Sport: Football
Born: January 1, 1972
Town: Roselle, New Jersey
Barron Miles was born January 1, 1972 in Roselle, NJ. Undersized but very athletic, Barron had a powerful throwing arm that served him well as a quarterback and, as a quarterback, he developed the anticipation to be a shutdown cornerback. Barron played both positions for Abraham Clark High School and also returned kicks and punts. Following his senior season in 1990, Barron returned a kickoff 102 yards in the New Jersey All-Star Game.
Despite weighing just 140 pounds, he scored a scholarship to Nebraska and became an All-Big Eight cornerback in 1993 and 1994 for Tom Osborne’s Cornhuskers. The 1994 team won the national championship. During his time in Nebraska, Barron was also a difference-maker on special teams, blocking a school-record seven punts.
At a shade over 5’8”, Barron was undersized by NFL standards, but the Steelers gambled a 6th-round pick on him. A knee injury in training camp prevented him from making the team. He recovered and tried to make it back to the pros through NFL Europe, but when the CFL Montreal Alouettes came calling, Barron decided to head north. It was a smart decision.
Barron’s speed and knowledge of the passing game made him a valuable defender in the wide-open CFL. The Alouettes finished 12–5 in 1998 and Barron was named East Defensive Rookie of the Year. He made the All-Star team the next two seasons and again in 2002, when Montreal won the Grey Cup. In seven seasons with the Larks, he amassed 30 interceptions.
In 2005, Barron signed a free-agent deal with the British Columbia Lions. He was a West All-Star five years in a row and was the CFL interception leader in 2006 with 10. He was a beast in the playoffs that year, blocking a kick and recording a sack in the West title game, and then spearheading a great defensive effort in the 25–14 Grey Cup victory over his old club, the Alouettes. In 2009, Barron became the league’s all-time leader in blocked kicks with 13. He finished his career that season with 66 interceptions, which ranked 6th in CFL history at the time.
After his playing days, Barron got into coaching and went to work for the Edmonton Eskimos. He was inducted into the Canadian Football League Hall of Fame in 2018.