How Kittle hilariously hazed Purdy when 49ers QB was a rookie

How Kittle hilariously hazed Purdy when 49ers QB was a rookie originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Brock Purdy can’t catch a break.

The 24-year-old quarterback threw a subpar first pitch at a recent San Francisco Giants game, butchered essential Bay Area slang and now the story of his 49ers hazing has resurfaced.

San Francisco tight end George Kittle hilariously detailed how he playfully introduced a then-rookie Purdy to the 49ers while appear on Tuesday’s edition of the “Dan Patrick Show.”

“I did [haze Purdy] on the first day, yeah,” Kittle told Patrick. “I put an Iowa Football shirt in his locker, it was his first day. He pulled it out, turns around and looks right at me and goes, ‘What’s this doing in my locker?’ I go, ‘Dude, I have no idea, man. The [equipment] guys here are crazy.”

Kittle, a proud Iowa alum, enjoyed trolling Purdy, who attended Iowa State — bitter rivals.

The 30-year-old tight end also clarified that he blames the equipment managers for his unserious shenanigans, assuring no jobs are in jeopardy.

“Only for stuff like that,” Kittle said. “That was a pretty obvious one on me.”

Kittle, a seven-year NFL veteran, enjoys getting to know his new teammates in the form of pranks and fun tests.

He knows “hazing” isn’t what it used to be — or is what it was allowed to be — but makes sure the newest 49ers quickly know who No. 85 is on the field and in the locker room.

Purdy, unknowingly,  was just the next in line.

“I mean, I wasn’t there for [old-school hazing],” Kittle said to Patrick. “I’ve heard some stories. But no. Absolutely not. The most I like to — I just like to have a conversation with the guy just to see what — little s–t talk, if I can say that. How are you going to respond to me? Are you going to be nervous? Is that how our relationship is going to go? Or are you going to be able to throw some zingers back at me? I enjoy that.”

The young quarterback received Kittle’s banter well, and the two have since carried out more fun trash talk inspired by their rival collegiate affiliations. Purdy’s Iowa State coaches even suggested not throwing the ball to the Iowa product — a bit too extreme.

While Kittle and Purdy are big-time partners in San Francisco’s passing game, the two are just as close off the field.

“That’s one of the reasons why I love Brock so much because he was just throwing zingers right back at me,” Kittle said. “I was like, ‘We’re going to be great friends.’ ”

The two surely will be repping their respective college teams for a long time.

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