![]() “So this year I’ve been approaching every game the same because you can lose to anyone.” “I wouldn’t get up the same for the games that I thought we should win and it showed in my performance” he confessed. It’s something that he admitted struggling with during his career. He’s grown leaps and bounds in his play because of his improved mental approach.”īeing better prepared has guaranteed that Montgomery will be completely focused throughout the game no matter who is lined up across from him. “Now he not only understands what other teams are trying to do to him, but also why they’re trying to do that to him. “He’s done a better job of preparing himself,” Bailey commented. The coaching staff is certainly pleased with Montgomery’s dedication to his pre-game preparation. But if he’s hedging forward, then he’s probably going to run block. For example, Montgomery says that if a lineman is sitting light in his stance, then he’s most likely going to pull or pass block. He has been very focused on learning the tendencies of offensive linemen. Part of that he credits to a concerted effort at studying more film. Montgomery’s confidence in his ability to split double teams has grown as his technique has improved. But as a defensive lineman, you’ve got to be confident that no one can block you, not even two guys.” “Sometimes in the past when I got double teamed I’d relax and wouldn’t play as well as I could. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve pretty much been the biggest guy on the defensive line, so I get a lot of double teams and it’s frustrating,” Montgomery admitted. But as Montgomery’s playing time increased, so did the attention opponent’s assigned to No. “He was in good enough shape to play right away and the more he played, the better he got,” Browning said of Montgomery’s first year campaign. Montgomery’s size and natural ability allowed him to play well as a true freshman when he saw action in the final nine games of the 2002 season. When we first went and watched him play basketball, you could see he had tremendous athletic ability and we knew he was a natural defensive tackle.” “We knew he had a lot of upside, but we didn’t know what position he’d play. “It was really hard to evaluate him on film because he played so many different positions in high school including quarterback, tight end, and defensive end,” recalled Gopher assistant coach Mitch Browning, who recruited Montgomery. Such incredible versatility was a welcome “problem” for the Gophers coaching staff. As a pitcher, Montgomery struck out 60 batters and belted 14 home runs en route to being named a member of the all-state baseball team as a senior. In addition to his gridiron accomplishments, he also averaged a double-double and was named the basketball team’s MVP. ![]() Montgomery also played well on the basketball and baseball teams as a three-sport prep star at John F. I played pretty well, so we just went with it.” “Coach saw me throwing the ball before practice one day, so he put me in for a game. “We needed someone to step in at quarterback,” Montgomery said, recalling his positional change in high school. No joke, a quarterback! Do I have your attention now? “You’re talking about a guy who was a high school quarterback.” “For as big as he is, he’s one heck of an athlete,” first-year defensive line coach Carey Bailey stated. But more mesmerizing than his great size is the mobility and athleticism he possesses for someone so large. Standing 6-5 and weighing more than 300 pounds, your eye is invariably drawn to him whether you’re standing on the street or sitting in the stands. Anthony Montgomery is naturally the focus of much attention.
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