It has been a very interesting past few years for the Miller household: Corey Miller, a dye-in-the-wool South Carolina Gamecock, was thrust into the role of the proud father of a member of the Alabama Crimson Tide: His son, Christian. Thankfully, Corey Miller has no such conflicts when it comes to Christian's pro career. And as his son has gone through his first days of training camp with the Carolina Panthers, he is as proud of him as he has ever been.

"I'm pinching myself. Is this real?", Corey Miller told WFNZ's Wilson & Parcell. "I look at the pictures, I'm seeing him in uniform, and I'm like 'Wow, is this my little Christian?'"

Wearing No. 50 for the Panthers is, indeed, the same Christian Miller that once played Pop Warner football for his father in Columbia. And it's also the same Christian Miller that adorned No. 47 at the University of Alabama. As a second-generation NFL player, Christian Miller already had been conditioned for the rigors of the professional level: After all, his father was a mainstay at linebacker for the New York Giants throughout the 1990s.

But speaking on his own account, Miller told Wilson & Parcell that playing for Nick Saban's Crimson Tide played a big role in preparing him for Carolina.

"It taught me to be a pro. The way we approach our meetings, the mindset that we have to have when we come to work every day," said Miller. "So I think it taught me that, and just ultimately how to be a good person, a good teammate, and to come to work every day and do what I need to do to contribute. Whether it's learning that day or coaching some guys, whatever they need me to do, that's what I'm gonna do. And that's what I ultimately learned from playing at Alabama."

Miller noted that because of the depth of talent that is present in Tuscaloosa, playing at Alabama taught him how to compete: After all, "Any day you could lose your job at a place like Alabama.

It prepares you to come into work every day and fight for that job - and again, this is a job now. So you have to come to work every day, you have to produce. And that's basically what it is at Alabama. There's a lot of similarities there."

Considering that he flashed first-round talent before dropping to the fourth round due to injury concerns, Miller may very well deliver far more for the Panthers than what they invested in him to start out. But like first-round pick and fellow linebacker/defensive end Brian Burns, the expectation is for Miller to earn his keep on Carolina's defense.

"I think the young man's got a bit of a ways to go, he's got a lot to learn," said Panthers head coach Ron Rivera of Miller. "But he and Brian Burns have some very similar traits: Both long, both explosive off the ball, both good, long pass rushers, and both have good play strength. They play with a good body balance. Both those young guys have an opportunity to contribute."

A large part of the reason why Miller is on the Panthers is because of the skillset he brings as a versatile edge rusher, as the Panthers are transitioning to a new, more multiple-style of defense that incorporates 3-4 elements into the Panthers' traditional 4-3 and nickel packages. Giving Miller just one more reason to feel extra prepared for his first taste of NFL action.

"It's very similar. It's almost identical in terms of my position depending on the packages that we're in," said Miller when comparing the Panthers' defense to Alabama's. "So I'm very comfortable with standing up playing the edge or putting my hand in the dirt. And that's basically what I've been asked to do - and like I said, it's very familiar for me. So the transition is a lot more smooth with it being so similar."