Before he evolved into one of the premier offensive tackles in the nation, there was once a time when Tytus Howard was so small that his mother, Teresa Rivers, nicknamed him ‘Weenie.’

“He was the smallest thing in the house, that’s how he got the name Weenie,” Rivers explained. “He was the smallest thing in the house — the skinniest thing and the smallest thing — but he always had the biggest appetite. He used to love cake, no one could ever keep a cake around him because if he ever had a cake around him, it was destroyed. He destroyed plenty of birthday cakes and wedding cakes and everything else.”

Growing up in Monroeville, Ala., Howard loved to stay active and play outside as a child, prompting Rivers to get her son involved in football and baseball at a very young age. Rivers fondly remembers her son’s first football moments:

“His first team was called the ‘Tiny Mites’, and the helmet was bigger than him,” Rivers recalled. “I remember running on the side of the field at one of his games — he didn’t know which way to go when he got the ball — so I told him to look to the side and follow me. I would be running down the sideline and he would be following me. His helmet was leading the way.”

Despite his slight build, Howard remained active all throughout school, playing football, baseball, basketball and running track. As unlikely as it sounds for someone nicknamed Weenie to excel in one sport — let alone four — it was his attitude and competitiveness that propelled him to flourish in seemingly every sport his school had to offer.

“He never wanted to quit,” Rivers said. “When he would lose at something, it only drove him to work harder. If he wasn’t able to get something, it only made him work at it until he conquered it.”

As Howard grew older, he began to gravitate to football. He arrived at Monroe County High School standing 5-foot-8 and weighing a measly 150 pounds, but managed to star at quarterback, tight end and kicker.

Although the offense was almost entirely predicated around Howard’s ability to improvise and create a spark, the then-6-foot-2, 225-pound senior received little interest throughout the recruiting process, as Monroe County High was a tough draw for scouts due to the school’s dismal record.

Shortly before graduating in 2014, Howard spoke with then-Alabama State head coach Reggie Barlow, who didn’t initially offer Howard a scholarship, but promised he would be given every opportunity to earn one.

After consulting with his mother, Howard opted to walk-on at Alabama State — as a 235-pound tight end.

“I was kind of hesitant,” Rivers recalled. “I’m like, ‘You’re a quarterback!’ and he’s like, ‘I know, momma, but you know me, I can play it all.’ I said, ‘I’m going to trust you, I’m going to be behind you, son.’ I didn’t really know much about it, I just knew him as a quarterback. He said, ‘You know I played multiple positions,’ and he said he was going to play tight end. Then, when he went from tight end to offensive tackle, I said, ‘Oh, you’re too little!'”

Howard was awarded a full scholarship before the conclusion of his freshman year. A coaching change prompted a position change the following season, however.

In the midst of a training session prior to his sophomore season, the offensive line coach and tight ends coach observed Howard in the weight room and eventually urged him to make the transition to offensive line. After the initial shock and skepticism wore off, Howard eventually obliged.

Howard’s dedication to his conditioning and diet as well as his diligence in the weight room began to pay dividends, as the one-time slender kid from Monroeville, Alabama transformed into a physically imposing specimen.

“I started seeing the process — he started weight training, pumping and he stayed in the gym with his trainers,” Rivers remarked. “I started seeing him turn into the Hulk.”

Howard appeared in eight games at right tackle in 2015, including six starts. Utilizing his lone season playing offensive line as a launching pad into what he hoped to be a prosperous second season, Howard seamlessly stepped in, starting seven games on the right side.

Following the departure of left tackle Jylan Ware to the NFL in 2017, Howard kicked out to Ware’s old spot, where he started all eleven contests. Howard started 10 games at right tackle in 2018 and represented Alabama State as the team’s only first-team All-SWAC selection.

While Howard’s stellar play and tantalizing athleticism commanded attention from scouts all around the country, he may have been even more highly touted for his innate leadership ability.

“I moved to Montgomery, and a lot of people were telling me, ‘Your son is good, we just see so much in him,'” Rivers said. “He was a team captain, and almost like a coach to some of those guys. Guys older than him would always come to him for motivation, and he would always be that person who would just talk to them. If he sees guys turn to situations that weren’t good for them, I’ve seen him pull them to the side, I’ve seen him take time to visit them after school and just talk to them. Then, when I started getting the calls from all the scouts and stuff, I was like, ‘Oh God, here it comes!'”

While Howard received various accolades following a noteworthy final season in Montgomery, perhaps none were more meaningful than receiving an invitation to compete against the top prospects in college football at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.

Howard acclimated himself to the significant jump in competition almost instantly, generating buzz from what felt like every scout and coach in attendance. Perhaps most revealing was Howard’s superior athleticism, footwork, and his ability to mirror defenders to keep them in front of him in the one-on-ones.

More importantly, he proved he belonged.

On the heels of a successful showing in Mobile, Howard prepared himself for his next big leap — from the small town of Monroeville, Alabama to the bright lights of Lucas Oil Stadium — the site of the 2019 NFL Combine.

Howard tested well in Indianapolis, but where he really set himself apart was during the on-field drills, where he demonstrated his elite athleticism, flexibility and proved to be a fluid mover laterally.

With a reported 30 teams in attendance at Alabama State’s pro day earlier this month, Howard shined as the main attraction. In fact, it was Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland who put Howard through his pro day workout.

“I knew when his time would come, that it was going to be a blessing for him because he deserves it, he works so hard,” Rivers said proudly. “He graduated, he has his degree in criminal justice — he was determined. Some kids take summers off, but he never wanted to take a summer off, even during college. He took classes during college, so he can go in the weight room and train — a couple of times he even worked a part-time job. He wanted to work and take his classes through his summer so he would have that extra time during the school year.”

For the next month, teams are allowed to use their 30 allotted visits to bring draft-eligible prospects to their team facilities. The Eagles wasted little time in bringing Howard to Philadelphia as their first official pre-draft visit on March 11. With several other teams expected to be on his long list of pre-draft tours, Rivers is preparing for the roller coaster of emotions that will inevitably occur once she sees her son’s name appear on the bottom of the screen a month from now — and their lives change forever.

“I just want him to be comfortable wherever he is,” Rivers said. “I’m sure whatever team gets him, he’s going to make the most of the opportunity. All of this is still so surreal to me, but I’m just going to be a proud momma, just waiting for my son’s name to be called. I’m going to be extra ecstatic and loud, waiting and crying. Wherever he goes, I’m going to be so supportive, because I’m going wherever he goes.”