Northwest Catholic High School senior Owen Tyler will play Division I college football at the University of Delaware.

Front: Owen Tyler and his father, NWC ’73 and head football coach Mike Tyler. In rear are (left to right) Nathan and Lucas Tyler, both former football players at NWC, former SCSU football players, and current NWC assistant coaches. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

By Ronni Newton

Owen Tyler, a West Hartford resident and member of the Northwest Catholic High School Class of 2015, signed a National Letter of Intent Wednesday to play football for the University of Delaware, a Division I FCS program.

At the same ceremony, NWC senior Elijah Riley of Hartford also formalized his commitment to attend and play football for Assumption College.

Owen Tyler is the son of Karen Tyler and Northwest Catholic head football coach Mike Tyler, NWC ’73. Owen is the youngest of the four Tyler children and the last member of this generation’s Tyler football dynasty. All four Tylers – including sister Jessica – played football at Northwest. Nathan and Lucas Tyler, who also attended the signing ceremony, are now assistant football coaches at their alma mater, and both played college football for Southern Connecticut State University. Jessica is currently an art student at Central Connecticut State University.

Mike Tyler said that Owen had full scholarship offers from seven or eight schools before deciding to become one of the “Fightin’ Blue Hens.”

“We went to Delaware last weekend and absolutely loved it – the academics, the university, the layout, the football program. They have a great tradition for football, and all of the coaches are really wonderful people,” Mike Tyler said.

“I decided after I met some of the coaches and saw the facilities. It’s a great college town, and will offer the experience I want,” said Owen Tyler. He is not sure yet what he will study at Delaware.

Elijah Riley ’15 and Owen Tyler ’15 (both seated) with NWC President David Eustis and NWC football coach Mike Tyler ’73. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Karen Tyler thinks her son made a wonderful decision as well, and said that the family enjoyed the visit to Delaware’s beautiful campus. She’s not surprised that he wants to continue to play football in college. “He’s been playing since he taught himself how to stand and throw a football at 4 months old,” she said.

According to a news release issued by Northwest Catholic, Owen Tyler “has been a member of the Northwest Catholic football program since his freshman year. In his senior season alone, he logged 211 passing yards as a quarterback (including three touchdowns), 250 rushing yards (including four touchdowns) and 148 receiving yards (including four touchdowns) as a tight end, and 97 tackles (including 75 solo tackles), nine tackles for a loss and two interceptions as a linebacker. Owen was also a team captain and was named to the CHSCA First Team All-State, the Walter Camp All-State Team, the Hartford Courant First Team All-Area, the New Haven Register Second Team All-State, the CCC All-Conference Team and All-Academic.”

According to the release, Elijah Riley, the son of Felicia Fleeting of Hartford, has also been a member of the varsity football team since his freshman year, and earned both All-Conference and All-State honors as a junior and senior. “He served as a team captain both his junior and senior year and was also named to the Hartford Courant First Team All-Area both years.”

In the release, Norhtwest Catholic Athletic Director Matthew Martorelli said, “Both Elijah and Owen have worked extremely hard during their four years at Northwest Catholic High School and I am very proud of them. Our entire school community is excited to watch their stories unfold at Delaware and Assumption.”