2023 National Scouting Combine Featured Athlete Tyler Kulka, QB from Lawrence Technological University

How’d you end up at your current school? What was the recruiting process like? 

Before my senior year I went to the BYU football camp in Provo Utah. There I won MVP and my 7on7 team won the championship. The coaches liked me and had said they would keep an eye on me my senior season. I decided after my senior year I was going to go on a 2 year mission for my church and when I came home I would be a preferred walk on at BYU. 2 months before I came home from my mission the head coach at Lawrence Tech had called my Dad and talked to him for a while and asked if I wanted to come and help start a program from scratch at LTU. So I saw it as a great opportunity to be able to start something and build it from the ground up. It wasn’t always easy but when I look back now it was an amazing experience that I wouldn’t trade for the world.

 

What gives you an advantage over other athletes at quarterback?

I think for me I have so many advantages that most small school and even big school players don’t have. At Lawrence Tech I was a 5 year starter and 5 year captain. This has allowed me to gain a ton of experience playing QB and developing as a passer and a decision maker. Also I was able to develop as leader of a team from a very young age. The other advantage I have is starting a program from scratch. This has allowed me to see what it takes and the pieces that are needed to build a great program starting from nothing. Another big thing that separates me is I have been through two head coaches in college and 2 different offenses. Starting off running a pro Style ground and pound offense and then moving to the RPO spread. This has allowed me to learn and gain experience in both offenses and develop my skills so that any offense I am asked to run at the next level I can command them at a high level.

 

What does being a student of a game mean to you?

For me being a student of the game starts with knowing your playbook inside and out. As a QB you need to know what everyone else is doing so you can correct and be the general on the field. Then after you have mastered the play book then it’s on to studying how a team is going to defend against it. So first it is understanding base coverages and what we want to attack in each coverage. Then it goes to the film room and trying to learn what a specific team is trying to do. How they disguise coverages and blitzes so you can know what they will be in and how to attack it. Then it goes into specifics of what players do. So in my mind being a student of the game is the biggest part of the game of football. This is why people say this game is like chess on steroids. It’s not just about being the strongest and fastest. It’s about being the smartest too. This is why football is the ultimate game.

 

How does being a Quarterback reflect itself in your personal life?

 For me the biggest thing in my life playing QB has reflected on is leadership. The team when the chips are down they always turn to the QB. In my life I have always been looked up to even growing up in my younger years and being the oldest in my family. So for me playing QB has helped me be a better leader in the classroom at home or even in my day to day life. This has helped me live with integrity because you never know who may be looking up to you as there example.

 

How would you describe your work ethic?

My coach has referred to me as Field rat in reference to the Kobe Bryant term Gym rat. I am a guy that is always getting out to the field and throwing with WRs and working on timing and getting better. This summer I was out at LTU Monday through Friday with different receivers and then working with a QB coach on the weekends. I would describe my work ethic as someone who is willing to do whatever it takes. One summer I had an internship from 8am to 4pm I would wake up in the mornings go to lifts at 6:00am go to work and come back to LTU at 5:00pm throw with with my receivers and then get home at 8:00pm and get up and do it all again the next day. I am a guy that is willing to do whatever it takes I’ll get up early I’ll stay up late watching film just to be better then the next guy.

 

What do you consider to be one of the more important things you learned from the coaching staff?

One of the most important things that was hit home by our coaching staff was leadership and how you should lead. My coach has a chart that shows the head coach and leadership of the team at the bottom of the chart. This is huge for me, leaders are there to serve the people they lead not tell them what to do or bark out orders. Leaders should lead the way Jesus showed us in the washing of his disciples feet. It is all about serving and putting others needs over your own.

 

What would you consider to be your biggest accomplishment in your sports career so far?

My biggest accomplishment is definitely being a 5 year captain in college. This is a very high honor to be voted for and it is something I never took lightly. 

 

How did you hear about the National Scouting Combine?

I heard about it from Twitter and the National Scouting Combine reaching out to me saying I would be a good candidate for it.

 

Why did you choose the National Scouting Combine?

I chose to go because I am a competitor and I love to play the great game of football. I am ready to show the scouts what I am made of as a person and as a player.

 

What do you hope to show people at the combine?

I hope to show the scouts and people evaluating me that I can throw it with the best QBs in the country and I Belong in the NFL. I have a strong arm, I am very accurate, and I am very good at throwing off platform. So I hope I can showcase those skills at the National Scouting Combine.

 

What was your Major?

Mechanical Engineering Graduate with a 3.2 GPA.

 

Who is or has been the most influential person in your life?

I would say my dad James Kulka he is a person that I would do anything for. He is a director at American Axle Manufacturing in Detroit Michigan. He is a leader of many and has inspired me to be the man I am today. He is a person you would do anything for great man, husband, and father.

 

If not football, then what?

I feel there are a lot of opportunities now a days for football even if it is playing Arena ball or getting into coaching. But if not football I have a great mechanical engineering degree from a great school. So I probably would go work for the Car companies in Detroit which I have had internship experience there as well.

 

If you could make a positive impact on all of society what would it be and why?

 I think for me I would love to be an example to young men in this world. A lot of men or torn on what they should do and what their goals should be with some not so great role models at times. For me I want to show young men that it’s not all about getting with the girls and driving a nice car and making lots of money. For me I want to show young men that they can be strong and confident with also being loving and kind. I also want to show how important a family is and how important being there for your kids is. I feel like I would like to be a lot like a Kirk Cousins or a Tim Tebow type of role model for society.

 

What is something unique about you that people would find interesting?

 As well as loving sports and being an athlete. I also did some plays when I was in school. I was Troy Bolton in High School Musical and also was Gaston in Beauty and the best. I also was big into singing and sang solos in choir concerts. I also play the Ukulele it is something I picked up on my mission that I love to do in my spare time.

 

If you had the opportunity to play another sport professionally, what sport would you choose?

 – I am an athlete so I would love to play any sport professionally. In high school I played Football, Basketball, Baseball and hockey. If I had to choose I would love to play hockey but I have been outta the game for a while so I would say I would have the best chance at playing baseball.

 

Are you involved in mentoring, a charity or do you “give back” or ”pay it forward” in your community?

We did a lot of community service projects at LTU like cleaning up a church and doing yard work for people who were disabled. But what I really enjoyed was mentoring young kids and I have been able to do that by teaching and training young QBs around my area. As well as helping coach a Legacy 7on7 team. It’s something fun I love to do to give back. But for me probably the biggest thing I did was serving the people of Oakland and San Francisco California for Two years on a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints . Not only was I doing service projects and helping around the community. But my main purpose was teaching people lessons and spreading the good word of Christ. I throughly enjoyed my time out west serving those people.

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