# Monty Hunter

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**Orie Montgomery Hunter III** (born January 21, 1959) is an American former professional [football](/source/American_football) player who was a [safety](/source/Safety_(gridiron_football_position)) in the [National Football League](/source/National_Football_League) (NFL) for the [Dallas Cowboys](/source/Dallas_Cowboys) and [St. Louis Cardinals (NFL)](/source/St._Louis_Cardinals_(NFL)). He played [college football](/source/College_football) for the [Salem Tigers](/source/Salem_Tigers_football).

## Early life

Hunter attended [Dover High School](/source/Dover_High_School_(Dover,_Ohio)), where he played as a [running back](/source/Running_back) and [safety](/source/Safety_(gridiron_football_position)) After graduation, he chose to work at the Great Plains Bag Company instead of going to college.

He [walked on](/source/Walk-on_(sports)) at [NAIA](/source/National_Association_of_Intercollegiate_Athletics) [Salem College](/source/Salem_International_University), where he was a three-year starter at [cornerback](/source/Cornerback). As a freshman, he recorded 5 interceptions, although he only played a total of 5 snaps.

As a junior, he had 7 interceptions. He registered 76 tackles (second on the team), 5 interceptions and returned a kickoff for a 93 yards [touchdown](/source/Touchdown) as a senior.[1]

## Professional career

### Dallas Cowboys

Hunter was selected by the [Dallas Cowboys](/source/Dallas_Cowboys) in the fourth round (109th overall) of the [1982 NFL draft](/source/1982_NFL_draft).[2] He made the team as a backup [safety](/source/Safety_(gridiron_football_position)), taking advantage of the retirements of [Charlie Waters](/source/Charlie_Waters) and [Randy Hughes](/source/Randy_Hughes).

Because of his size, he was used as a [linebacker](/source/Linebacker) on passing downs to cover [running backs](/source/Running_backs) and [tight ends](/source/Tight_ends). He is best remembered for the interception he returned for a [touchdown](/source/Touchdown) in the first round of the playoffs against the [Tampa Bay Buccaneers](/source/Tampa_Bay_Buccaneers), that turned the game around for a 30–17 win.[3] During the regular season, he also caused a fumble against the Buccaneers, that helped preserve a 14-9 win.[4]

On August 27, [1983](/source/1983_NFL_season), he was waived after being passed on the depth chart by [undrafted free agent](/source/Undrafted_free_agent) [Bill Bates](/source/Bill_Bates).[5]

### St. Louis Cardinals

On August 30, [1983](/source/1983_NFL_season), he was claimed off waivers by the [St. Louis Cardinals](/source/St._Louis_Cardinals).[6] He played in five games before being cut on October 2, to make room for [cornerback](/source/Cornerback) [Jeff Griffin](/source/Jeff_Griffin).[7]

### Washington Redskins

On March 1, [1984](/source/1984_NFL_season), he was signed as a [free agent](/source/Free_agent) by the [Washington Redskins](/source/Washington_Redskins).[8] He was released on July 31.[9]

## References

1. ["'Big Game' Hunter makes big play for Dallas"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1955&dat=19830110&id=wLIxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7eMFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4704,7057526&hl=es). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["1982 NFL Draft Listing"](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1982/draft.htm). *Pro-Football-Reference.com*. Retrieved 2025-10-20.

1. ["Big Game' Makes Big Play for Dallas"](http://newsok.com/article/2009427). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["Twice In Two Days Hunter Got The Shakes"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=950&dat=19830110&id=oWhQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=D1kDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3237,1945128&hl=es). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["Barnes Cut By Cowboys"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=19630828&id=_8gbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Z1gEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2832,7448023&hl=es). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["Cowboys Trying To Protect Scalp"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1842&dat=19830831&id=LdMhAAAAIBAJ&sjid=a58FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1480,7155637&hl=es). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["Cardinals activate Griffin"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1893&dat=19831003&id=CLYfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=itcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6483,2997957&hl=es). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["Transactions"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1454&dat=19840302&id=J7wsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lBMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5595,538785&hl=es). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

1. ["Mendenhall Goes Home, Redskins' Career Over"](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1984/08/01/mendenhall-goes-home-redskins-career-over/db53f175-95c6-42c7-9eb3-9cb10e003fd7/). Retrieved September 24, 2016.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Monty Hunter](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hunter) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hunter?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.