SOUTH BEND ― He knew his next move before he made a move.
Even before Carson Towt played one final season of college with Notre Dame basketball in 2025-26, the Gilbert, Arizona, native knew what his next sports step would entail. It wouldn’t involve basketball, a sport he’d played in college for the previous seven seasons. It would involve a sport that he’s never played.
Football.
Professional football.
In the NFL.
On Tuesday, March 17, Towt signed as a free agent with the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts. Since his football eligibility expired before the start of the 2025 NFL season, Towt could sign as a free agent before the league’s annual college draft, which is next month in Pittsburgh.
The former Irish power forward will try to make the Colts’ 53-man roster, or 17-player practice squad, as a backup tight end. The 6-foot-8, 250-pound Towt told Joel Erickson of the Indianapolis Star that he has carried the plan to play pro football since before the start of the 2025-26 basketball season.
As of early Tuesday afternoon, Towt is on the Colts roster with an official headshot on the team’s website. He does not have a designated jersey number. His age also was listed as N/A (not available).
Making the transition from college basketball power forward to professional football tight end has been done before in Indianapolis. Former VCU power forward Mo-Allie Cox, who averaged 7.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 142 career college basketball games, signed with the Colts in 2017 despite last playing football as a high school freshman.
The 6-5, 267-pound Cox re-signed with the Colts on Monday, March 16. He has 127 catches for 1,550 yards and 16 touchdowns in 125 career NFL games, all with Indianapolis. Cox is the backup tight end to starter Tyler Warren, the former Penn State standout who was a first-round pick in 2025.
Towt is not listed on the tight end depth chart, which runs three deep.
A graduate transfer from Northern Arizona, Towt was one of two Irish to start all 31 games this past season for Notre Dame, which finished 13-18 overall, 4-14 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. In his first game at Notre Dame, Towt grabbed a season-high 19 rebounds. He averaged 5.9 points and 9.0 rebounds (fourth in the ACC) in 26.0 minutes per game. He shot .610 percent from the field, which would have ranked third in the ACC had he qualified (minimum five field goals made per game). Towt led the league with an average of 3.53 offensive rebounds per game.
Towt, who told Erickson that he attended last month’s Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium but did not work out, will look to make a Colts roster that already carries a strong Notre Dame presence, to the point where it could be considered South Bend South.
Perennial All-Pro left guard Quenton Nelson has played nine seasons. Quarterback Riley Leonard, who led the Irish to the 2024 national championship game, is in his second season. Kicker Blake Grupe recently re-signed with the Colts after coming over from the New Orleans Saints. He replaced another former Irish kicker, Spencer Shrader, who was injured early in the 2025 season.
On the same day that the Colts signed Towt, they also signed former Irish defensive lineman Jerry Tillery.
Former Irish assistant coach Brian Mason is in his fourth season as special teams coach, the position he held at Notre Dame.
The Colts were 8-9 in 2025.
Follow South Bend Tribune and NDInsider columnist Tom Noie on X (formerly Twitter): @tnoieNDI. Contact Noie at tnoie@sbtinfo.com
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: What sport is next for former Notre Dame basketball PF Carson Towt?
Reporting by Tom Noie, South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
