NIC-10's 100 Greatest Football Players: No. 73 - Tyler Mason, Belvidere

Tyler Mason secured himself the 73rd spot on the top 100 by opening holes for others.

In 1983, Mason teamed up with future University of Indiana lineman Chris Simons to power the Belvidere Bucs to an 8-1 record in the NIC-10 and 9-2 overall. Both were named first team all-conference for an offense run by Greg Wallace (No. 85 on this list) It was the first NIC-10 title under coach LaVerne Pottinger. Pottnger would go on to coach the Bucs to three IHSA title games.

While Simons was off to the Big Ten, Mason accepted a scholarship to Valparaiso, an NCAA Division 1AA school in the Heartland Collegiate Conference.

Mason would develop into a three-year starter for solid Beacons teams. Valparaiso went 18-21 over Mason's four years on the varsity. As a senior, Mason was named first team All-HCC.

Mason showed enough that he was invited to the 1988 NFL combine and had hopes of being drafted. When that didn't happen, he finished his degree in economics and mathematics in 1989 and started a long career in manufacturing.

Mason spent nearly 18 years working for Chrysler (under its different iterations). Today, he's the associate manager of manufacturing for Merz Aesthetics' operations in Wisconsin. Merz is a privately-owned pharmaceutical company based in Germany.

No. 73 - Tyler Mason, Belvidere
Year	Level	School	Accomplishments	Points
1982	High School	Belvidere	Winning Team	1
1983	High School	Belvidere	First Team All-Conference	2
			Playoff Team	1
			Conference Champion	1
1984	College	Valparaiso	Letter Winner in NCAA Div. 1AA	3
			Winning Team	1
1985	College	Valparaiso	Letter Winner in NCAA Div. 1AA	3
			Winning Team	1
			Starter	1
1986	College	Valparaiso	Letter Winner in NCAA Div. 1AA	3
			Starter	1
1987	College	Valparaiso	Letter Winner in NCAA Div. 1AA	3
			Starter	1
			First Team All-Conference	1
Total				23

NIC-10's 100 Greatest Football Players