WESTFIELD — Carson Towt’s first football season is over before it began.
Towt, the former Notre Dame basketball center the Colts signed a week after the Fighting Irish’s season ended, has been placed on injured reserve after suffering an injury in practice Sunday.
Indianapolis signed former Indiana offensive tackle Trey Wedig, offensive tackle Roy Mbaeteka and tight end Tyler Moore. The Colts also released wide receiver E.J. Horton and offensive tackle Bayron Matos.
Towt’s injury is a disappointing turn for one of the most intriguing long-term stories on the roster. A bruising rebounder at Notre Dame and Northern Arizona, Towt was eligible to sign as an undrafted free agent right away after the basketball season because his football eligibility had expired more than a year before. Towt had never played football before, but the Colts have a history of success in developing former college basketball players like Marcus Pollard, Erik Swoope and Mo Alie-Cox into tight ends at the NFL level.
He wasn’t expected to make an impact in 2026. The Colts already seem set at tight end with Tyler Warren, Alie-Cox, Drew Ogletree and Will Mallory, but Towt was likely headed for a spot on the practice squad to continue learning his new sport. By signing Moore, an undrafted rookie from Iowa State, Indianapolis shored up the numbers at the position for the rest of the preseason.
Matos, a native of the Dominican Republic with a history in baseball and basketball, struggled mightily in training camp, convincing Indianapolis to change its International Player Pathway Program representative. Indianapolis can designate one international player per year and essentially get an extra roster spot; the Colts will now use the spot occupied by Matos for Mbaeteka, a Nigerian tackle who has already played for five teams since entering the NFL in 2022.
Wedig, a key piece of Curt Cignetti’s first team at Indiana, shores up an offensive tackle position that has been hit hard by injury recently. Veteran Luke Tenuta and undrafted rookie Nolan Rucci both suffered injuries in last week’s preseason opener against New England, and the Colts were thin enough at the position that starting right guard Matt Goncalves had to pull double-duty over the weekend, lining up at right tackle with the second and third units in addition to his starting role at right guard.
Undrafted after one season with Hoosiers, Wedig signed with the Rams, then found a spot on Arizona’s practice squad.
Joel A. Erickson and Nathan Brown cover the Colts all season. Get more coverage on IndyStarTV and with the Colts Insider newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts place basketball player Carson Towt on IR, sign former Indiana tackle