Montrey Wright was approved on Tuesday nigh as the new head football coach at Haddon Heights High School. Wright spent eight seasons as the head coach at Salem before stepping down two years ago. Photo courtesy of Gridiron Access
HADDON HEIGHTS - Montrey Wright made a name for himself as the head coach of Salem High School's football team for eight seasons. The Salem alum ('06) directed the Rams to a 67-24 record along with back-to-back Central Jersey Group 1 titles in 2021 and 2022. Salem also captured the South/Central Group 1 regional title as well in 2021.
On Tuesday, February 11, Wright was approved as the new head football coach at Haddon Heights High School.
The previous Heights head coach, Christopher Lina, had led the Garnets to a 41-41 record in his eight overall years at the helm between two stints that spanned from 2018-24 and a single season in 2016. The team notched a pair of playoff victories and accumulated just four winning seasons under Lina.
"Coach Lina established a pretty good culture there already," Wright said. "My plan is to come in and drive home a championship mindset for the players and the program. My last two years at Salem, we won back-to-back sectional titles, and I'm going to try and bring that to Haddon Heights."
Wright has played for and coached under championship-winning coaches throughout his career. As a senior in high school, Wright played under Rob Hinson in his lone year as the coach of the Rams. Wright also spent two years as Dennis Thomas' offensive coordinator at Salem before Thomas left for Millville and Wright was promoted to head coach of his alma mater.
Another thing Montrey Wright makes a priority as a coach is sending his players to college and/or preparing them for life after high school. Wright feels that his players should succeed off the field as much as they do on it, whether it's in the classroom or entering the work force after graduation.
"I try to focus on molding them to be young men who succeed in life after football," Wright said. "I understand not every player is going to play football in college or beyond, so I try to get them prepared for that reality after they leave high school. The success on the field should match off the field whether they go play sports in college, enter a trade school, or join the workforce right away."
"The kids deserve to be prepared and have someone who is in their corner for life outside of football" Wright added.
When making his pitch to the Haddon Heights administration and higher-ups, Wright simply asked, "What do you need from me as a coach?"
The response was, "Someone who can bring us a winning culture and who can have our program competing for championships".
"That sold me, and we were on the same page," Wright noted. "I brought a winning mindset to Salem, and I plan on doing the same thing at Haddon Heights."
"I'm not the kind of coach that asks for a bunch of resources or cares what the weight room or facilities look like; I'm going to work with what I have to achieve success."
Going from a smaller Group 1 program and jumping into a Group 2 program can be an adjustment for some coaches due to a multitude of reasons. Roster sizes are bigger, there are more players to develop, more coaches have to be hired, and the list goes on. Instead of being intimidated by the increase in opportunity, Wright looks at it as a chance to grow more as a coach.
"At a Group 1 school, the rosters are going to consist of about 30-35 players max most of the time," Wright said. "At a Group 2 school that number gets bigger and now you have to work with more players and find their skillset. For me, I think it's a good thing because having more players means not everyone may play both ways, players won't be as fatigued, some guys may get more time to develop and work on things, etc."
"Overall, I'm grateful for this opportunity to establish a winning tradition and hopefully expand it for years to come."