Recruiting corner: Bay Port star linebacker Jayden Montgomery commits to dream school

Jayden Montgomery was grateful for every college football program that offered him a scholarship since he started his career at Bay Port.

But when the star junior linebacker was extended an offer by the University of Iowa this week, he didn’t have to wait long to accept.

Iowa always has been his dream school and the same one his parents, Jerry and Natalie, attended. Jerry was a defensive tackle for the Hawkeyes from 1998 to 2001 and a three-year starter. He's now the defensive line coach for the Green Bay Packers. 

“It was super exciting, not only for me but both my parents were excited, too,” Montgomery said. “They loved their time there. They are Hawkeyes through and through. The chance to even go on a visit as a football player was awesome, much less get an offer. It was a blessing, for sure.

“We are all super excited, and I’m glad to be a Hawkeye. The commitment was a no-brainer. The visit really sealed that. Their facilities are top-notch. Their academic support and everything like that, it’s as good as it gets.”

Montgomery is the latest Bay Port player to either earn a scholarship or accept a walk-on offer to a Big Ten school for football since Gary Westerman was hired as Bay Port’s coach in 2012.

He joins Alec Ingold (Wisconsin), Cole Van Lanen (Wisconsin), Jack Plumb (Iowa), Cordell Tinch (Minnesota) and Isaiah Gash (Michigan).

Montgomery visited the Iowa campus Monday and Tuesday and was offered a scholarship by Hawkeyes coach Kirk Ferentz midway through the trip. He announced his commitment Tuesday night.

He had received previous offers from several schools, a list that included Indiana State, North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, Troy and an Ivy League invite from Pennsylvania.

“I really did appreciate every single offer I had to the fullest, it was a blessing to have any offers to begin with,” Montgomery said. “I always kind of hoped in the back of my head that Iowa would come eventually and give me an offer. I kind of knew without saying that if they offered that’s probably where I was going to end up.

“They offered, and after seeing everything, I was locked in. I was like, ‘This is where I want to be.’”

The 5-foot-11, 215-pound Montgomery was limited to four games during the alternate fall season after injuring a thumb that forced him to miss the final three contests.  

When he did play, he was his usual dominant self.

He had 51 total tackles, including 10 for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble.  His best overall game was his last one, which came in an overtime loss to Neenah on April 16.

Montgomery had 12 tackles, returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown and rushed for 52 yards and two scores on nine carries in his first action of the season on offense.

He has been making a big impact since he arrived in high school and became the first freshman starter on any team coached by Westerman.

Montgomery had 80 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery during his sophomore season in 2019, helping to lead the Pirates to the WIAA Division 1 state title game.

In his first 25 career games, he had 125 tackles.

The COVID-19 pandemic made things more difficult on the recruiting trail.

Until this spring, Montgomery didn’t have any film to show since his last game in November 2019. The NCAA also had extended its dead period, which resulted in no face-to-face meetings with coaches.

In the end, his talent won out.

“A lot of teams were kind of looking for film, and there wasn’t much I could do,” Montgomery said. “The way it turned out it doesn’t seem like it affected me as much as you might think. But in the moment, a couple months ago, I was stuck.

“I could send videos of lifts and things like that, but that was about it. The film from this year definitely was what led to that offer.”

Montgomery’s hand injury is doing much better. He was cleared a little more than a week ago and was able to resume lifting weights.

He now can concentrate on his senior season with his college future secured.  

“You know, recruiting is a big thing,” Montgomery said. “Not having to worry about talking to a bunch of schools, it takes something off your plate. Instead of worrying about going on more visits, all I really need to worry about is playing football this season and having fun.

“I’m looking forward to this season. I know all my teammates are. It’s going to be a great year.”