Wilbert Montgomery

Infobox NFL PlayerCoach


Name=Wilbert Montgomery
|Color=#4169E1
fontcolor=#DCDCDC
DateOfBirth=birth date and age|1954|9|16
Birthplace= Greenville, Mississippi
DateofDeath=
Position=Running back
College=Abilene Christian
DraftedYear=1977
DraftedRound=6 / Pick 154
Career Highlights=y
Stats=y
Honors=Eagles Honor Roll
DatabaseFootball=MONTGWIL01
player=y
years=1977-1984
1985
teams=Philadelphia Eagles
Detroit Lions
coach=y
coachingyears=1997-20052006-2008
2008-present
coachingteams=St. Louis Rams
(Runningbacks & Tight ends)
Detroit Lions
Baltimore Ravens(Runningbacks)
ProBowls=1979, 1980
CollegeHOF=70029

Wilbert Montgomery (born September 16, 1954 in Greenville, Mississippi) is a former American football player in the National Football League. He currently is the running backs coach for the Baltimore Ravens.

College career

An outstanding athlete at Abilene Christian University, Montgomery was a four-year starter at running back and set the all-time National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics record for touchdowns with 76. Montgomery broke the record for touchdowns by a freshman with 37 and helped lead the Wildcats to the NAIA Division I National Championship in 1973.

NFL player career

Montgomery was picked by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round of the 1977 NFL Draft. Wearing number 31, Montgomery played eight seasons with Philadelphia, shattering almost all of the Eagles' rushing records and leading the club in rushing six times. Montgomery, who concluded his NFL career with the Detroit Lions in 1985, holds seven Philadelphia rushing records, including career attempts (1,465), rushing yards (6,538), attempts in a season (338 in 1979), rushing yards in a season (1,512 in 1979), career 100-yard rushing games (26), 100-yard rushing games in a season (8 in 1981), and touchdowns in a game (4). In 1979, Montgomery led the NFL with 2,012 all-purpose yards (rushing, receiving, returns). Over his NFL career, he accumulated 6,789 yards rushing, 2,502 receiving, 814 kickoff return yards, 57 touchdowns (45 rushing, 12 receiving, 1 kickoff return), and two Pro Bowl invitations (1978-79).

NFL Coaching Career

Wilbert Montomery is in his sixth season coaching running backs, and his third straight in the position, after coaching tight ends from 2000-02. Montgomery joined the St. Louis Rams’ coaching staff as running backs coach in 1997. In 2004, Montgomery’s coaching ran the gamut, from Pro Bowl running back Marshall Faulk, to young and talented rookie Steven Jackson. Under Montgomery’s leadership, Faulk moved into 12th place on the NFL’s rushing yardage list, and Jackson finished third in the NFL among rookie running backs.

At the 2002 NFC Championship game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles, Montgomery was the Eagles’ honorary captain at Veterans Stadium, and introduced to a thunderous ovation prior to the game.

Personal Info

Wilbert Montgomery is a native of Greenville, Mississippi, and one of four brothers (also Fred, Cleotha, and Tyrone) who played in the NFL. Montgomery earned the Abilene Christian University Alumni Citation Award in 1979, was inducted onto the inaugural Philadelphia Eagles Honor Roll in 1987, and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.

Montgomery and his wife Patti have three children, twins, Briana and Brendan, and a son, Tavian. Montgomery also has a daughter, Sherrita, and a son Derron, who is a wide receiver for the Iowa State Cyclones.

External links

* [http://collegefootball.org/famersearch.php?id=70029 Wilbert Montgomery] at College Football Hall of Fame
* [http://www.detroitlions.com/bio.cfm?bio_id=358&section_id=15&top=21&level=2&season=1 Detroit Lions.com bio]
* [http://www.stlouisrams.com/Team/Coaches/47757 StLouisRams.com] Coach Bio