The close relationship between Pitt senior tight end Nate Byham and his grandfather is rooted in a family tragedy. On July 4, 1988, Judy-Rae Byham was holding her one-week old grandson in the family swimming pool in Greenville, Pa., trying to cool him off from the sweltering midday heat. It was an idyllic afternoon, a holiday being spent with family, and Ron Byham can remember the sequence of events, frame by frame, as if they were captured on a family video.

"That was a hot summer, 90 degrees almost every day," Ron said. "She was in the pool with Nate, trying to keep him cooled off. She was cradling him close to her body, and when she pulled him away her skin was black."

Judy-Rae was rushed to the hospital and immediately air-lifted to Pittsburgh, where she was diagnosed with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, a rare blood disorder.

A little more than two weeks later, on July 20, Judy-Rae passed away at the age of 45.

Ron Byham almost didn't have time to grieve. A little baby needed a parent, and he was the only person who could do the job. His daughter, Melissa, was 16 years old when she gave birth to Nate. The father was serving in the military.

"There wasn't every any question that I was going to do it," Ron said. "You have a 16-year old girl pregnant. She wasn't going to be able to take care of the child."

So Ron took care of the child and much more. He made Nate the focal point of his life. Everywhere Ron went little Nate went with him. There were family vacations to Ocean City, Md. and sports-themed trips to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, and to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., and a trip to Bristol, Conn., where they traveled one summer -- just the two of them -- to cheer on the Franklin Little League team that was trying to advance to the Little League World Series.

Sports were entertainment for Ron Byham, but he also wanted to instill in his grandson certain qualities. He wanted to teach him about discipline and the value of teamwork.

Deep down, too, he knew that sports just may be a way out of the small-town life in Venango County for Nate and the distractions that surrounded him there.

Nathan Arthur Byham faced an uphill battle from the beginning. His mother had problems with drugs and alcohol throughout Nate's childhood. According to Ron, Melissa has been in and out of Nate's life "100 times."

Nate will speak with his mother on the phone, but that's the extent of the relationship even though she has been in recovery for the past four years and has landed steady work as a nursing assistant. When Nate visits Franklin he does not stay with his mother, opting instead to stay at the homes of friends or at his grandfather's trailer home in nearby Cranberry, Pa.

"She was in and out of a lot of harder drugs throughout my life," Nate said. "There were times when I knew she was using hard drugs. Other times it was more drinking. It would go up and down.

"The situation was pretty messed up all the time. I never really felt comfortable. I never had much trust in the situation as a child. When I was younger it was OK because I didn't know what was going on. When I started learning what was going on, that's when I started distancing myself and not staying in the house."

Melissa is proud of her son and all that he has overcome. Ron held a graduation party for Nate the day before he left for Pitt four years ago. Melissa missed it because she had a releapse and had to enter rehab again. More than 400 people showed up for the graduation party, but his mom and dad were not there. Melissa sent his father, Scott Rittenhouse of Mercer County, an invitation, but he did not attend and sent money instead.

"It's a lot better now," Melissa said. "I wasn't drinking and drugging all the time when Nate was in high school. I would go in spurts. Not being at his graduation party, that's something I have to live with. But I'm getting a second chance to see him in college."

Nate has seen his father only once, a chance meeting when he was in elementary school. Rittenhouse came to the house to speak with his mother, and Nate didn't find out until after he left who the man was.

Ron shielded Nate from his mother's troubles and filled the void for his father. As a result, Nate does not feel any ill will toward either of his parents.

"I don't feel like there's a void in my life," Nate said. "I'm not angry in any way. I don't feel like I missed anything. My grandfather stepped up and did that better than anyone else could. I don't see a better father figure than my grandfather, so it's not really a problem for me. Our relationship is on a higher level than a grandfather-grandson type of thing. He is pretty much my best friend, father and grandfather all wrapped into one."

Nate lived with his grandfather from the time he was born until kindergarten, when he moved in with his mother and aunt in Franklin. He moved back in with his grandfather for the fifth and sixth grade, but went back to Franklin to live in the seventh grade because the sports programs were better there. By the time he was in high school, Nate was sleeping at the homes of his friends because the situation at his mother's was not good, and another move back to his grandfather's would have meant changing schools again.

Even when Nate was not living under his roof, Ron kept close tabs on him. Nate remembers a time shortly after moving back in with his mother when he started to make some bad decisions. He said he doesn't know what would have happened if his grandfather did not intervene.

"It's really hard to think about because there was a stretch early in middle school when I started to follow the wrong path," Nate said. "I started messing around with the wrong crowd. I wasn't doing horrible things, but the kids around me were drinking and smoking weed. This was in the seventh grade. I was in that crowd. I started getting into some trouble.

"That's when my grandfather talked to me and straightened me out. He made me look down the road and see my future. I could look at mom and other people around me. I really didn't want to end up like that."

From the time Nate was able to walk, he gravitated to sports. And by the time he was in the fifth grade it was obvious that he was going to be a standout athlete. "He was a head taller, bigger and faster than everyone else," Ron said.

Nate was a speedy center fielder in baseball, a high-scoring forward in basketball and the MVP of the Franklin track and field team as a sophomore before he gave up that sport.

Ron was there every day to drop him off and pick him up from practices. And when he was at work, he made sure Nate was going home with a friend whose family was stable.

The steady pace of transitioning from one sport to the next and the structure that team sports provided were perfect for Nate. Sports also taught him how to be independent.

One week after turning 16 and getting his driver's license, Byham hopped in his car and drove to Pittsburgh -- a 90-minute drive from Franklin. He was going to Duquesne University to try out for the Pittsburgh J.O.T.S., an AAU basketball team.

"He calls me and says 'I'm on my way to Pittsburgh, Pap. I'm trying out for the J.O.T.S.'

"I said, 'How much money do you have on you?' He said, 'Ten bucks.'

"I said, 'How much gas do you have in the tank?' He said, 'Half a tank. Don't worry about it.' "

Self-motivation never was a problem for Nate. Getting out of Franklin was the ultimate goal that motivated him.

"I was mature," Nate said looking back on his childhood. "That's one thing I take as a positive out of the situation. I matured at a very young age. In the second or third grade, I was taking care of myself, making my own food. I've always been very self-motivated and mature. If I want to do something, I know I can do it."

Franklin High football coach Dave Smith said he uses Nate as an example to other underprivileged kids in the district who face long odds.

"Nate had a rough time when he was younger," Smith said. "I use that all the time with kids who come from troubled situations. I tell them Nate has faced hardships just like you, probably even worse. Do you want to go down a [negative] path? Or do you want to do what Nate did and make the most out of his life that he could.

"It is remarkable that Nate has done so well considering the upbringing he had. And it's all a credit to his grandpap. It's a credit to him that Nate has turned out the way he has."

If you visit the trailer park in Cranberry, just off Route 322, it's not hard to figure out where Ron Byham lives. His van in the gravel driveway next to his home has a Pitt No. 80 decal on the back window and a Pitt flag flies outside.

Inside is more of the same with pictures and scrapbooks documenting Nate's athletic career.

Just about every newspaper story ever written about Nate is included in the massive and neatly organized scrapbook. Ron flipped through page by page explaining in detail the context of each news clipping.

"This one he was when they upset Erie Strong Vincent ..."

"This is when Nate signed his scholarship with Pitt ..."

"This one here shows his stats ... 45 catches 883 yards, 19.6 average ..."

When Nate left Franklin to report to Pitt four years ago he was a 6-foot-4, 220-pound beanpole. Entering his senior season, he is 6-4, 265 and one of the finest tight ends in the country. He is coming off his best season as a junior when he caught 20 passes for 260 yards and one touchdown and was named first-team all-Big East.

Ron, who is 66, has followed Nate every step of the way, going to every game home and away for the past three seasons. He has plans to see every game this season as well.

Nate has his sights set on helping the Panthers win a Big East title this fall, but he'd by lying if he told you he hasn't thought about ways to repay his grandfather should he make it to the National Football League next year.

A move out of from the trailer park to the big city?

Perhaps a new car?

"He wouldn't want it," Nate said. "I've thought about that. That's not him. He's happy where he's at. He doesn't need anything else. He's not a flashy guy. It doesn't take much to please him.

"All he needs is a simple thank you. Just knowing I'm appreciative makes him happy. He understands the gratitude I have for him. There's not much I can do other than what makes him happy. And what makes him happy is coming to my games and watching me play."