Rec Sports
A Lifelong Sports Writer’s Journey
John Millea is a longtime sports writer and is the Senior Content Creator with the Minnesota State High School League. This “My Life” feature is about the Iowa native.
The Early Years
Millea grew up in a small town of 800 people in northwest Iowa called Graettinger. His dad was the town barber, and his mom stayed at home for many years to raise their 6 kids before becoming an elementary school teacher when the youngest of 6 reached school age. John was the 2nd oldest of 4 boys.
Love of Sports
Millea recalls loving sports from an early age. He was the bat boy for the high school baseball team as a young man, and read numerous sports books and magazines. In high school Millea played football, basketball, ran track and was on the golf team. He graduated from high school in 1977.
John Millea (photo courtesy of John Millea)
Start as a Sports Writer
John got his start in sports writing while in high school. His English teacher, Mrs. White, says the Graettinger Times was looking for a student to write the stories from the local football games. Millea was on the football team so he became a player reporter. He was a lineman so he didn’t appear in the story other than his byline. He also wrote about other high school sports the last 3 years he was in high school.
College Came Next
Following high school Millea started college at Briar Cliff College in Sioux City, Iowa. He was the Sports Information Director as a freshman and sophomore in college. Millea transferred to Drake University in Des Moines before his junior year because of their journalism program. He graduated from Drake in 1981. While at Drake Millea worked part-time in the sports department for the Des Moines Register. He started out taking calls reporting on high school football. The summer prior to John’s senior year at Drake he was hired full-time at the Des Moines Register on their night sports desk.
Life of a Sportswriter
After graduation Millea was hired as a permanent member of the Des Moines Register sports desk. John and his wife, also from Graettinger, felt like their life was set. A year later that plan changed when cut backs took place at the paper and Millea was let go. He stayed in the sports writing business and relocated to Ottumwa, Iowa. He was there for a year and a half and then moved on to the Cedar Rapids Gazette. After 1 1/2 years in Cedar Rapids, Millea took an opportunity to work on the sports desk for the Arizona Republic in Phoenix. He was there for 6 years.
John Millea (photo courtesy of John Millea)
The Star Tribune
In 1991 Millea got a call from a former colleague who was now working with the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He was hired with the Star Tribune and spent his first 5 years there working the night sports desk. After being a copy editor for 5 years he became a general reporter with the Star Tribune. Millea recalls covering everything from youth sports to professional sports. In the early 2000s he transitioned to covering high school sports, which he loved.
Millea Moves to MSHSL
The years of covering high school sports for the Star Tribune led to a good relationship with the Minnesota State High School League. In 2010 he left the Star Tribune to become the media specialist for the Minnesota State High School, a new position. He has stayed in the role ever since. John is retiring in August of 2025.
Retirement Life
John’s wife has been retired for a couple of years, they have 3 kids and 2 grandkids. Millea wants to have time to visit their kids and grandkids and he won’t revisit any type of part-time media opportunity for at least the end of this calendar year.
If you’d like to listen to my 4-part conversation with John Millea, click below.