PORTLAND, Ore. — There will be five players suiting up in this year’s Super Bowl who have a connection to Oregon and Washington. And if it helps you root for a team, four of them play for the San Francisco 49ers.
Here are the five players who will be on the sidelines on Sunday:
49ers
Kendrick Bourne, wide receiver (Milwaukie High School and Eastern Washington University)
Bourne graduated from Milwaukie High School in 2013. He went on to play at Eastern Washington where he played alongside Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp. Bourne was a third-team All-American his senior season. He went undrafted in 2017 and signed with the San Francisco 49ers. This season, including the playoffs, he has 34 catches and seven touchdowns.
Arik Armstead, defensive lineman (University of Oregon)
Armstead was part of the Oregon team, led by Heisman trophy winner Marcus Mariota, that won the Pac-12 in 2014 and made it to the national championship game. He was selected by the 49ers with 17th pick in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He had a breakout season this year. Including playoff games, Armstead has had 12 sacks.
DeForest Buckner, defensive lineman (University of Oregon)
Like Armstead, Buckner was part of the 2014 Ducks team that reached the national championship game. Buckner played another season for the Ducks after that. During his final season at Oregon, he was named the 2015 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-American. He was selected by the 49ers with the 7th pick in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Buckner soon became a star on San Francisco’s defense line. He was a Pro Bowler last season and was named second-team All-Pro this season.
Dante Pettis, wide receiver (University of Washington)
Pettis was a touchdown machine at the University of Washington, where he set the NCAA record for most career punt return touchdowns in history. He was also a first-team All-Pac-12 wide receiver. He was selected by the 49ers in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Pettis has struggled in his second season and hasn’t played in a game since Week 12 of the regular season.
Chiefs
Matt Moore, quarterback (Oregon State University)
After transferring to Oregon State, Moore started all 14 games for the Beavers in the 2006 season, which included a win over No. 3 USC, and was named All-Pac-10 honorable mention. Moore has played for four different teams in the NFL: the Dallas Cowboys, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins and now the Kansas City Chiefs. Moore didn’t play in the NFL in 2018 and was a high school assistant coach when Kansas City signed him in August to be the backup quarterback behind Patrick Mahomes. Moore started two games for the Chiefs this year, a win over the Vikings and loss against the Packers. He threw three touchdowns and no interceptions in those two starts.
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