Why Southern Miss basketball saw opportunity in Cobie Montgomery when others didn't

Cobie Montgomery was a late bloomer.

A product of Waggener High School in Louisville, Kentucky, he didn’t start playing organized basketball until high school and never played on an AAU team. In fact, playing as a 6-foot-3 "big man" in high school, he didn't begin to draw recruiting interest until the district championship game of his senior year, when a junior college coach was in attendance — to see one of his teammates.

Montgomery's road to Southern Miss basketball began that day when an Olney Central College coach extended him an offer on the spot.

Montgomery's path to Southern Miss

Montgomery played two seasons at Olney Central in Southern Illinois before transferring to Triton College in Chicago for the 2021-22 season. In 31 games at Triton, he made 17 starts and averaged 11.8 points and 2.9 rebounds.

But as Montgomery wanted to make the jump to the next level, schools weren’t giving him the time of day because of his GPA. Except for Southern Miss.

The road to Hattiesburg mirrored his odd recruitment in high school.

It was shortly after Southern Miss was eliminated from the 2022 Conference USA Tournament. The Golden Eagles went 7-26 and coach Jay Ladner was searching for answers, winning just 24 games in his first three seasons.

“To be very frank with you, I didn't know what my future was,” Ladner said.

Ladner went to Hutchinson, Kansas, where the national junior college tournament was being hosted. He was there to watch Montgomery’s teammate, Patrick Suemnick, who now plays at West Virginia. Ladner hadn’t heard of Montgomery before watching him that day, but he was impressed with what he saw – specifically his shooting ability. The recruitment was on.

“He really gets elevated,” Ladner said. “He's got a beautiful shot and touch on the ball.”

Montgomery's impact had to wait

Where other schools saw red flags from Montgomery’s grades, Ladner saw an opportunity. It was a chance to buy low on a player with potential to blossom, so long as he improved in the classroom.

There was a chance Montgomery could become academically eligible that summer, but no guarantee. Ladner was so enamored that he gave Montgomery and the Triton coaching staff his word, that if Montgomery couldn’t become eligible in time for the 2022-23 season, he would still save a spot for him and burn a redshirt season.

That’s how it played out.

“Southern Miss was one of those schools that stood beside me,” Montgomery said.

Montgomery was able to practice with the Golden Eagles and attend home games but couldn’t play as they captured the Sun Belt regular-season championship and became the most-improved team in the country at 25-8.

Watching from the sidelines wasn't easy, but Montgomery eventually got over it a few games into the season.

“Because at that point, it's like, why keep dwelling on the situation and making it have anything negative?” Montgomery said. “I didn't want that to happen at all. So, I kind of looked at it as a positive, like I needed that year to sit out and grow and develop anyways.”

A year later, with program expectations raised, Montgomery is playing a key role off the bench for the Golden Eagles (8-7, 2-1 Sun Belt).

He’s been Southern Miss’ first substitution in nine games, averaging 6.7 points and 2.5 rebounds in 16.3 minutes per game, while shooting 34.0% from 3.

Montgomery stood out against Northwestern State and Ole Miss, two of the three games in which he’s scored in double-figures. Although, he particularly sparkled in Saturday’s upset win over James Madison when he scored 12 points off the bench, connecting on all four of his field-goal attempts. It was crucial while Southern Miss’ star Austin Crowley was battling foul trouble.

“Before he leaves Southern Miss, because of his work ethic, he's going to be one of the best we've ever had,” Ladner said.

Asked to reflect on his journey after beating James Madison for one of the program's greatest wins in recent memory: “It’s a great moment,” Montgomery said Saturday. “I know what I bring to the table, so I don’t try to dwell on the past as much.”

Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Cobie Montgomery thriving for Southern Miss basketball after sitting out