Brandon Aiyuk
refer to caption
Aiyuk with the 49ers in 2020
No. 11 – San Francisco 49ers
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1998-03-17) March 17, 1998
Rocklin, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school:Robert McQueen (Reno, Nevada)
College:
NFL Draft:2020 / Round: 1 / Pick: 25
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Receptions:269
Receiving yards:3,931
Rushing yards:117
Return yards:234
Total touchdowns:27
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Brandon Aiyuk (EYE-yook; born March 17, 1998) is an American football wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Sierra College and Arizona State and was selected by the 49ers in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Early life and high school

Aiyuk was born in Rocklin, California and grew up in Reno, Nevada. He is of Cameroonian descent. He attended Robert McQueen High School.[1] He played wide receiver, defensive back and returned kicks for the McQueen high school football team and was named first-team All-Northern Nevada and honorable mention All-State as a senior.[2]

College career

Aiyuk at Sierra College in 2016 (top) and with Arizona State in 2019 (bottom)

Sierra College

2016 season

Aiyuk began his collegiate football career at Sierra College. As a freshman, he caught 29 passes for 573 yards and five touchdowns and was named All-NorCal Conference.[3]

2017 season

He was named a Junior College All-American in his sophomore season after recording 60 receptions for 960 yards and 14 touchdowns while also returning 11 kickoffs for 418 yards and two touchdowns and 14 punts for 313 yards and a touchdown.[4] He finished his junior college career with 2,499 all-purpose yards and 21 touchdowns. He was named First-Team All-NorCal Conference and All-State after the season.

Aiyuk committed to transfer to Arizona State for the final two years of his NCAA eligibility over offers from Colorado State, Kansas, Tennessee, and Alabama.[5] He chose Arizona State because it was one of the few schools that recruited him to play wide receiver, instead as only a return specialist or planned to move him to the defensive side of the ball.[6]

Arizona State

2018 season

In his first year with the Sun Devils, Aiyuk had 33 catches for 474 yards and three touchdowns with an additional 381 total return yards.[7][8]

2019 season

Aiyuk was named third-team preseason All-Pac-12 Conference going into his senior season.[9] He was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after catching seven passes for 196 yards and three touchdowns in a 38–34 win over Washington State on October 12, 2019.[10] Aiyuk was also named the conference Special Teams Player of the Week after posting 44 kickoff return yards and 76 punt return yards, 63 of which came on his first return for a touchdown at ASU, against Oregon State on November 16. He also had a career-high 10 receptions for 173 receiving yards and a touchdown in the game and his 293 all-purpose yards were the fifth-most in a single game in school history.[11] Aiyuk finished the season with 65 receptions for 1,192 yards and eight touchdowns, returned 14 punts for 226 yards and one touchdown and 14 kickoffs for 446 yards, and was named first-team All-Pac-12 as both a wide receiver and as a return specialist.[12]

College statistics

Season GP Receiving Rushing Kick returning Punt returning
RecYdsAvgTDAttYdsAvgTDRetYdsAvgTDRetYdsAvgTD
Sierra College Wolverines
2016 102957319.851–1–1.001116314.803144.70
2017 106096016.01413594.511141838.021431322.41
Totals20891,53317.21914584.112258126.421732719.21
Arizona State Sun Devils
2018 133347414.43————1533922.6011676.10
2019 12651,19218.38166.001444631.901422616.11
Totals25981,666171116602978527.102529311.71

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard splitVertical jumpBroad jumpBench pressWonderlic
5 ft 11+5⁄8 in
(1.82 m)		 205 lb
(93 kg)		 33+1⁄2 in
(0.85 m)		 9+3⁄4 in
(0.25 m)		4.50 s1.52 s2.63 s40.0 in
(1.02 m)		10 ft 8 in
(3.25 m)		11 reps23
All values from NFL Combine[13]

Aiyuk was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the first round with the 25th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft after they acquired the pick from the Minnesota Vikings in a trade.[14]

2020 season

On June 26, 2020, Aiyuk signed a four-year $12.5 million contract with the team, with a $6.6 million signing bonus.[15] On August 23, 2020, Aiyuk sustained a hamstring injury in training camp, resulting in him being inactive in Week 1.[16] He made his NFL debut in Week 2 against the New York Jets and recorded two receptions for 21 yards in the 31–13 victory.[17] In Week 3 against the New York Giants, Aiyuk recorded 101 yards from scrimmage and his first career rushing touchdown during the 36–9 win.[18] He became the franchise's first wide receiver since 1970 to have a rushing touchdown be their first career score.[19] In Week 4, against the Philadelphia Eagles on NBC Sunday Night Football, he had a 38-yard rushing touchdown in the 25–20 loss.[20] He became the first wide receiver since the NFL-AFL merger to record two rushing touchdowns in his first three professional games.[21] He recorded his first professional 100-yard game with six receptions for 115 yards in a 33–6 victory over the New England Patriots in Week 7.[22]

Aiyuk was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on November 4, 2020,[23] and activated two days later.[24] He was placed back on the COVID-19 list on November 20,[25] and activated again on December 2.[26] In Week 14 against the Washington Football Team, Aiyuk recorded 10 catches for 119 yards during the 23–15 loss.[27] The following week in a road game against the Dallas Cowboys, Aiyuk hauled in 9 catches for 73 yards and a touchdown in the 41–33 loss.

2021 season

Aiyuk appeared in all 17 games for the 49ers, in which he had 56 receptions for 826 yards and 5 touchdowns, and rushed 5 times for 17 yards. In the postseason, Aiyuk posted an overall 9 receptions for 135 yards. The 49ers would lose to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship match.

2022 season

Aiyuk again appeared in 17 games, racking up 78 receptions for 1,015 yards and 8 touchdowns, and rushing 2 times for 24 yards. In the postseason, he racked up 6 receptions for 109 yards. The 49ers would again lose in the NFC Championship round, this time to the Eagles.

2023 season

On April 28, 2023, the 49ers picked up the fifth-year option of Aiyuk's rookie contract.[28] In Week 1 of the 2023 season, Aiyuk had eight catches for 129 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-7 win over the Steelers, earning NFC Offensive Player of the Week.[29] On Week 2, against the Los Angeles Rams, Brandon Aiyuk injured his shoulder on his first catch of the game. Despite continuing play, he was designated as inactive following a short turnaround. He was also made inactive for the Week 3 match against the New York Giants.[30]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Fumbles
GPGSRecYdsY/RLngTDAttYdsY/ALngTDFumLost
2020SF 12116074812.249567712.838T200
2021SF 17165682614.84355173.48021
2022SF 1717781,01513.054822311.516011
2023SF 1616751,34217.976700—0011
Career62602693,93114.67625131179.038T243

Postseason

Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Fumbles
GPGSRecYdsY/RLngTDAttYdsY/ALngTDFumLost
2021SF 33913515.037000—0000
2022SF 33610918.231000—0000
Career661524416.337000—0000

References

  1. ↑ Krajeewski, Jan (October 4, 2017). "McQueen High alum Brandon Aiyuk jumps onto recruiting radar at Sierra College". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  2. ↑ Krajeewski, Jan (December 7, 2015). "American Family Insurance ALL-USA Northern football". USATodayHSS.com. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  3. ↑ "Aiyuk named All-conference at Sierra College". Reno Gazette-Journal. November 15, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  4. ↑ Little, Josh (December 15, 2017). "McQueen alum Aiyuk named a JC All-American". KOLOTV.com. Archived from the original on March 11, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  5. ↑ Karpman, Chris (February 8, 2018). "Sun Devils land Brandon Aiyuk despite interest from Alabama". 247Sports.com. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  6. ↑ "ASU offered Brandon Aiyuk the chance to play WR so he took it". The Arizona Republic. September 11, 2019. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  7. ↑ Brugler, Dane (October 18, 2019). "Meet the Prospect: Fast-rising receiver Brandon Aiyuk and the art of YAC". The Athletic. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  8. ↑ Rudner, Jacob (August 28, 2019). "Arizona State season preview: WR". 247Sports.com. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  9. ↑ Pauline, Tony. "Arizona State Sun Devils: Benjamin, Aiyuk, Cabral headline players to watch". ProFootballNetwork.com. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  10. ↑ "Arizona State's Brandon Aiyuk earns Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors after career receiving day". Yahoo Sports. October 14, 2019. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  11. ↑ Kuebel, Tom (November 18, 2019). "Brandon Aiyuk wins 3rd Pac-12 special teams award for ASU this year". ArizonaSports.com. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  12. ↑ Booth, Trevor (December 10, 2019). "Brandon Aiyuk to skip ASU's bowl game". 247Sports.com. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  13. ↑ "Brandon Aiyuk Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  14. ↑ White, R.J. (April 23, 2020). "2020 NFL Draft grades: 49ers get a 'B+' for trading up for Brandon Aiyuk at No. 25 overall". CBS Sports. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  15. ↑ Posey, Kyle (June 26, 2020). "49ers sign first-round pick Brandon Aiyuk to a four-year deal". Niners Nation. SB Nation. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  16. ↑ Maiocco, Matt (September 13, 2020). "Rookie Aiyuk inactive for 49ers in opener vs. Cardinals". RSN. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  17. ↑ "San Francisco 49ers at New York Jets - September 20th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  18. ↑ "San Francisco 49ers at New York Giants - September 27th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  19. ↑ "49ers' Aiyuk achieved rare feat with first career NFL TD". RSN. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Philadelphia Eagles at San Francisco 49ers - October 4th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  21. ↑ "49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk hurdles for touchdown, shows signs of bright future - SFChronicle.com". San Francisco Chronicle. October 5, 2020. Archived from the original on October 5, 2020. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  22. ↑ "San Francisco 49ers at New England Patriots - October 25th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  23. ↑ "49ers Place Three on Reserve/COVID-19 List". 49ers.com. November 4, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  24. ↑ "49ers Activate Four From Reserve/COVID-19 List". 49ers.com. November 6, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  25. ↑ "49ers Announce Roster Moves". 49ers.com. November 20, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  26. ↑ "49ers Announce Roster Moves". 49ers.com. December 2, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Washington Football Team at San Francisco 49ers - December 13th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
  28. ↑ Madson, Kyle (April 28, 2023). "Report: 49ers to pick up 5th-year option on WR Brandon Aiyuk". USAToday.com. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
  29. ↑ Gordon, Grant (September 13, 2023). "Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa, 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk highlight Players of the Week". NFL.com.
  30. ↑ Dubow, Josh (September 21, 2023). "49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk will miss game against Giants with shoulder injury". AP News. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
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