78 Fun Facts About 49ers

The 49ers began play in 1946 as charter members of which league?

All-America Football Conference was the 49ers' first home; the league lasted four seasons, and when it folded after 1949 the 49ers, Browns and original Baltimore Colts were absorbed into the NFL.

The 49ers' name honors which group of people?

Gold seekers who came to California in 1849 gave the team its name, and the theme stuck: the mascot Sourdough Sam is a gold-rush prospector.

Where did the 49ers play their home games from 1946 through 1970?

Kezar Stadium, in Golden Gate Park, is where Minnesota's Jim Marshall picked up a 49ers fumble in 1964 and ran 66 yards the wrong way into his own end zone.

Which stadium was the 49ers' home from 1971 through 2013?

Candlestick Park was home for 43 seasons; five years before the 49ers moved in, the Beatles played their last full public concert there.

Levi's Stadium, the 49ers' home field, is located in which city?

Santa Clara was already home to the 49ers' headquarters when Levi's Stadium opened there in 2014, right beside the team's training facility.

Who was the 49ers' first head coach?

Buck Shaw coached the 49ers through 1954, and in 1960 his Philadelphia Eagles beat Green Bay for the NFL title, the only playoff game Vince Lombardi ever lost.

Which British band headlined the halftime show when Levi's Stadium hosted Super Bowl 50 in 2016?

Coldplay shared the stage with Bruno Mars and Beyoncé, who used the slot to perform her new single Formation; the 49ers were only the hosts that day.

In 2016, Levi's Stadium turned part of its roof into what?

A vegetable farm was planted on the stadium roof in 2016, and its herbs, tomatoes and peppers went to the stadium's own kitchens.

Bill Walsh's innovative play design earned him which nickname?

The Genius scripted his opening offensive plays before each game, and his short-passing offense won three Super Bowls in ten seasons.

Bill Walsh developed what became known as the West Coast offense while an assistant with which team?

Cincinnati Bengals assistant Walsh built the short, timing-based passing game in the early 1970s to suit quarterback Virgil Carter; the 'West Coast' label was first applied to Don Coryell's very different system.

In which round of the 1979 draft did the 49ers select Joe Montana?

Third round, 82nd overall: three other quarterbacks went in the first round that year, yet the 49ers found a four-time champion with the last pick of round three.

Joe Montana became the first three-time what?

Super Bowl MVP went to Montana in three of his four title games; in the other, Super Bowl XXIII, the award went to Jerry Rice, the receiver catching his passes.

What name is given to Joe Montana's 1979 Cotton Bowl comeback, played while hypothermic?

The Chicken Soup Game got its name from the bouillon the medical staff fed Montana in the locker room; his temperature had dropped to 96 degrees before he rallied Notre Dame past Houston 35-34.

Which team acquired Montana in a 1993 trade?

Kansas City Chiefs got Montana after he turned down a move to Phoenix; with Steve Young now the 49ers' starter, he took his new team to the AFC Championship Game in his first season.

Which jersey number did the 49ers retire for Montana in 1997?

16 was retired by the 49ers in 1997; at his final stop the number already belonged to Hall of Famer Len Dawson, who offered to un-retire it, but Montana chose 19 instead.

Jerry Rice played his college football at which school?

Mississippi Valley State drew Rice in part because coach Archie Cooley, nicknamed The Gunslinger, ran a pass-heavy, no-huddle offense.

Which receiver broke Jerry Rice's 1995 single-season receiving-yards record in 2012?

Calvin Johnson passed Rice's 1,848 yards and finished 2012 with 1,964, yet his Detroit Lions won only four games all season.

Which jersey number did the 49ers retire for Rice in 2010?

80 was retired by the 49ers in 2010; Rice had taken the number with him after leaving and was still catching passes in it at age 42.

Jerry Rice played regular-season games for which two teams after leaving the 49ers?

Raiders and Seahawks: Oakland signed him in 2001, then traded him to Seattle six games into 2004 for a seventh-round pick, reuniting him with his old 49ers coordinator Mike Holmgren.

Before joining the NFL, Steve Young played two seasons for which USFL team?

Los Angeles Express lured Young in 1984 with a contract reported at $40 million, most of it deferred for decades; after two seasons he left for the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

How many touchdown passes did Steve Young throw in Super Bowl XXIX, setting a record?

6 touchdown passes set a Super Bowl record and won Young the game's MVP award; "I haven't thrown six touchdown passes in a game in my life," he said afterwards.

The 49ers' left-handed Hall of Fame quarterback descends from which historical figure?

Brigham Young, who led Mormon settlers to Utah, was Steve Young's great-great-great-grandfather, and the quarterback played his college football at the university that bears his ancestor's name.

Which jersey number did the 49ers retire for Steve Young in 2008?

8 was retired at halftime of a 2008 game against the Patriots; Young had arrived in 1987 in a trade from Tampa Bay, where he threw nearly twice as many interceptions as touchdown passes.

What did 49ers safety Ronnie Lott have amputated in 1986 rather than miss games?

Tip of his left pinky: the finger was crushed making a tackle, and the surgery to save it would have cost him the start of 1986; he later said he regretted the amputation.

Ronnie Lott was a consensus All-American at which university?

USC sent Lott to the 49ers eighth overall in 1981; he was one of three rookies in the starting secondary that year, and the team won its first Super Bowl months later.

Dwight Clark, who made The Catch, was drafted by the 49ers in which round of the 1979 draft?

Tenth round, 249th overall, was where the 49ers took Clark in 1979, after Walsh noticed him at Clemson while scouting quarterback Steve Fuller.

Dwight Clark made The Catch to beat which team in the January 1982 NFC Championship Game?

Dallas Cowboys led late in the fourth quarter until Montana found Clark in the end zone; the play's first option was Freddie Solomon, who was not open.

Which defender was covering Dwight Clark on The Catch?

Everson Walls, a rookie, had already intercepted Montana that day, yet he is remembered as the defender reaching in vain in the famous photo of the play.

Super Bowl XVI, the 49ers' first title, was played in which venue?

Pontiac Silverdome, near Detroit, staged the first Super Bowl in a cold-weather city, and the 49ers won it just three seasons after Walsh took over a team that had gone 2-14.

Super Bowl XIX was the first played in the Bay Area, at which venue?

Stanford Stadium had no lights and no dressing rooms when the NFL chose it, so the league helped pay for renovations and brought in temporary lighting for the January 1985 game.

Who caught the winning touchdown with 34 seconds left in Super Bowl XXIII?

John Taylor caught the 10-yard winner that capped a 92-yard drive; in the huddle beforehand Montana calmed his teammates by pointing out John Candy in the stands.

The 49ers' 55-10 win in Super Bowl XXIV set which record that still stood in 2025?

Largest margin of victory: no Super Bowl since has topped the 45-point gap, and the rout was so complete that Montana sat down early and Steve Young finished the game.

The 49ers' fifth title, Super Bowl XXIX, came against which team?

San Diego Chargers lost 49-26, making the 49ers the first team with five Super Bowl wins; once it was safe, Steve Young shouted for someone to take the monkey off his back.

What stopped Super Bowl XLVII, the 49ers' first Super Bowl loss, for 34 minutes?

A power outage darkened half the Superdome with Baltimore ahead 28-6; when the lights came back the 49ers stormed to within 34-31 but fell just short.

Super Bowl LVIII, lost 25-22 in overtime, was played in which state for the first time?

Nevada hosted its first Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium, just outside Las Vegas, where the winning overtime pass went to Mecole Hardman for his only touchdown of the season.

Which quarterback started Super Bowl LIV for the 49ers, who led by 10 points in the fourth quarter but lost?

Jimmy Garoppolo had the 49ers ahead 20-10 with about seven minutes left, but Kansas City scored three late touchdowns to win 31-20.

Who succeeded Bill Walsh as head coach in 1989 and won Super Bowls XXIV and XXIX?

George Seifert grew up in San Francisco and ushered at 49ers home games while in high school, three decades before he took over as the team's head coach.

Eddie DeBartolo Jr. was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016 in what capacity?

Contributor is the Hall's category for owners and executives; DeBartolo's 49ers won five Super Bowls before a casino-licence scandal cost him control of the team.

Owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. pleaded guilty in a riverboat casino case involving a former governor of which state?

Louisiana's former governor Edwin Edwards had demanded $400,000 from him for the license; DeBartolo paid a $1 million fine, agreed to testify against Edwards, and was pardoned by the president in 2020.

Frank Gore, the 49ers' career rushing leader, played college football for which school?

Miami Hurricanes teammates included Willis McGahee and Clinton Portis; Gore tore an ACL in 2002 spring practice and another in 2003, yet finished his career behind only Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton in NFL rushing yards.

The 15-1 49ers of 1984 beat which team in the Super Bowl?

Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino had just thrown a record 48 touchdown passes, yet the 49ers won 38-16 and he never played in another Super Bowl.

Patrick Willis, the 2007 Defensive Rookie of the Year, starred in college for which program?

Ole Miss sent Willis to the 49ers 11th overall in 2007; a toe injury ended his career after only eight seasons, yet he still reached the Hall of Fame in 2024.

Colin Kaepernick ran for a quarterback-record 181 yards in a 2013 playoff win over which team?

Green Bay Packers defenders watched him break Michael Vick's record of 173 in a 45-31 loss, less than two months after Kaepernick's first start in the NFL.

Against which team did Kaepernick make his first NFL start, a Monday night win in 2012?

Chicago Bears were the opponent on November 19, 2012; standing in for the concussed starter, Kaepernick won 32-7 and kept the job for the rest of the season.

Kyle Shanahan came to the 49ers in 2017 straight from running the offense of which team?

Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator was his post for 2015–16; his last game there was Super Bowl LI, which his team lost after leading the Patriots 28-3.

Kyle Shanahan went to high school in Saratoga, California, in 1994 because his father held what job?

49ers offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan ran the 1994 offense that won Super Bowl XXIX; Kyle later finished at Cherry Creek High School in Colorado after his father took a head-coaching job there in 1995.

Christian McCaffrey was traded to the 49ers in October 2022 from which team?

Carolina Panthers sent him west for picks in rounds two, three and four of the 2023 draft plus a 2024 fifth-rounder, and he won Offensive Player of the Year the next season.

Which pass rusher did the 49ers draft second overall in 2019?

Nick Bosa was Defensive Rookie of the Year, tore his ACL early in 2020, then came back to lead the league with 18.5 sacks and win Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.

Which quarterback, the last pick of the 2022 draft, led the 49ers to the Super Bowl in his second season?

Brock Purdy went 262nd, the spot nicknamed Mr. Irrelevant, and began 2022 at the bottom of the depth chart before injuries to both quarterbacks ahead of him.

Which quarterback joined the 49ers in 1999 from the Canadian league's Calgary Stampeders?

Jeff Garcia's last act for Calgary was leading the drive to the field goal that won the 1998 Grey Cup; with the 49ers he then made three straight Pro Bowls.

The 49ers' first mascot, a 1950s mule, shared its name with which gold-rush song heroine?

Clementine the mule, named for the folk song about a forty-niner's daughter, was paraded at games in the 1950s and 1960s, long before a costumed prospector took over.

Which rival have the 49ers played twice every season since joining the NFL in 1950?

Los Angeles Rams teams led the series for decades, until the 49ers won 17 straight meetings in the 1990s and took the lead themselves.

Which Seahawks defender tipped the pass that ended the 49ers' 2013 NFC Championship Game?

Richard Sherman tipped Kaepernick's end-zone pass to Michael Crabtree into Malcolm Smith's hands with 22 seconds left; he had played for the 49ers' coach at Stanford and signed with San Francisco in 2018.

Which defender won two Super Bowls with the 49ers and three with the Cowboys, the first five-time champion?

Charles Haley won XXIII and XXIV in San Francisco and XXVII, XXVIII and XXX in Dallas; clashes with his coaches got him traded to the Cowboys in 1992 for two draft picks.

Which free-agent signing was named 1994 NFL Defensive Player of the Year in his lone 49ers season?

Deion Sanders signed two weeks into the 1994 season, intercepted six passes and returned three for touchdowns, then left after a single year with a Super Bowl ring.

Steve Young led the NFL in which statistic six times between 1991 and 1997?

Passer rating: Young spent four seasons as Joe Montana's backup, then won six rating titles, matching Sammy Baugh, with a then-record 112.8 in 1994.

The 49ers won Super Bowl XXIX wearing which unusual uniforms?

1950s throwbacks, modelled on the 1955 team, were meant for a few games in the NFL's 75th season, but the 49ers got league permission to keep wearing them through the Super Bowl.

Which 49ers quarterback threw the first alley-oop passes, lobbed high for leaping receiver R.C. Owens?

Y. A. Tittle and Owens, a former college basketball star, worked out the play in 1957, and Tittle is credited with naming it the alley-oop.

Fullback Joe Perry, the first NFL player with consecutive 1,000-yard seasons, was nicknamed what?

The Jet was Joe Perry's nickname, earned for speed rare in a fullback; he ran for 1,018 yards in 1953 and 1,049 in 1954, the first back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in NFL history.

Which 49er of the 1950s Million Dollar Backfield was nicknamed The King and had his No. 39 retired?

Hugh McElhenny got the nickname as a 1952 rookie after a long punt return for a touchdown against the Bears; quarterback Frankie Albert is credited with coining it.

Hall of Fame tackle Bob St. Clair earned the nickname The Geek for what habit?

Eating raw meat earned Bob St. Clair the nickname from his teammates; the 6-foot-9 tackle also found time to serve as mayor of Daly City while still playing for the 49ers.

Leo Nomellini, the 49ers' first-ever NFL draft pick, had which off-season second career?

Professional wrestler was his off-season job: Nomellini, nicknamed The Lion, once beat champion Lou Thesz but was denied the world title because one fall came by disqualification.

Which formation did 49ers coach Red Hickey make his team's main offense in 1960?

Shotgun put the quarterback several yards behind center; it thrived until the Bears moved linebacker Bill George up to the line in 1961 and shut the 49ers out 31-0.

Team founder Tony Morabito died of a heart attack in 1957 while doing what?

Watching a 49ers game, Morabito suffered a heart attack in the press box; the team was trailing 17-7 when word of his death reached the bench, and it rallied to win 21-17.

Which quarterback won the 1970 NFL MVP award with the 49ers and later joined the Senior PGA Tour?

John Brodie spent all 17 seasons with the 49ers and won a Senior PGA Tour event in 1991; his retired No. 12 later came back out so his friend Trent Dilfer could wear it as a tribute.

In 1985, Roger Craig became the first NFL player to do what in one season?

Rush and receive for 1,000 yards each: Craig ran for 1,050 yards and caught passes for 1,016 more in 1985, when the running back also led the whole NFL with 92 receptions.

Terrell Owens broke which 50-year-old NFL single-game record against the Bears in December 2000?

Receptions: Owens caught 20 passes, two more than Tom Fears's 1950 mark, a record his teammate Jerry Rice, the NFL's career leader in catches, never held.

What did Terrell Owens pull from his sock to sign a touchdown ball against Seattle in 2002?

A Sharpie came out of his sock after a touchdown in Seattle on October 14, 2002; he signed the ball and handed it to his financial adviser, who also advised Shawn Springs, the cornerback covering him.

Vernon Davis's game-winning playoff touchdown against the Saints in January 2012 is nicknamed what?

The Catch III came with nine seconds left in a 36-32 win over New Orleans; the name follows Dwight Clark's Catch in 1982 and Terrell Owens's Catch II in 1999, both last-minute playoff winners for the 49ers too.

Which quarterback did the 49ers take first overall in 2005 instead of Cal's Aaron Rodgers?

Alex Smith went first overall out of Utah, while Rodgers, who had expected the 49ers to call his name, slid all the way to Green Bay at pick 24.

Which 49ers defensive tackle was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1997?

Dana Stubblefield recorded 15 sacks from the interior in 1997, won Defensive Player of the Year, and then left for Washington as a free agent the following spring.

Which 49ers tight end gained 210 receiving yards against Denver in 2018, all of them before halftime?

George Kittle had all 210 yards by halftime, 85 of them on one touchdown catch, then was held without a yard after the break in the 20-14 win.

Deebo Samuel's nickname comes from a character in which 1995 film?

Friday gave him the name: his father nicknamed him after Deebo, the neighborhood bully played by Tiny Lister Jr.; his given name is Tyshun.

Fred Warner, the All-Pro linebacker, was drafted in 2018 out of which university?

BYU found Warner after a family friend and fan of the school sent his highlight tape to its coaches; the 49ers took him 70th overall in 2018 and started him at middle linebacker as a rookie.

Which English soccer club did the 49ers' investment arm take over completely in 2023?

Leeds United became a full 49ers Enterprises property in 2023 after the group raised its minority stake to 100 percent; the club won the Championship in 2025 to return to the Premier League.

What does FTTB, the acronym used by 49ers fans, stand for?

Faithful To The Bay builds on the Faithful, the long-standing nickname for the 49ers' fans, and ties that name to the team's home region.

Roughly how much did Levi Strauss & Co. agree to pay over 20 years to name the 49ers' stadium?

$220 million, or $220.3 million to be exact, put the jeans maker's name on the stadium, and the announcement set off a round of puns; the one that stuck as a nickname was the 'Field of Jeans'.

Which 49ers coach hired in 2005 was the son of a 49ers coach who won three straight division titles?

Mike Nolan asked the NFL to let him coach in a suit and tie as a tribute to his father Dick; the league said no at first because of its sideline apparel deal, then let him wear one at home games.