MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Milwaukee native Riley Nowakowski is standing on the doorstep of the NFL Draft after a college career that ended with a National Championship with the Indiana Hoosiers.
With the NFL Draft kicking off in Pittsburgh, Nowakowski is on a handful of draft boards this week. However, his path to this moment was anything but typical.
"It really felt like I was kind of just in grade school again, just, you know, out here having fun playing with my friends," Riley Nowakowski smiled.
Watch: Milwaukee native Riley Nowakowski goes from overlooked to NFL Draft prospect
The emotion of winning the CFB National Championship hits even deeper for his family, knowing the journey it took to get to this point.
"When you get to see confetti coming down, and you're the winning team, it's just a whole different emotion," Riley's father, Scott Nowakowski, recalled.
Riley Nowakowski was a zero-star recruit out of Marquette University High School.
"You know, who'd have thought that I would have been one of the kids in our grade that would be trying to go to the draft and hopefully be playing in the NFL?" Riley Nowakowski chuckled.
While he was overlooked in high school, that was never the end of his story.
"You put a roadblock in his way, he's going to try to go through it," Scott Nowakowski said.
"I really don't like being told I can't do something," Riley Nowakowski added.
That motivation turned a walk-on spot at Wisconsin into a scholarship before he eventually transferred to Indiana for his final year of eligibility.
"Definitely went through some tough times at Wisconsin, especially my past two years, got injured, and then just didn't have the seasons that we thought we could… I think just getting back to being able to play football and just having fun with it was huge," Riley Nowakowski reflected.
RILEY NOWAKOWSKI GETS THE FIRST TD OF THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 🔥
— ESPN (@espn) January 20, 2026
Watch Canes-Hoosiers on ESPN and the ESPN App 👀 pic.twitter.com/ebCwthebHX
This past year with the Hoosiers gave him a chance to shine on college football's biggest stage, scoring Indiana's first touchdown of the CFB National Championship and drawing interest across the National Football League.
"I put everything out there that I could and tried my best to put myself in the best position possible, and if somebody wants to take a chance, I'm all for it," Riley Nowakowski stated.
"Not only are they going to get an individual that's going to really take this seriously, dedicate, do the work, but I mean, he is just such a good person," Riley's mom, Rhonda Nowakowski, added.
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