Indian Hills. He's still a member of our community and loves that university and loves that town."
"I went to Clarksville Country Club the summer of his junior year (of high school) to watch him play in a tournament, watched him shoot 63 and follow it up with 65 the next day," Turnbow said. "I offered him the next week."
The offer would prove to be one of Turnbow's best at Middle Tennessee, as Millard quickly established himself as one of the best freshman golfers in the country, helping catapult MT to the NCAA Championship that spring in 2008, eventually finishing 18th in tournament to earn All-American honors. Named to four different All-American teams during the course of his four years as a Blue Raider, Millard made the NCAA Championships twice during his career, and was named to the All-Sun Belt three times.
"I had a few offers, but MTSU stood out to me, just because I knew there was a lot of good young talent," Millard said. "I thought we were going to be really good, and it ended up being a really good fit for me."
The 2008 NCAA Championship was hosted by Purdue at the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex, a windy, high rough course that proved tough for all participants. But a subtle swing adjustment Turnbow helped Millard implement, switching his ball flight from a right-to-left draw to a left-to-right cut, gave Millard the consistency to avoid bad shots.
"As athletic and as talented as he is, it really wasn't much of a transition," Turnbow said. "It was just a matter of him getting comfortable hitting that shot under pressure. Start to finish, that transition didn't take 60 days."
That transition, coupled with Millard's already elite ball striking ability, kept the freshman in the top quarter of the field all weekend.
"I actually probably had my best tournament ever at that event," Millard said. "Which really gave me the confidence going forward for the next three years after that finish."
It wasn't just a great week for Millard, but also for his teammates, as Middle Tennessee rallied after an average day one to shoot great rounds on days two and three and make the cut. The Blue Raiders' 15th place finish as a team remains the highest ever finish for a Middle Tennessee team at an NCAA Championship across the entire athletic department.
Millard said some of his fondest memories of his time at Middle Tennessee are the long hours on the range, on the putting green and in the gym with his teammates. But his favorite ones are when that hard work paid off with success for the team, like the 2008 NCAA Championship, or the 2009 Sun Belt title.
"I owe a lot of my success to my teammates, they pushed me every single day," Millard said. "We were all pretty close, we would go out and compete against each other in practice, in a two vs two match. And that's just how we all got better. Just to share those moments with your teammates is everything. I'll remember those moments forever."
The Murfreesboro native's name still decorates the Blue Raiders' record book to this day. Millard owns five of the top 10 and two of the top five lowest rounds in school history, including the school record for lowest round (63) at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate (2011). He's also one of just two Blue Raiders (Brett Patterson) to compete in three separate U.S. Amateurs, and just the second Blue Raider to make the cut for match play at the final 65 when he did so in 2008.
Turnbow said that Millard being inducted to the hall of fame is appropriate, because he was the first in a long line of Blue Raider golfers that put the program into a different level of success to become eligible for induction. Millard has played professionally since his graduation in 2011, winning a tournament on the Canadian Tour in 2015, and reaching as high as the Korn Ferry Tour, one step below the PGA.
"He's one of the best that's ever walked those hallways," Turnbow said. "I think he feels a great sense of pride. Murfreesboro is home for him, it still is today, even as much traveling as he does. He still lives to the right of 18th green at Indian Hills. He's still a member of our community and loves that university and loves that town."
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