In the early part of the decade, Sparta wrestler Jim Miller was a hard nosed feather weight for the Spartans, competing at 103 to 140 weight breaks during his career. Back then he was considered one of the better wrestlers in the area, but not even he knew he would eventually become a professional fighter in the Ultimate Fighting Championship league.

The 2002 graduate left Sparta with only a handful of losses during illustrious wrestling career and even finished 7th in the States during his senior season. After high school, Miller went on to Virginia Tech to wrestle at the next level.

After college he started his working career in construction. But during a short stint in the working world, Jim and his brother Dan had the wrestling bug and decided to get into Mixed Martial Arts. They quickly excelled and in May of 2005 they both became professional. Soon after that, the UFC signed the both of them and the rest is history.

NJAC Sports Center caught up with Miller to reminisce about the old Sparta wrestling days, how his life as a professional athlete has evolved and what his message is to the Sparta athletes is this year.

Q: What was your favorite moment as a wrestler for Sparta?
A: My favorite moment as a Sparta wrestler is easily when we won the state sectional title in 2000 at Indian Hills High School. The team worked very hard and wrestled great in that tournament.

Q: Were you a fan of mixed marshal arts back in your Sparta days?A: I was a fan back then but I really didn't get to see many fights. I was definitely a fan of the idea of becoming a fighter.

Q: What influenced you to get into MMA?
A: My brother, Dan, and I were bored of just working all day and then going home for the night. We needed some excitement in our lives and thought it would be a great outlet for our energy.

Q: Did you think you would be a professional athlete when you were growing up in Sparta?
A: I always wanted to be a pro athlete, but graduating high school at 5'8" and 150 lbs. soaking wet didn't exactly leave me with too many options. I knew back then that if I was going to have a career in any sport, it would have to be MMA.

Q: Were there any opponents that had your number when you wrestled for Sparta?
A: There were a couple actually, but Chris Wilson from Hopatcong got the better of me three or four times, even in college.

Q: Would you like a second chance with them in the octagon?
A: Boy would I!

Q: What does it feel like when a fight starts, the spot light is on you and it is just you against your opponent?
A: When you step into the cage and you are well trained, it's just another day at the office. I don't even hear the crowd and usually don't even hear my corner men, so it's strangely calm and very comfortable place for me.

Q: Is it helpful having your brother Dan in the UFC as well?
A: I contribute my success in this sport to having my brother to train with everyday. I know that I can show up to practice any day of the week at anytime of day, and I will have someone to train with that can push me to my limits.

Q: Even though he fights 30lbs heavier than you, can you hang in the ring with him?
A: We often go back and forth with who gets the better of the other. I've gotten to the point where I am because I was always trying to catch him, and if nothing I normally do works, I try something new and evolve. He's the same way towards me also. More often then not thought, when we spar full MMA, he beats me up.

Q: How many hours a day do you train?
A: I usually train around six hours a day, six days a week when preparing for a fight.

Q: Where do you do most of your working out?
A: Pretty much all of my technique and sparring is done at AMA in Whippany, New Jersey. I also do strength and conditioning three days a week in Fair Lawn, with Martin Rooney of Training for Warriors out of the Parisi Speed School up there.

Q: Does MMA require more technique or strength?
A: It's a solid 50/50 mix these days. You have to be a really good athlete to compete at a high level. You also need to be well versed in every aspect of the game to survive a fifteen minute fight.

Q: Is there anything your coach at Sparta instilled in you that you still use today?
A: My coaches at Sparta taught me how to wrestle, and I use that in every fight. I was not very good when I came up as a freshman.

Q: What do you attribute to your success as a professional MMA fighter?
A: More than anything else it has been surrounding myself with great training partners, because if your training partners can't push you to your limits in practice, you will crumble when your opponent does.

Q: Do you think the UFC will eventually take over professional boxing in popularity?
A: I think it already has, don't you?

Q: What would surprise most people about fighting in the UFC?
A: Probably that compared to a lot of other things in training and life, getting punched in the face really doesn't hurt at all.

Q: Do you think people have misconceptions about the UFC or MMA?
A: There are still a lot of people out there that don't understand the sport and therefore have come to negative conclusions about it. Most of the problem stems from the fact that the average American doesn't grow up with any involvement in the combat sports, they grow up with Football, Baseball, and Basketball. All these sports focus on the manipulation of a ball. So when the goal is to manipulate not a ball, but another athlete, most Americans are lost. This is why American wrestlers dominate the sport, and make up the largest fan base. So if more people wrestled, MMA would have even more fans.

Q: What is the best way people can get into MMA in their communities?
A: Just walk through the door of the nearest gym. It's that easy. Most people fall in love with the technical aspects of the sport at their first practice.

Q: What happens when you are at a club with your pals and some bully comes around and starts pushing one of your boys around?
A: Honestly, that doesn't happen. I don't hang out at places where those types of guys do. I also don't know a single pro fighter that wouldn't do everything he could to avoid a fight outside the ring. When you dedicate yourself to fight another well trained athlete, getting into a scrap with a drunk just isn't worth it.

Q: What message would you give to the young athletes at your alma mater Sparta as they get ready for a new season of sports?
A: TRAIN HARD! And attitude is everything; you let up...you lose.

Special thanks to Jim Miller for his time and the UFC for the use of their photo's!  You can track Jim Miller's career at www.ufc.com.