George Kittle chatted with the media after the 49ers’ 20-12 win against the Cardinals on Saturday, and he spoke about his first game back after injury and what it was like to play on a Saturday with C.J. Beathard.
Football is about brotherhood, but George Kittle and C.J. Beathard’s bond is unique.
The All-Pro tight end and his quarterback have been teammates for nine straight seasons. Even Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner had a season apart between their time at Oregon and when they reunited as teammates with the 49ers.
On Monday, Kittle recounted the humble origins of his friendship with Beathard when started their football careers at the University of Iowa.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
“I can’t say enough about C.J.,” Kittle said. “Five years at Iowa together, coming in scrawny 18-year olds, not a clue what to do and completely torching our defense every single day in scout team, just having an absolute blast.
“To him, leading us to a 12-2 season in the Rose Bowl, basically by himself, carrying the team on his back, and then going to the NFL getting to be on the same team as him.”
Kittle wasn’t a pass-catching star as a Hawkeye. He closed out his 25-game college career with only 48 passes for 737 yards and 10 touchdowns over four seasons. In Kittle’s eight games in 2020, he caught the same number of passes for 634 yards and two touchdowns.
Beathard appeared in 40 games at Iowa, completing 454 passes for 5,562 yards and 40 touchdowns. Neither Beathard or Kittle played much in their first two seasons, but that changed during their junior season when the Hawkeyes played Stanford in the 2016 Rose Bowl.
San Francisco 49ers
Find the latest San Francisco 49ers news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
In 2015, Beathard completed 223 of his 362 attempts for 2,809 yards, 17 touchdowns and five interceptions. He averaged 7.8 yards per attempt and finished the season with a 139.5 rating.
“I’ve always loved C.J.,” Kittle said. “Our relationship has gotten way stronger since we’ve gotten in the NFL because he’s always believed in me since my first days at Iowa when I wasn’t playing and I struggled to get on the field.
“Even in my rookie year he always was [saying], ‘Keep after it because you’re a hell of a football player.’ When you have a guy that you can rely on every single day like C.J. and I have someone to talk to about anything, someone that I trust with everything, it’s incredible.”
RELATED: Ranking best head-coaching fits for Saleh
Beathard is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason and the two long-time teammates likely will play on separate teams for the first time in a decade when they take the field in 2021. Kittle knows that the potential physical distance between them will not inhibit their friendship.
“C.J. will be one of my closest friends for the rest of my life,” Kittle said. “I think when you play nine years together, you definitely learn a lot about each other and you change and you grow. I don’t know what’s going to happen with C.J. but next year is the first year we don’t get to play together it will definitely be different for me.”
No matter what happens, both Iowa products understand the business side of the NFL and, if they must, will be cheering each other on from the wings. Kittle believes that even if Beathard doesn’t return to Santa Clara, the quarterback still will land on his feet.
“I think C.J. is a hell of a quarterback and I know he’s going to get an opportunity to play,” kittle said. "I love the guy and I will definitely miss him. Being able to play with him for nine years has been an absolute blessing and he’s definitely affected me in more positive ways than not.”