It seems as if the show you're thinking of is the "Friends" spinoff "Joey," in which Simon Helberg did a four-episode arc.

Helberg, now best (and probably forever) known as Howard Wolowitz on the smash-hit sitcom "The Big Bang Theory," appeared periodically throughout "Joey's" two-season run. He was introduced in the show's third episode as a friend of Joey's nephew, Michael.

He's also Michael's rival, though, as both are brilliant aerospace engineers, just like Wolowitz on "The Big Bang Theory."

But there's another possibility. Your description also fits another project Helberg did, the 2013 indie film "I Am I," in which he played a somewhat geeky guy named Seth (so even if he's not always remembered as Wolowitz, it seems he'll always be playing geeks).

"I Am I" is a bit closer to Helberg's heart than most of his projects, though, since his wife wrote and starred in it. Fortunately for all involved, he liked the script when she showed it to him.

"It was weird because I thought, 'Oh gosh, what if I read this and it's not good, and how do I deal with my wife?'" Helberg said in an interview with MSN.com. "But in all honesty, it blew me away."

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