SANTA CLARA — Two years after Brock Purdy wore No. 14 in the 49ers’ rookie camp, Ricky Pearsall will do the same next week.
“That’s what they assigned to me for camp, so we’re going to rock out with it,” Pearsall said Wednesday morning on 95.7 The Game. “We’re going to make it look good.
“They say that number has no aura but I’m going to put some aura in it.”
History lesson: No. 14 did have a positive aura, back in the day.
Pro Football Hall of Famer Y.A. Tittle wore No. 14 from 1952-60, and Ray Wersching donned it as the 49ers’ kicker on their first two Super Bowl-winning teams.
Portrait of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Y.A. Tittle in uniform and holding a football, 1950s. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Purdy wore No. 14 before switching to No. 13 upon making the season-opening roster in 2022, eventually seizing the starting quarterback role. By the way, Purdy’s jersey was the NFL’s 13th-best-selling jersey over the first three months of last season, according to the NFL Players Association.
Sam Darnold wore No. 14 last season as Purdy’s backup. Darnold left in free agency to join the Minnesota Vikings, who drafted J.J. McCarthy at 10th overall in last week’s NFL Draft.
One of the 49ers’ biggest draft busts wore No. 14 in his brief career: quarterback Jim Druckenmiller, their 1997 first-round pick. Among others assigned No. 14 in recent years include Max McCaffrey, Bill Musgrave, J.T. O’Sullivan, Kassim Osgood, Tom Owen, Mohamed Sanu, Jerome Simpson, Vinny Sutherland, and Jeff Wilkins.
Drafted at No. 31 overall in Thursday’s first round, Pearsall wore No. 1 at Florida the past two seasons, and No. 19 at Arizona State from 2019-21. (Sidebar: Deebo Samuel switched from No. 19 to No. 1 for this coming season.)
Pearsall flew into Santa Clara last Friday for a one-day tour of the facility. “I’m antsy. I’m ready to go,” Pearsall added on 95.7 The Game’s “Morning Roast” with Bonta Hill and Joe Shasky.
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Pearsall’s initial locker is near the far corner from the entry doors, and it flanks long snapper Taybor Pepper while offensive mainstays George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey are just to Pearsall’s right.
Here are the newcomers’ jersey numbers and incumbents’ new numbers (*undrafted rookie whose signing has yet to be officially announced by the team):
1: Wide receiver Deebo Samuel
*4: Quarterback Tanner Mordecai
5: Quarterback Josh Dobbs
14: Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall
19: Wide receiver Trent Taylor
22: Cornerback Isaac Yiadom
26: Cornerback Chase Lucas
32: Running back Patrick Taylor
33: Cornerback Rock Ya-Sin
36: Linebacker Curtis Robinson
*38: Running back Cody Schrader
38: Cornerback Kemon Hall
47: Linebacker Zeke Taylor
48: Linebacker Tatum Bethune
49: Running back Isaac Guerendo
*49: Safety Jaylen Mahoney
56: Defensive end Leonard Floyd
59: Linebacker De’Vondre Campbell
60: Offensive tackle Sebastian Gutierrez
62: Offensive lineman Jarrett Kingston
64: Defensive end Raymond Johnson
*66: Offensive lineman Drake Nugent
*66: Defensive tackle Evan Anderson
67: Offensive tackle Isaac Alarcon
67: Defensive end Sam Okuayinonu
*69: Offensive lineman Briason Mays
75: Offensive tackle Brandon Parker
77: Offensive lineman Dominick Puni
82: Tight end Eric Saubert
83: Wide receiver Jacob Cowing
*84: Wide receiver Terique Owens
*89: Tight end Mason Pline
91: Defensive end Earnest Brown
92: Defensive tackle Jordan Elliott
94: Defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos
99: Defensive tackle Maliek Collins
