Montgomery Brings Physical Aspect to Secondary

Pete Volk

When looking at Miramar, Fl. defensive back prospect Steven Montgomery, it’s easy to see a variety of current Terps in him. At 5’11”, 186, he has a similar build to that of current starters Cameron Chism and Trenton Hughes. When blitzing, he has a relentless attack that is reminiscent of true freshman Desmond Kearse, and he hits hard like Antwine Perez.

Montgomery has led Miramar High School to a 2-1 record so far, putting up one interception, three pass deflections, and “around 25 tackles” this year. He talked about the different style of play he brings to the secondary “I would describe myself as a physical presence on the defense,” he said. “Especially in the secondary. I feel like most DB’s won’t come up and hit somebody like a linebacker would hit somebody, and I think I could bring that to the table either at corner or safety.”

Last season, the three-star recruit played mostly at safety, but this season his role has been at cornerback. The Maryland coaches have said they want him to play a variety of positions, similar to the role Kearse currently plays for the Terps. “They said they want to move me all over the field,” Montgomery said. “Some corner, some safety, sometimes in the box to blitz the quarterback, a little bit of a lot of different positions.”

We’ll do a film review later, but Montgomery’s strength lies in his hitting ability, something that he is very proud of. “A lot of games this year when I come up to the receivers,” he said. “They start diving and running out of bounds and that’s what I want them to do. When you see me running at you, it’s not gonna be pretty, and I want you to know that. Whenever you come to my side, you know you’re gonna get hit. I’ve got to [put fear in them].”

The senior is currently holding 17 offers, and lists his top five as Minnesota (where he already has taken an official visit), Maryland, West Virginia, LSU, and UNC. “I’m really looking for a place where I can come in and play early,” he said. “I want to have an impact on the team as soon as possible.”

North Carolina has obviously been going through some…stuff recently, and Montgomery acknowledged that the situation has an impact on him. “Yeah, it does,” he said. “Me and the coaches have talked about it, they don’t really know what’s gonna happen yet, so everybody’s just sitting back and watching.”

Montgomery was scheduled to visit Maryland this weekend for the Duke game, but his visit was rescheduled. Defensive coordinator Don Brown will be coming down to visit Miramar next week, and Montgomery is slated to come to College Park for the next home game, October 30 against Wake Forest. “I really feel like the connection with the coaches is there,” he said about Maryland.

Connections build commitments. That’s certainly what Terps fans are hoping for here.