Bill Miller roams the field in this photo from his days as an assistant coach at Western Michigan.

Eight consecutive years of anywhere from zero to three victories have put many a Kansas football fan in such a guarded state of mind that to write anything nice about the program is to run the risk of being accused of “hyping” the team.

Consider yourself warned: I am not hyping the Jayhawks, not predicting that KU can contend for a bowl game in 2018 and won’t yet even go so far as to predict a victory in the season-opener vs. underrated Nicholls State, but I am going to write something nice about KU football. So if you are afraid that it will lead you to get your hopes up yet again, thus setting yourself up for disappointment, this might be a good time to find something else to read on KUsports.com.

Here goes:

David Beaty made a terrific addition to his coaching staff by bringing veteran linebackers coach Bill Miller on board.

Kansas Athletics hasn’t announced Miller’s hiring yet, but he’s already recruiting for Kansas, both on campus over the weekend, and out of town this week.

Miller has worked for, among others, Nick Saban, Jimmy Johnson, Butch Davis, Jimbo Fisher, Mark Mangino and Jerry Kill, a list of coaches who know how to evaluate assistants.

Miller will coach linebackers, so it will be interesting to see what assignment shifts that sets in motion. One strong possibility: Linebackers coach Todd Bradford will move to cornerbacks, and Kenny Perry, who doubles as recruiting coordinator, will move to special teams coordinator. Bradford has spent more seasons coaching the secondary during his career than any other position group.

Perry’s first job after concluding his playing career at Houston came at his alma mater, where he worked with special teams and defensive backs. Plus, he was a head high school football coach for 13 seasons in Texas and has worked with specific special-teams units at TCU and Kansas.

Miller’s strong reputation extends beyond his work on the field. His connections Kansas and Florida coupled with his his ability to evaluate talent give him value as a recruiter as well.

At Kansas, Miller received a verbal commitment from Class of 2010 Hutchinson High defensive end Geno Grissom, who would have honored his commitment had Miller been retained by Turner Gill. Upon learning that Miller would not be coaching at Kansas, Grissom switched to Oklahoma, where he eventually became a tight end. A reserve linebacker, Grissom is on the New England Patriots Super Bowl roster.

The Miller hiring is good news for Kansas, such good news that I imagine that Beaty eventually will get around to announcing it, although he too appears a little skittish about being accused of hyping the team yet again.