Former Orange Bowl opponents now Colts teammates

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Colts are in the middle of rookie minicamp at the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center.

Former Penn State tight end Tyler Warren was drafted by the Colts in the first round of last month’s NFL Draft, while former Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard was drafted by the Colts in the sixth round of the draft.

The two played each other this past January in the Orange Bowl down in Miami Gardens, Fla. Leonard’s Fighting Irish beat Warren’s Nittany Lions 27-24 in that College Football Playoff matchup.

News 8 Sports’ Andrew Chernoff asked Warren on Friday if Leonard and him have discussed that game at all.

“Hadn’t been long talks, but it came up here and there,” Warren said.

Notre Dame may have beaten Penn State this past January, but Warren had a huge impact for the Nittany Lions in the game. He finished with 6 receptions for 75 yards in the contest, while also rushing for 21 yards on two carries.

“I didn’t talk to J.T. (Tuimoloau) about the natty, but I went straight up to Tyler Warren,” Leonard said. “That’s for sure. I went straight up to him. But then again, he probably had like 150 yards on us too at the same time.”

The duo may have been on opposite sidelines in that game this past January, but now they are looking forward to being teammates in Indy.

“He (Leonard) was a great player,” Warren said. “So playing him in college and now being teammates is really cool. And just to kind of share teams with guys that had great success all through college. Now being on the same team is really cool.”

Leonard shares the same sentiment as he now is throwing passes to a player in Warren who made life miserable for defenses all across the college football world last season.

“Tyler, he’s a football player,” Leonard said. “He went out there yesterday and just very easily adapt(ed). He’s just a quarterback-friendly guy – catches, soft hands and things like that. But, ‘Tyler Warren’ Tyler Warren is like – you strap up them pads, that’s another version of the dude. Some guys are just football players and he’s definitely one of them. You can kind of tell. When he gets his hand in the dirt and straps it up, I’m excited to see it. Because I obviously saw it in person when we played him in the playoffs and it was fun to watch… kind of.”

The two players are ready for the challenge of playing in the NFL. Leonard credits playing at Notre Dame for helping prepare him for this next opportunity.

“You learn how to be a professional from the day you walk into the locker room,” Leonard said. “And you don’t learn it through the X’s and O’s and the playbook. You learn it from the environments around you. So if I went into Notre Dame’s facility at 10 p.m. at night, there’s guys in there constantly working because they’re all trying to make it to the NFL and win a national championship. That is our goal as a program. And everybody’s in there for the same purpose, rhyme and reason. So, I think Notre Dame teaches you the intangibles that just set you up perfectly for the next level.”

Colts rookie minicamp continues Sunday.