The Indianapolis Colts have signed Notre Dame men’s basketball player Carson Towt as a tight end prospect, adding an intriguing developmental athlete to their offseason roster.
Towt, listed at 6-foot-8 and 250 pounds, played forward for Notre Dame during the most recent college basketball season. His combination of height, length and size makes him a potential matchup asset at tight end, a position where NFL teams often value former basketball players for their body control, catch radius and ability to win contested balls in traffic.
By bringing in Towt, the Colts are following a familiar league-wide trend of evaluating college basketball standouts as possible tight ends. Several NFL teams have previously experimented with similar conversions, attracted by the overlap in skills such as high-pointing the ball, boxing out defenders, moving in space and operating in tight areas near the basket or goal line.
For Indianapolis, Towt represents a long-term project rather than a finished product. He will need to adapt from basketball concepts to football techniques, including learning route running, blocking assignments, hand placement, leverage and the physical demands of line-of-scrimmage play. The transition also requires adjusting to the increased contact, mastering a playbook with greater complexity, and refining footwork suited to football rather than the hardwood.
Towt’s size gives the Colts a unique frame to work with at the tight end position, which in modern NFL offenses is often asked to contribute both as a receiver and as an in-line or move blocker. If he can successfully translate his basketball background into football skills, he could offer a large target in the passing game and depth in multiple formations.
Details regarding the terms of Towt’s agreement with the Colts were not disclosed in the initial announcement. Further information about his football background, previous gridiron experience or specific role within the organization was not immediately available. His signing, however, underscores the Colts’ willingness to explore unconventional avenues for adding talent and athleticism to their roster as they build toward future seasons.
