tyren montgomery still starts his days with two workouts, even as the end of the grind finally comes into view. The John Carroll wide receiver is waiting for the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, where he hopes the final answer will be simple: a team, a call, and a chance to keep going.
Why is Tyren Montgomery drawing so much attention?
His rise has been unusual enough to stand out even in a crowded draft season. Montgomery was the only Division III player at the Senior Bowl, and he became the first player from John Carroll to reach that stage. From there, the attention kept building. He also turned heads at the American Bowl in Florida and later held his own at the University of Toledo pro day in front of NFL scouts.
The numbers help explain why the spotlight followed. In 2024, Montgomery caught 57 passes for 1, 071 yards and 17 touchdowns. This past season, he went even further with 119 receptions for 1, 528 yards and 15 touchdowns, earning consensus Division III All-America recognition. For a player from a school that has not had a football player drafted since 1991, that kind of production has made him one of the more closely watched small-school prospects in the draft class.
How did Tyren Montgomery get here?
Montgomery’s path has not followed a straight line. He came out of The Woodlands, Texas, and first built his name in basketball before trying to carve out a football future. He walked on to play basketball at LSU in 2019, then returned home because of academic issues and his mother’s illness. After that, he tried backyard football, then flag football with a Miami-based team, and later tried to walk on for football at Houston. When that did not work out, he made a highlight tape from his flag football days and kept pushing forward.
Nicholls State gave him a chance. After sitting out in 2022 because of eligibility issues, he played in eight games in his final Division I season and finished with 171 yards on 12 catches. He then transferred to John Carroll and became a centerpiece of the Blue Streaks’ offense. At 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds, he was listed as a receiver who could separate from defenders and also win with body control, a skill set shaped in part by his basketball background.
What are NFL teams seeing in the tape?
Teams are weighing production, testing, and level of competition. Montgomery said he did not disclose his exact 40-yard dash time from the pro day, but he accepted that reports placing him in the high 4. 4s to low 4. 5s were fair. He also visited the Houston Texans, his hometown team, where he met with head coach DeMeco Ryans, other assistants, and general manager Nick Caserio. Montgomery said he would not complain if Houston used a draft pick on him.
At the same time, he knows the waiting game comes with uncertainty. He has heard from about two-thirds of NFL teams over the past few months, and many have wanted to hear his story again. That story has become part of his profile: a player who was once a basketball walk-on, who had never played tackle football before his rise, and who eventually forced his way into draft conversations through performance.
Tyren Montgomery has described his goal as getting to a minicamp. If he is drafted, he said, that would mean he was meant to be on that path. If not, the question shifts to which team will give him the next chance. Either way, the draft weekend will test whether a Division III star can turn national attention into a roster opportunity.
What happens next for Tyren Montgomery?
For now, Montgomery plans to watch the draft with family and friends in Houston. He remains in the same routine, keeping his workouts steady while waiting for the seven-round draft to unfold. The bigger question is not whether he has earned attention. He has. The question is whether one team decides that his mix of production, adaptability, and unusual backstory is enough to use a pick on him.
When the draft clock starts, that scene in Houston may feel a little different. The workouts, the pro day, the Senior Bowl, and the long climb from small-school receiver to national prospect all lead to one moment. tyren montgomery has already done the work to get there. Now he waits to see who is willing to answer.
