Being the son of arguably the greatest receiver of all-time, USC wideout Brenden Rice has had big shoes to fill his whole life.
And a little over two months away from likely being drafted, Rice is A-OK if he’s picked by his father’s former team the San Francisco 49ers, even if that means playing in the shadow of his 12-time All-Pro dad.
“If the 49ers are the perfect situation for me to go ahead and battle for a top position on that team, then most definitely [I’m OK following in my father’s footsteps],” Rice told NBC Sports Bay Area. “I’m prepared for it.”
Rice admitted some of his favorite players to watch play in San Francisco, including quarterback Brock Purdy, running back Christian McCaffrey, receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel and offensive tackle Trent Williams.
While nobody likely expects Rice to live up to his father’s Hall of Fame resume, there’s no question he’ll be continuously compared to his dad if he lands with the 49ers.
In 16 seasons with the 49ers, the senior Rice totaled 1,281 receptions, 19,247 yards and 176 touchdowns with 10 first-team All-Pro selections, 12 Pro Bowl selections, two NFL Offensive Player of the Year awards and three Super Bowl championships.
Despite ranking 152nd in the country in receptions (45) in 2023, Rice was tied for the ninth-most touchdowns (12) in the NCAA. He ranked second on the Trojans in catches and yards (791) behind Tahj Washington, but proved his value with his scoring prowess.
Rice is projected to be a mid-round pick in April, and some scouting services believe he could go as high as the fourth round.
“Just looking at what I had as production this year, I had 45 catches, 12 touchdowns – that’s kind of unheard of,” Rice stated. “If you look at other guys across the nation, I ended up being in the top-10 [in touchdowns]. … I was joking with [my coach] back and forth like, ‘Hey I’m going to come back for one more year.’ And he was like, ‘Nah, it’s time to go ahead and leave big dog.’”
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