Nate Adkins has sights set on NFL career, and maybe not as a tight end

Most of the South Carolina players were done with their Pro Day drills. Nate Adkins, though, had a little more to show NFL scouts.

Adkins, the Gamecocks tight end, spent several minutes showing off his long-snapping skills to the almost 70 NFL scouts in attendance for South Carolina’s March 13 Pro Day at the Jerri and Steve Spurrier indoor practice facility.

“Long snapping is something I have been practicing since I was a little kid,” Adkins said. “My dad taught me how to do it. He said, ‘You should keep it up and it could make you money one day.’ I did throughout high school, kept up with it in college and showed it in Pro Day. I think it would help me a little bit.”

Being able to long-snap is just another part of the versatility that Adkins hopes to offer potential NFL teams interested in drafting or signing him to a free agent contract.

Greg Adkins, Nate’s father and a member of the Gamecock staff, was there watching his son take part in Pro Day activities. Nate joined his dad in Columbia last season as a grad transfer from East Tennessee State and became a key player in South Carolina’s offense in its late-season surge.

Adkins was one of the most versatile members of the Gamecocks’ team, especially late in the season. He was mainly used as a blocker through much of the year, but expanded his game when injuries hit the tight end room.

By the end of the year, Adkins was the most only among the tight ends and had big performances against Clemson and in the Gator Bowl against Notre Dame. He had seven of the season’s 13 catches for 140 yards, including an amazing one-handed grab against Clemson, over the final two games.

“I think I showed a lot of versatility this past season — doing stuff in the backfield, motioning around, in line (with) what the tight end should be doing,” Adkins said. “I think down the stretch I showed I could take my talent to the next level, and I hope I can get a shot.”

Adkins said he’s spoken to a few teams but didn’t specify which ones. The 23-year-old spent the last few months in the Columbia-area, training at USC instead of going out-of-state to other training facilities like many NFL hopefuls do.

Adkins bench-pressed 225 pounds 14 times and had a 10-inch broad jump, which would have ranked 10th among the tight ends invited to the NFL Combine earlier this month. He also ran a 4.74 in the 40-yard dash.

Adkins said he was pleased with his performance and there weren’t many slips during the drills. He also admitted a year ago that he didn’t know he would be in this position when he arrived for his final season with the Gamecocks.

“Playing all these years of football. I came into this season thinking this might be my last year to play ball. I was playing it like it could be my last year and it paid off. I played as hard as I could and played through a lot of injuries,” Adkins said. “I think I proved I could play at the next level.

“... I am going to be a tough player that you can count on to be reliable, dependable and be smart and be a leader by example. I will put my head down and work and will fit in with any NFL team.”