Stanford Promotes Former Pitt TE to Coordinator

PITTSBURGH — A former Pitt Panthers tight end will take on a top assistant job at a Power Four school.

Pete Thamel of ESPN reported that Stanford is hiring Frank Reich as their new head coach for next season, as they fired Troy Taylor last weekend after two seasons following back-to-back 3-9 campaigns and after an investigation into Taylor bullying members of the athletic department.

Reich, who will serve in this role for one season, will have Nate Byham serve as his offensive coordinator and have play calling duties, earning promotion from tight ends coach, according to Thamel.

Byham hails from Franklin, Pa., 80-85 miles north of Pittsburgh, where he played for Franklin High School.

He starred at Franklin, making 86 catches for 1,544 yards and 17 touchdowns in his high school career, all school records. He also did well at linebacker, making over 200 tackles his final two seasons.

Byham excelled in his senior season in 2005 with 41 receptions for 661 yards, 16.1 yards per catch, earning a spot on The Associated Press Pennsylvania Class AAA All-State Team (first team)

His play earned him recognition from schools across the country, with Rivals rating him as a four-star, ranking him No. 132 in the Class of 2006, No. 11 recruit in Pennsylvania and No. 7 tight end, while ESPN ranked him No. 68 in the nation and No. 6 at his position.

Byham picked Pitt over top programs like Iowa, Miami, Michigan, USC and West Virginia, joining head coach Dave Wannestedt.

He played in 11 games as a true freshman in 2006, with two catches for 34 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown vs. WVU.

Byham played in 11 games again as a sophomore in 2007, with 15 catches for 210 yards and a touchdown, missing the 13-9 victory over No. 2 WVU with a knee injury.

He had his most productive season as a junior in 2008, with 20 catches for 260 yards and a touchdown in 12 games, earning First Team All-Big East honors.

Byham played in all 13 games as a senior in 2009, with 10 catches for 108 yards. He finished his Pitt career with 47 catches for 612 yards and three touchdowns in 47 games.

The San Francisco 49ers selected him in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft with the No. 182 overall pick.

He played in 14 games his rookie season, making five catches for 27 yards in 14 games with three starts.

Byham spent another season in San Francisco before spending the following two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He would play in 15 games, starting five of them, while making six catches for 56 yards and a touchdown.

He spent one more season in the NFL with the New England Patriots on their practice squad in 2014, before going into coaching.

Byham would spend the next eight seasons with FCS program Albany. He worked from 2015-21, seven seasons as the tight ends coach and run game coordinator, before spending the 2022 season as the associate head coach, co-offensive coordinator, & offensive line coach.

He spent the past two seasons under Taylor as the tight ends coach and will now lead the Stanford offense for next season.

Byham is one of three former Pitt players that are offensive coordinators at the Power Four level. This includes quarterback Tino Sunseri (2008-12), who is now the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at UCLA and tight end Mike Shannahan (2008-12), who is the offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at Indiana.

Pitt will face Stanford this season, as they travel to Palo Alto, Calif. for a Week 10 matchup on Nov. 1.

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