After his two exceptional years at Iowa Western Community College where he hit 40 home runs, Tyler joined the Sam Houston State team for his junior season.  While at Iowa Western he was a two time NJCAA All-American.  Tyler also helped his team reach the NJCAA World Series while hitting .378 with 17 HRs and 63 RBIs and was selected to play in the NJCCA All-Star game.  While in high school Tyler was named a pre-season Louisville Slugger All-American and was selected as the Gatorade Player of the Year in North Dakota. While excelling on the baseball field, he also excelled in the classroom with an Academic All-American award at Iowa Western.