On March 7, Carson Towt suited up to play in the final game of Notre Dame basketball's 2025-26 season.
On March 17, Towt signed his first-ever NFL contract without ever playing a snap of football.
And yet, as exceptional of a situation as it is, Towt is not the only guy in NFL, much less the Colts locker room, to do something like that. In fact, Towt will actually be in the same position group as the one other current NFL player who exclusively played college basketball and then went on to an NFL career: eight-year veteran tight end Mo Alie-Cox.
"We kind of knew the beginning of my basketball season that we were going to explore this," Towt said Tuesday after signing with the Colts as an undrafted free agent tight end. "It's been quite the journey and man, it's just getting started. So I'm excited to see where we can all go."
Towt grew up playing basketball and, as a self-proclaimed "late bloomer" in high school, never thought about playing football until he reached his current stature of 6-foot-7 and 250 pounds. He considered being a dual-sport athlete in college – he first attended Northern Arizona (2019-25) and then Notre Dame (2025-26) – but as he continued to excel on the hardwood, Towt wanted to commit himself fully to succeeding there.
Towt's dedication paid off, as he started 151-of-154 career games in his collegiate career and averaged nine points and 8.8 rebounds per game. In the 2024-25 season at Northern Arizona, he led the country with 423 rebounds and defensive rebounds per game (8.9) and was sixth in the nation with 20 double-doubles. In his one season with Notre Dame, Towt started all 31 games for the Fighting Irish and averaged nine rebounds and 5.9 points per game.
But as he leaned into his large frame and tenacity on the court (represented also by his career totals of 56 blocks and 105 steals), Towt began to realize that he actually could have the capability to transition to football – and not just football, but the NFL.
"I've had the itch to play football pretty much all through college," Towt explained. "It's kind of worked out where my basketball career has come to an end in college, and it's perfect timing to kind of segue into this transition."
"Just an awareness of my physical gifts that were showcased on the basketball floor," Towt added when asked about what gave him confidence to start a career in the NFL. "I think this sport honors those gifts, and the things that got me to Notre Dame and carried me through my career, and the things I pride myself on, I think this sport honors those things...I pride myself on dirty work and rebounding and being physical. So I think football almost honors those a little bit better than basketball does."
Towt began his journey to the NFL by simply looking up agents to try to find someone he felt could understand his story and believe in his future, and that evolved into him attending the 2025 NFL Combine to meet with teams and get his name out there. Towt also did his due diligence himself, even reaching out to Alie-Cox months ago to pick his brain on the process. Alie-Cox, of course, did not play college football either, instead starring at VCU for four years before signing with the Colts as an undrafted free agent tight end in 2017.
"You hear the stories and you think maybe he's in a different position – no, like he actually had to start from square one too, so I thought that was special and can relate to that," Towt said. "But more so than anything, just his energy and his enthusiasm and his excitement just to talk to me and to hear about the story was cool."
Towt said hearing how people like Colts tight end coach Tom Manning helped Alie-Cox turn into the accomplished player he is today made Towt even more excited to join the Colts organization; the 32-year-old Alie-Cox just re-signed with the Colts on Tuesday, officially becoming the second-longest tenured Colts player on the roster.
"I just wanted to hear his experience, his journey, how he did it," Towt said. "How he navigated the spot I was in then and the spot I'm in now, and how he went about the process. And I hear nothing but unbelievable things about Mo, so I'm excited to officially meet him in person and get to working with him, 'cause you can't get a better success story...to be in this building with that caliber of a dude, and these caliber of coaches who have done it, is a blessing. And I'm aware of that and excited to be a part of it."
