 Tyson was born in Kamloops, British Columbia and played junior football for the Tri-City Bulldogs in 2001 as well as for St. Thomas More Collegiate.He went to the University of Saskatchewan and played for the Saskatchewan Huskies football team.In 2002, he was third in the country in solo tackles (59) and played on the CIS Mitchell Bowl Championship Team, the Huskies went on to lose the Vanier Cup 33-22.