Michigan State’s Miller in California State of Mind : Draft: Quarterback wants to play for Rams but will have to see who picks Shuler and Dilfer.

Two names Michigan State quarterback Jim Miller doesn’t want to hear if the Rams keep their fifth overall choice in Sunday’s NFL draft: Heath Shuler and Trent Dilfer.

Miller knows the Rams are interested in him, but he won’t know how much until they announce their first-round selection in New York City.

Miller, whom the Rams rank third among quarterbacks behind Dilfer and Shuler, will patiently wait at his parents’ home in Waterford, Mich.

Projected as a second- to fourth-round pick, he has watched the Rams’ draft-day saga unfold something like this:

They announced Wednesday that they will select Dilfer, Fresno State’s quarterback, or Tennessee’s Shuler with the fifth pick if one or both is available. They also are interested in selecting Nebraska strong safety Toby Wright with the fifth pick (33rd overall) in the second round.

But . . .

If the Rams’ trade talks with Dallas for wide receiver Alvin Harper and a second-round pick become a reality, they could use the Cowboys’ pick or their other second-round selection (49th overall) to take Miller.

Or . . .

If the Rams trade down in the first round to draft a wide receiver, cornerback, offensive tackle or defensive tackle, Miller could become a logical second-round choice.

In the meantime, Miller waits. And wonders.

“I’m anxious to get this over with,” he said Thursday from Waterford. “I would love to play in L.A. My brother lives in Irvine, and I visited him last month during spring break. It was a great scene.”

Should the Rams pass on him, Miller estimates 15 other teams would be waiting to take him, including Kansas City, Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay and Cleveland.

The Rams like Miller, 6-feet-4 and 208 pounds, because of his quick throwing release and his accuracy (63.9% completion percentage as a senior). A dropback passer, he has an adequate, but not powerful, arm.

“I feel real good about him,” said Ram quarterbacks coach Mike Martz, who watched Miller at a workout in Lansing, Mich., in February. “You hate to say he’s a project guy because he’s so accurate and he gets the ball off so quickly.”

The knock on Miller is that he’s not very mobile. Scouts say he needs to be set when throwing the ball.

He also played in a conservative offense that limited his attempts. He threw for only 4,628 yards and 16 touchdowns in three seasons.

“He doesn’t have any glaring weaknesses,” Martz said. “He’s not as quick afoot as you would like, but he played 20 pounds overweight last season.

“He was 227 during the season because somebody had told him he needed to put on weight. But I saw him work out at 212 pounds, and he had a great workout.”

Miller hasn’t established himself as a proven winner. Michigan State was 12-15 after he beat out former El Toro High standout Bret Johnson as the Spartans’ starter five games in the 1991 season.

“Yeah, the great ones win,” Miller said. “But look at Joe Montana. He had a great supporting cast with the 49ers (and won four Super Bowls). Then, look at John Elway. His teams have lost three Super Bowls.

“You can go right down the line. Warren Moon hasn’t won the big game yet. And it’s not that he’s a bad quarterback. It’s that other things have happened.”

So can Miller compete with free-agent acquisition Chris Miller and third-year player T.J. Rubley for the starting job?

“I’ve got no problem with competing,” he said. “There’s no doubt I can do it. I had to compete with Bret Johnson, your guy from L.A.

“I came in here (Michigan State) with three of the top quarterbacks in the nation, and by my senior year, I was the only one left.”