The San Francisco 49ers requested Isaiah Knight game film from the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.
The 49ers are doing background scouting work on Knight who is eligible for the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Ottawa native carried the football 173 times for 1,106 yards (6.4 per carry) and six touchdowns last season while recording 27 receptions for 307 yards and one TD in 11 games. He was a Canada West conference all-star as the T-Birds won the 86th Hardy Cup.
Knight has been a star from the moment he stepped foot on campus at UBC. As a freshman, he ran 113 times for 701 yards with three touchdowns in seven games. In his sophomore year, the six-foot-two, 215-pound back rushed 149 times for 883 yards and three touchdowns in 10 games.
Through three seasons and 28 games at UBC, Knight has run for 2,689 yards, averaging 6.1 yards per carry and 96 rushing yards per game. He’s caught 42 passes for 498 yards and three touchdowns. According to offensive coordinator Stevenson Bone, Knight has become a dominant pass protector while showing off improved hands since his first two years.
It’s rare for a Canadian university running back to garner NFL interest.
University of Western Ontario’s Tim Tindale won two Hec Crighton trophies as a fullback and played with the Buffalo Bills. University of British Columbia’s Mark Nohra went to training camp with the Buffalo Bills in 1998.
McMaster University’s Jesse Lumsden had a stint with the Seattle Seahawks in 2005. Bishop’s University’s Jamal Lee went through training camp with the Carolina Panthers in 2009. Tyler Varga played one season at Western University then transferred to Yale University and spent one season with the Indianapolis Colts in 2015.
Knight has the size and speed combo to draw NFL attention. It should help that two offensive linemen from UBC made the jump south of the border. Giovanni Manu was selected in the fourth round, 126th overall during the 2024 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. Theo Benedet signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted NFL free agent and earned his way onto the practice squad.
Only one Canadian university running back in history has been selected in the NFL Draft, Jim Young in 1965 by the Minnesota Vikings.
