Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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in 78 straight years. "I was just hoping my name was going to get called," Koyack said on a conference call after being chosen. "I was just trying to stay positive, hoping that some team would take a chance with me and give me the opportunity to prove myself. That's exactly what Jacksonville did. "For any team to have that confi- dence in me as a player, that's some- thing that is very rewarding. I just have to go out there and show them that I'm worthy of that confidence." Koyack was not the prolific pass catcher in college that many of his pre- decessors were; he tallied 44 catches for 532 yards and five touchdowns in his career. He hauled in 30 passes for 317 yards and two scores in 2014, was named a semifinalist for the John Mackey Award (which is given to the nation's top tight end) and partici- pated in the Senior Bowl. Many draft analysts commented that Koyack was under-utilized in the passing game, but his new team already has two prolific receivers at his position — 10th-year veteran Mar- cedes Lewis, who has tallied 3,789 yards and 27 touchdowns in his career, and free agent signee Julius Thomas, who has hauled in 109 passes for 1,282 yards and 24 touchdowns with most of that production coming in the last two years. With that duo on the roster, the Jaguars were looking to add a tight end that was a proven blocker, and Koyack's well-rounded profile fit the bill. They also got the versatile 6-5, 255-pounder later than he was pro- jected, so he provided great value. "[Blocking] is something I definitely take pride in," he said. "If guys feel like they have to go into another gear