'You weren't gonna beat that guy'

As a soldier and a man, Sgt. Mikeal W. Miller had the reputation of being someone who refused to bend and never gave up.

So it came as little surprise that he hung on for nearly six months after being gravely injured in an explosion in Baghdad on July 9, friends and fellow soldiers recalled at a memorial service Wednesday at Fort Carson.

Miller, of Albany, Ore., died of his wounds on Jan. 27 in Bethesda, Md. He was 22.

“He was hard — physically and mentally,” said Sgt. Jeffrey Sanders, who was there when shrapnel from an improvised explosive device tore through the vehicle Miller was riding in. “You weren’t gonna beat that guy. But if you did, he was gonna come at you again and again.”

The service drew a capacity crowd of about 400 people to Soldiers Memorial Chapel. They stood in silence during the soldier’s final salute — a final roll call, with Miller unable to answer, followed by three volleys from a rifle squad and Taps.

Superiors called him a model soldier, well-regarded by comrades in the 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.

“His determination, his professionalism and his discipline were an example for all of us,” Lt. Col. James Phillips said.

“He would not want us to feel sorry for him. He would expect us to continue the mission.”

Miller’s platoon sergeant, Sgt. Stephen LaRocque of Colorado Springs, told The Gazette in January that Miller was headed to the Green Zone in Baghdad to enjoy a four-day pass when he was wounded.

He was halfway through his second tour in Iraq. He told friends he planned to leave the Army and start a family with his wife of less than a year, Megan. She was joined at the memorial by his mother, Megan, and his grandparents.

Miller was remembered as a dedicated soldier who worked hard, took pride in his job and liked making his fellow soldiers laugh.

Off duty, he loved off-roading in his 2006 Ford F150 and pulling pranks on friends, Sanders said.

“He was a solid soldier, husband, man and friend,” Staff Sgt. Joshua Braly said.

He referred to his friend by his nickname “Biff” — bestowed by fellow soldiers because of his physical resemblance to the character Biff Tanner from the movie “Back to the Future.”

Miller’s family kept a constant vigil while he was under treatment, said Capt. Kelly Stewart, who visited the soldier at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

“All the loyalty and love he showed his family was reciprocated,” he said.

At 6 feet, 2 inches and 200 pounds, the soldier had a dominating physical presence, but he also had a softer side.

“There was that corner of Mike’s soul that he only let certain people see,” said Braly, who praised his friend’s loyalty and called him the “moral compass” of his unit in an address during the service.

“He was big,” Sanders said. “But to those who knew him, he was a teddy bear. He had a big heart. He would go out of his way to make his friends smile.”

Miller’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.