Pitt's Gavin Bartholomew Excels at NFL Combine

PITTSBURGH — Pitt Panthers tight end Gavin Bartholomew showed what separates him from the rest of his peers with his performance at the NFL Combine.

Bartholomew ran the 40-yard dash in 4.70 seconds, which tied him for the fourth fastest time amongst all tight ends.

Fastest tight ends at the combine: pic.twitter.com/E98957bh9B
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 1, 2025

He also ran the 10-yard split in 1.59 seconds, eighth best amongst all tight ends at the NFL Combine.

Bartholomew showed his hands during catching drills as well, with scouts getting a look at what talents he posseses heading into the NFL Draft in late April.

TE Day at the Combine with @GavinBartholom6 🙌

Tune in to the #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork all week 🏈📺 pic.twitter.com/eHVnj3BaM1
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) March 1, 2025

He also measured in at 6-foot-5, 246 pounds with a hand size of 9 7/8 inches, which puts bodes well for him going forward in the draft process.

Gavin Bartholomew is on the field in Indy 📍

📏 @GavinBartholom6

Tune in to the #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork all week 🏈📺 pic.twitter.com/g6PVTlMmB6
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) March 1, 2025

Bartholomew had a great freshman season in 2021, playing in all 14 games and starting eight as Pitt won the ACC Championship.

With Heisman finalist quarterback Kenny Pickett under center, Bartholomew made 27 catches for 317 yards and four touchdowns. He earned an All-ACC Honourable Mention, as well as second team Freshman All-American honors from The Athletic and Pro Football Network for his efforts.

The next two seasons should've shown improvement for Bartholomew, but his stats remained either similar or lesser than his freshman campaign.

Offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr. didn't put much emphasis into getting Bartholomew the ball as much, plus the struggles of quarterbacks like Kedon Slovis, Phil Jurkovec and Christian Veilleux, led to a stagnation in statistical production.

Bartholomew had 21 catches for 283 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore in 2022 and then only 18 catches for 326 yards and a touchdown as a junior last season.

He finished his senior season in 2024 with a career-high 38 catches for 322 yards and tied his career-high with four touchdowns.

Bartholomew had a season-high five catches for 59 yards in the 55-24 victory over Kent State in the season opener.

He grabbed one touchdown each in the home losses to Virginia in Week 12 and Clemson in Week 13 and then two touchdown catches in the road loss to Boston College in Week 14, his first multi-touchdown game.

Bartholomew also competed at the Senior Bowl down in Mobile, Ala. on Feb. 1, where NFL scout took his measurements and saw him compete as well.

Dalton Miller of Pro Football Network released his full, seven-round 2025 NFL mock draft back on Jan. 19, and had the Seahawks taking Bartholomew with the No. 193 overall pick in the sixth round.

Bartholomew will hope that this strong performance at the NFL Combine leads to teams looking at him as a solution at tight end in the draft.

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