Ryan Montgomery, a quarterback for Top247, talks about his wish to play for the Bulldogs: “I wanted it to be Georgia”
The native of Findlay, Ohio, spoke in-depth with 247Sports about his reasons for moving to Athens, Georgia.
Top247 quarterback Ryan Montgomery grew up in Findlay, Ohio, and his ambition of playing for Ohio State only got bigger when his older brother Luke committed to the Buckeyes in the 2023 recruiting class. But as luck would have it, that goal was not realized.
Montgomery, on the other hand, has committed to play football for the University of Georgia, which defeated Ohio State in the College Football Playoffs the previous two seasons en route to Kirby Smart’s second national championship in Athens.
Montgomery received 27 scholarship offers from some of the best college football programs throughout his protracted recruitment process, which began the summer before his high school freshman year. Finally, he whittled it down to Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina as the last three, and out of the three, the Bulldogs may have been the only program that showed sporadic interest in Montgomery.
But in the end, Montgomery’s loyalty to the Bulldog cause and his desire to attend Georgia University in Athens won the Georgia coaching staff over.
Regarding his dedication to Georgia, Montgomery told 247Sports, “I wanted it to be Georgia, I wanted it to be a place where you know you’re gonna compete for national championships year in and year out, compete against the best players in the country every day in practice.” “And I believe that Ohio State and Georgia State are the current benchmarks in college football; they are the two best teams, and everyone else is vying for their position.” And it was clear that I wanted to be there because Georgia had won two national titles in the previous three years.”
Ryan’s mother, Chrissy Montgomery, could also sense her son’s desire to attend Georgia because the state offers three things that he has always desired in a university.
“He’s always desired personal growth. He’s always desired to be a member of a squad that consistently produces winning teams. Additionally, he is always interested in playing for a team that has a chance to win a national championship. He has three checks like that. Only a small number of schools meet that criteria. And a few of them were, you know, staring at him, but this one fit those checks, and you’ve probably heard the narrative from the first time you ever walked down there, so it was simply instinctive in his mind. He cherished it. He cherished getting practice. He enjoyed the structure of practice, the difficulty, the pushing, and the sense of having the program set in. That, then, serves as something of a barometer for him. In response to her son’s wish to attend Georgia, Chrissy Montgomery told 247Sports, “I just kept reminding him of it.”
“Just be honest with us, I’ve asked a few instructors before. Honesty might be difficult to accept when it’s offered, and it can happen occasionally. But the fact that they just told us the truth right away. Additionally, I believe that they were keeping an eye on Ryan’s feelings toward them over time, as Ryan never gave up and he never missed a chance. They were upfront and honest about how things were going, at least in the last several weeks, and we just told Ryan to take a chance. You have three incredible programs staring at you, so you truly have nothing to lose, and he actually adores them all. However, he has always desired this one.”
Even though it wasn’t easy to get to this point, Ryan’s father Mike, who went with him on practically every visit during his recruiting process, recognized early on that Georgia was precisely what his son needed in a college football program.
“He wanted to be a member of an elite program, that much is certain. And in my view, there are very few people that qualify for the final four when I consider them to be outstanding. Although it’s now down to 12, there have only been a select few teams capable of making it over the last three or four years, and Georgia is one of them. That was, therefore, undoubtedly going to be high on his list. And getting there has been an adventure. Regarding his son’s pledge to Georgia, Mike Montgomery told 247Sports, “But he got there.”
Ryan Montgomery was drawn to Georgia not only by the Bulldogs’ stellar football program but also by Kirby Smart’s legacy of excellence in Athens when he took over as head coach.
In college football, they are currently considered the norm. I can be sure that I will grow there because of their exceptional development,” Montgomery remarked. “And as an illustration, consider Carson Beck, who served three years in prison this past year. And with the transfer portal, you seldom ever see it in college football these days. However, he was unbeaten in the regular season last year and is expected to have a Heisman-caliber season this coming year. That simply serves as evidence of Georgia’s progress under coaches Smart and Bobo. And I simply know that they will get the best of me every single day.”
Additionally, Mike Montgomery feels that his son’s personal standards and the standards the Georgia program upholds are exactly the same.
“You know, in addition to the standard that I described earlier—the level in college football, for example—I also think of Ryan, who holds himself to an extremely high bar on an individual basis. Georgia is the norm, once more. With two national titles in the last few years, one could dispute. I therefore always understood that he wanted to be a part of a very, very good program that would challenge him and surround him with great guys—coaches, staff, teammates—and that program is Georgia. I’m thrilled about that, as is his mother.”
Furthermore, Ryan Montgomey wasn’t always sure he would receive the opportunity to play for the Bulldogs at Georgia, despite the fact that he had always wanted to attend.
One of the few quarterbacks in the 2025 class that Georgia offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Mike Bobo was targeting was Ryan Montgomery, and at times, he didn’t talk to Bobo much. But when it came to committing, Bobo always told Ryan Montgomery the truth, and that meant a lot to him.
“Coach Bobo is a prime example of that, and there were other coaches that similarly recruited me. The most important point, though, is that Montgomery stated, “I just wanted coaches to be brutally honest with me, whether I liked it or not.” “But all I ask is that they show me interest and are sincere with me throughout the process.” There was certainly a great deal of shared interest. For me, that is truly the most important thing. The guys that were truthful with me have my utmost respect.
According to Ryan’s father Mike, the Montgomery family’s connections with multiple Georgia coaching staff members were also a major factor in Ryan’s decision to become a Bulldog.
“To be honest, I believe they were thorough, and we were too. And I believe that both parties would agree on that and value it. However, I even trace my lineage back to coach [Todd] Monken, who served as our type of Georgian introduction. We remain in communication with Coach Monken, who is currently with the Ravens. Additionally, we have a great relationship with Brandon Streeter, an analyst from Clemson who was interested in both of the boys. We have known him for a very long time and have a tight relationship with him outside of the staff. Mike has also been amazing. Luke was even pursued by Mike while attending Auburn. Yes, it does appear that we have known those guys for a very long time. And those guys are quite stable—especially Kirby and Mike, who are alumni—and they will stick around for a long time. That makes a tremendous difference.
Montgomery is aware that the standards remain the same now that he has committed to play at Georgia. In fact, he is prepared for the challenge that comes with being a Georgia Bulldog since he knows it can only get harder from here.
“I am aware that at a university like Georgia, they will sign players that are rated better than me and the best players in the nation. But that’s not a concern for me. Who’s going to be behind me or who’s ahead of me doesn’t concern me. I also know that playing against older guys can only help me improve because I will be able to pick up knowledge from them. I am confident that I will succeed because of my strong work ethic, my love of football, my desire to improve, and the businesslike way I approach it.”
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