Solon, Iowa Native Finds His NFL Home During 2025 Draft

One of the many reasons I love the NFL Draft is it consistently gives me the opportunity to read about a slew of local boys who saw their dreams come true. In last year's draft, Dubuque native Jack Plummer was signed by the Carolina Panthers. In the 2023 NFL Draft, Council Bluffs, IA native Max Duggan was selected by the Los Angeles Chargers.

Now, a Solon, IA native will have his opportunity to earn an NFL roster spot after his new team selected two quarterbacks in the sixth round on Saturday, April 26th, 2025.

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With the 215th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Las Vegas Raiders selected Cam Miller, a quarterback who spent all five seasons of his collegiate career with the North Dakota State Bison. Miller becomes one of several signal callers to be drafted over the last eight years. Carson Wentz (2017), Easton Stick (2019), and Trey Lance (2021) are the others.

Unlike those names, however, Miller is an Iowa native, having grown up in Solon, IA. For Solon High School, Miller had a notable, dual-threat career, throwing for 2,436 yards and 28 touchdowns while also rushing for 840 yards and 12 touchdowns. I've driven through the town of Solon several times, past Solon High School even. It's a quaint, idyllic town, and you can bet the small, homey enclave is thrilled at the prospect of a new hometown hero.

Following his time at Solon High School, Miller committed to North Dakota State in 2019. Although his freshman year might've been dampened by the COVID-19 pandemic, he went on to be the school's starting quarterback in 2021, a job he held onto for four seasons.

During his time at North Dakota State, Miller led the Bison to two FCS National Championship victories (2021 and 2024), and was named MVP for his performance in the 2024 Championship game. In his career as a Bison, he threw for just under 10,000 yards, 81 touchdowns, and had a win-loss record of 45-11.

Miller's selection by the Raiders came just one pick after Las Vegas selected Montana State quarterback Tommy Mellott with the 213th pick. Because this was a weird draft, the Raiders were not the only team to take two quarterbacks. The Cleveland Browns selected Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round before trading up to get Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round.

The Raiders were in quarterback purgatory when the 2024 season concluded. Under new head coach Pete Carroll and General Manager John Spytek (a Wisconsin native, I'll add), the Raiders traded for Geno Smith to serve as their starting quarterback. There will be a stiff competition to backup Smith, not only between newcomers Miller and Mellott, but also incumbent Aidan O'Connell. O'Connell is entering his third season with Las Vegas.

Read more about the Las Vegas Raiders selecting Solon, IA native Cam Miller in the 2025 NFL Draft on Sports Illustrated's website.