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EspañolEli Stowers began his college career as a quarterback at Texas A&M. He appeared in five games in two seasons as a backup before transferring to New Mexico State.
He played quarterback and tight end one season there before transferring to Vanderbilt, where he transformed himself into the nation's best tight end.
Among his many awards in 2025, Stowers was a first-team All-American and won the Mackey Award as the top tight end.
"If you would have told me even three, four years ago that I was going be playing tight end, I would have thought you were crazy," Stowers said. "I was a quarterback through and through. . . . But playing quarterback was pivotal in my transition to tight end, just making it easier because I understood the game. Like, as a quarterback, you have to understand what everybody's doing on offense, what everybody's doing on defense."
Stowers led the team with 49 receptions for 638 yards and five touchdowns in 2025. His receiving skills are unquestioned, but his run blocking, which has come a long way, still needs work.
“That was the newest thing to me, newest technique, newest movement, coming from quarterback,” Stowers said. “That was something you never did as a quarterback. I think that's something that I've gotten a lot better [at doing], but I want to continue to try to learn and watch film and hone in on my technique.”
While he acknowledges he still has room for improvement, Stowers calls himself a "good" blocker.
“I think that people don't give me enough credit for the strides I've already taken in my blocking game,” Stowers said. “I'm not saying I'm perfect. I'm not saying there's [not] a whole lot more I can continue to grow [in], but I think I'm a good blocker at this point.”