While freshmen Dion Lewis and Raymond Graham turned heads with dazzling runs, senior Nate… While freshmen Dion Lewis and Raymond Graham turned heads with dazzling runs, senior Nate Byham did the dirty work of clearing space for the young runners.

As fellow senior tight end Dorin Dickerson caught touchdown passes, Byham ran the intermediate routes that stretched the secondary and freed his teammate.

As others made headlines, Byham provided the often-unrecognized effort required of a senior leader on a bowl-caliber team. And now, he’s looking for that work to pay off during the NFL Draft starting on April 22.

Byham, a Franklin, Pa., native, arrived at Pitt four years ago as one of the top tight end recruits in the nation and as a member of head coach Dave Wannstedt’s first highly ranked recruiting class.

With his college career over, Byham’s final statistics of 47 receptions, 612 yards and three touchdowns might indicate that he was underutilized. But it’s his run-blocking ability that has made him a bona fide NFL prospect.

Pitt tight end coach Brian Angelichio thinks that Byham, who is 6-foot-4 and 268 pounds, is a top option for any team that values a tight end who can help the run game.

“Obviously, when you put the film on, that’s one of his strengths. There are not many end-line blockers across the country. And Nate has shown the ability to do that as well as anybody in the country,” Angelichio said. “If you’re [an] NFL team, you’re obviously looking at him if you’re looking for an end-line blocker.”

As the hybrid tight end — someone with the size and strength of a traditional tight end and the skill set of a wide receiver — has become commonplace in professional football, Byham is a throwback considering his propensity to be a blocker as much as, if not more than, a receiver.

“There are not too many guys like me anymore,” Byham said. “There are not too many guys like me who are hard-nosed guys, who are going to get down in the trenches and block somebody and try to bloody some noses. That’s kind of a dying breed of tight end.”

Still, in order to find a home on an NFL team, Byham, a two-time All-Big East selection, has had to prove to scouts this offseason that his receiving abilities are up to par.

Last year, Byham caught just 10 passes while Dickerson, who is another next-level talent, made 49 receptions for 10 touchdowns.

But Byham isn’t upset about his lack of receptions. In fact, he’s glad that Dickerson was able to have a breakout year and is now poised for a professional career as well.

“If anything, I’m happy because Dorin was a guy who was under the radar, and he was able to raise his stock,” Byham said. “I think it was a good thing because both of us now are very good prospects.”

Through the NFL Combine, the Pitt Pro Day and various workouts for professional teams, Byham has been able to display his receiving ability for evaluators. He said he passed all of the tests with flying colors and soft hands.

“In the long run, these scouts know what they’re looking at. That’s why [they] have the pro days. That’s why they have the combine, and they can see that I can catch very well,” he said.

One area of concern was the tight end’s time in the 40-yard dash. While at the NFL Combine, Byham clocked a 4.97, which doesn’t particularly standout from the pack. However, during his pro day workout, he improved his time with a 4.91.

With all of that established, there is still uncertainty as to where Byham will end up next year. He has worked out of a few NFC and AFC teams but is still uncertain of his destination. While he waits for the draft, he’s trying not to take the various mock drafts and prospect rankings that litter the Internet very seriously.

“I hear through grapevines certain things, and I’d be lying if [I said] I haven’t seen some of the [draft projections]. None of it really holds true. Every year there are guys who they say are going in the first-second round that go in the fourth-fifth,” Byham said. “There’s no reason to get caught up in it because no one really has any clue.”

Scout.com has Byham listed as a three-star prospect and the 13th best tight end available. Rivals.com ranks him as the ninth best at his position and the writers on NFL.com place him 15th among his competition.

An assortment of mock drafts place Byham as a mid-round selection. But, as Byham put it, a lot of those estimations are done by amateurs, and he’s far more concerned about what the professionals think about him.

“I take to heart what the coaches that I talk to from the NFL say to me and what my coaches tell me and what my agent tells me,” he said.

Angelichio praised Byham for what he can bring to a team, beyond his measurable physical traits.

“He brings a toughness and a passion for the game of football. Coachable, hardworking, extremely driven, and he’s a guy that you’re not going to worry about doing the right thing,” Angelichio said.

The former Franklin Knight will leave Pitt with a degree in communication and a perspective of how far the football program has come over the past four years.

“I came in with blind faith, knowing that we could get this program turned around,” he said.

While Byham said that the he will always regret not winning a Big East title, he is happy that the Panthers went 9-4 and 10-3 in his last two seasons.

Byham noted that he doesn’t have a preference about which team he ends up on. However, he said that teams which concentrate on running the ball would provide a good fit for him. Even in the event that he isn’t drafted, the amount of attention Byham is receiving from NFL franchises indicates that he will be in a team’s training camp this summer.

“I think once I get on a team, I’ll be able to prove to them that I can play football, and I’ll stay around,” Byham said.