Montez Phillips switches to Ole Miss

The 6' 2", 200 pound Lafayette County standout committed to MSU last Spring but there was always a little doubt in his mind.

"I had been thinking about Ole Miss for a while," added Montez Phillips. "I just kind of wanted to get out of Oxford and go somewhere else to school, but the more I was around Coach Nutt and the players, I knew deep down that I would end up at Ole Miss."

Those feelings were pushed even harder when Coach Croom resigned after the Egg Bowl that Phillips attended.

"It was a pretty easy choice for me to go to Ole Miss after that. To be truthful, I had been planning on doing this for a few weeks before Croom resigned, but yea, once he did (resign), it was pretty much a done deal from there. I was just waiting for the right time."

MSU sent over Coach Grimes to talk to Phillips yesterday.

"Coach Grimes came by, and he told me to keep my options open because he did not know who they were going to hire. He told me that I could still come to MSU and play, but he just did not know who was and was not going to be there."

The Oxford resident informed his coach after that meeting to call MSU and Ole Miss to let them know about the news.

"Ole Miss is just the perfect fit for me. My folks can come watch me play, and they like to throw the ball a lot, and get in their playmaker's hands. That is why I was going to switch anyway, because I knew MSU really liked to run the ball, and I wanted to play in an offense like Ole Miss'."

The Rebels are still unsure where Phillips is going to play.

"They said I could play some receiver and play in the Wild Rebel, but they also said to get ready to play some free safety. I just laughed at that. They know I want to be on offense, but I will play where every they want me to play. I just want to be on the field."

Phillips is glad that the recruiting process is finally over.

"It feels good to get all of this over with. Even when I committed (to MSU), I knew I was not totally sure, but now I do. I am at peace with my decision, and now I can just focus on the MS/AL All-Star game and my books."

Montez had over 1, 300 yards and 18 TD's of offense as a senior.

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