Brock Purdy's early NFL success even impressed Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell

The expectations for Brock Purdy were not very high when he made his first appearance on the NFL stage during his rookie year last season, as ‘Mr.Irrelevant’ was the very last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft.

But his college head coach at Iowa State Matt Campbell knew Purdy was something special, and at Big 12 Media Days, Brown revealed what it was like watching his former quarterback go on an impressive, improbable run for the San Fransisco 49ers last season.

“For me the pride that I watched him just handle the situation,” Campbell said. “Obviously it’s awesome that he won the games, my greatest joy was hearing their coaches talk about how he prepared.”

Jimmy Garoppolo went down with a season-ending foot injury in the 49ers’ Week 13 matchup against the Miami Dolphins, leading to the reins of the offense being given to Purdy. He helped lead San Fransisco to a 33-17 win behind his 210 passing yards and two touchdowns, and the rest was history.

Purdy was the 49ers’ full-time starter for the rest of the season, helping the team run the regular season table with an undefeated record as a starter. He ended the season with 1,374 yards and 13 touchdown passes, but what Campbell was more proud of was how he carried himself and handled his business off the field.

“To hearing Trent Williams talk about how he came into the huddle and Christian McCaffery, how he served him when he got traded and how he was there for him to learn the playbook. To me that defines who Brock Purdy is, that’s why he’s an elite football player and that’s why he’s an elite leader,” Campbell said. “All those intangibles are what I got to witness for four years at Iowa State and the world got to see it kind of come together on a powerful stage last year.”

Purdy’s undefeated streak as a starter ended in the NFC Championship game after leading the team to two straight playoff victories. He suffered an elbow injury early in the game, tearing his ulnar collateral ligament which required surgery in the offseason.

Thankfully, Purdy has made great progress this offseason in his recovery, with recent reports revealing that he’s trending towards being ready for Week 1 of the upcoming season. And hopefully, he can achieve a full recovery and continue leading the 49ers high powered offense in 2023, while also continuing to represent Iowa State in the process.

“So we couldn’t be prouder of Brock, to have a pillar of excellence like that out there for not only myself, but for our young men in our program to look up to and to continue to come back and lead our football team it’s an honor. So we’re really proud of Brock,” Campbell concluded.