Pitt NFL Draft Projections: Scott Orndoff

I wanted to take a quick look at one other Pitt player with the potential to be selected in this weekend's NFL Draft - tight end Scott Orndoff.

Orndoff was overshadowed a bit in his first two seasons here. Even by the time he was a junior, he was still sharing the spotlight with J.P. Holtz, a highly regarded tight end. Orndoff still managed to show some big play ability in 2015, despite some modest numbers.

In his junior year, Orndoff managed only 13 catches for 244 yards. But he also averaged nearly 20 yards a catch and scored five touchdowns. Last year, with more opportunities, he responded. 2016 saw the tight end heavily involved in Matt Canada's offense, catching 35 balls for 579 yards and five more touchdowns.

One thing of note is that, like James Conner, he had a monster game against Clemson in that big upset. In that game, Orndoff caught a ridiculous nine passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns. That would be a big game for a wide receiver. For a tight end, it's kind of unbelievable.

Orndoff is also a solid blocker for the position - something that's desperately needed since that's a huge job a tight end has to fill.

I'm not sure all of that is enough to get him selected, but it should land him in the conversation as a fringe guy. One thing hurting him is that he didn't have a great Combine and that was a place that could have helped him create some separation with other guys. But he still had a strong year this season and all it takes is getting one team interested to be taken.

Do you think Orndoff will be selected in the NFL Draft?

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