Tyler attended Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village, California, while his family lived in Palmdale. He stayed with the family of a teammate. In his senior season, Tyler scored 31 touchdowns and averaged 12.2 yards per carry. Tyler broke his left leg during a playoff game in November 2006; as a result, he had a stainless steel rod surgically implanted in his leg.

Despite the injury, Tyler remained a 5-star recruit and was ranked as the 2nd best running back prospect in the U.S. behind fellow USC recruit Joe McKnight, and the 17th best overall. At Oaks Christian High School, Tyler played alongside quarterback Jimmy Clausen, the nation's #1 rated recruit overall.

Tyler enrolled at University of Southern California in August 2007. After redshirting the 2007 season while recovering from a broken leg that he suffered in his senior season at Oaks Christian HS, he was expected to play in 2008. In the season opener at Virginia, Tyler scored the first touchdown of his collegiate career with 02:33 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. In April 2011, Tyler was involved in two off the field incidents. He allegedly spit on a female student while intoxicated and in another incident he allegedly inappropriately touched another female student at a bar near campus. On July 18, 2011, Tyler was suspended for the season opener against Minnesota for making inappropriate comments to the media.

...
Wikipedia