It didn’t take Izzy Abanikanda long to find a new home.
The New York Jets released Abanikanda — a 5-foot-10, 215-pound running back from Brooklyn, N.Y. — Monday night to clear a roster spot, and the San Francisco 49ers picked him up off waivers Tuesday afternoon, Tom Pelissero reported.
Abanikanda was stuck behind Breece Hall and Braelon Allen in New York, but he’s entering a favorable situation with the 49ers.
Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason, the 49ers’ top two running backs, were both placed on the IR this week. So, it left rookie Isaac Guerendo as the only healthy back on the roster. Abanikanda has an opportunity for serious playing time to finish the season.
Abanikanda hasn’t played in a game yet this season, but he recorded 22 carries for 70 yards and seven receptions for 43 yards as a rookie last season. The Jets selected Abanikanda in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Abanikanda was an All-ACC, All-American running back at Pitt in 2022, serving as perhaps the best all-purpose weapon in college football, finishing fourth in all-purpose yards (1,805 yards) and second in all-purpose yards per game (164 yards) in college football last season. And he led the nation in total touchdowns (21).
He rushed for 1,431 yards and 20 touchdowns, averaging six yards per attempt and added 146 receiving yards and 228 kickoff return yards. It was a campaign with few historical rivals. It ranks as the eighth-best single-season effort in Pitt history, and his 320 yards and six touchdowns against Virginia Tech broke and tied, respectively, single-game program records.
In his Pitt career, Izzy Abanikanda rushed 390 times for 2,177 yards and 28 touchdowns, caught 38 passes for 354 yards and three touchdowns and returned 19 kickoffs for 434 yards and a touchdown.
His 28 career touchdowns also rank eighth in team history, while he’s just one of four Pitt players to rush for at least 20 touchdowns in a single season.
The 49ers are back in action this weekend against the Chicago Bears.
