John Hightower is a native of Landover, Maryland who starred one both sides of the ball at nearby Riverdale Baptist High School.
Following his prep career, Hightower chose to pursue the JUCO path by committing to play at Hinds Community College. As a freshman in 2016, Hightower caught 18 passes for 273 yards and three touchdowns. He followed that with a sophomore season that saw him catch 13 passes for 236 yards and four more touchdowns.
After two seasons at Hinds, Hightower moved on to Boise State where he earned four starts in his first year on campus.