Every West Point football fan is familiar with Tyhier Tyler under center, but the transition to Division I student-athlete life hasn’t always been as smooth as it’s seemed.

As Tyler finishes his final season with the Black Knights, Army Coach Jeff Monken knows the exact moment he’ll look back on after the QB moves on.

"I really remember the locker room celebration after we beat UTSA down there in 2020," said Monken. "He played his heart out there as much as he could, and then by the end of that year, he was a starter."

The year before was a different story. In 2019, Tyler was struggling in the classroom with a grade point average that left him on the brink of academic ineligibility.

According to the College Atlas, 70% of Americans study at a four-year college, but fewer than two-thirds graduate. Tyler was falling into that group, and he was put on the scout team to regroup.

"When he had academic troubles and he was on the scout team … and that was after being here a year, that’s really hard to go through," said Monken. "He competed every day and made them better, and all along I think he was trying to get better."

Just one season later, and recovered from the danger of academic ineligibility, Tyler was leading one team, with another in his corner. He credits his coaches and academic advisors for not only showing him self-discipline, but also an unmatched level of support.

"It makes you kind of wonder … 'What do they see in me?' That kind of helped me turn things around, as well as my want to graduate and my want to me here. I realized that graduating here is a great way to set up my future family," said Tyler.

It’s family and the impact that comes with a degree from West Point that got him back in the huddle.

"This is a guy that is an incredible brother and son. Just the way he loves his family and always thinks of them," said Monken.

After a few minutes of scrolling through his phone and sharing photographs of his family, Tyler talked about what calls to home sound like.

" 'I miss you; when are you coming home again?’ Here’s a picture of me and my brothers," said Tyler. "They’re both younger than me, which is crazy."

They’re an inseparable trio, with an oldest brother to look up to that’s tackled everything that comes with college.

"I think that sense of responsibility that he has to that name that he wears … Tyler, and he is part of our family, but I’d be proud if he was a guy that wore my last name," said Monken.