Free agent class includes SEC’s leading rusher
Missouri running back Cody Schrader, a height-challenged, no-star high school recruit who played at Division II Truman State before leading the SEC in rushing last season, will try to continue his beat-the-odds journey with the San Francisco 49ers.
Schrader joined the 49ers’ class of free-agent rookies Saturday when he agreed to terms after he wasn’t selected in the 257man draft. Schrader, 5-foot-8 and 202 pounds, was bypassed after he ranked third in FBS with 1,627 rushing yards, averaging 5.9 yards a carry, scoring 14 touchdowns and finishing eighth in Heisman Trophy voting. He had 205 rushing yards and 116 receiving yards in a win over Tennessee in November to become the first player in SEC history to have 200 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in a game.
Schrader, whose time in the 40-yard dash (4.61 seconds) hurt his draft stock, entered the transfer portal after he led Division II in rushing with 2,074 yards in 2021. But he wasn’t offered a Division I scholarship and arrived at Missouri in January 2022 as a walk-on who was seventh on the depth chart.
His NFL career will begin similarly. With the 49ers likely to keep four running backs on their 53-man roster, Schrader will open as sixth in line behind Christian McCaffrey, Elijah Mitchell, Jordan Mason, Patrick Taylor and Isaac Guerendo, a fourth-round pick from Louisville. The 49ers’ group of undrafted rookies also includes Wisconsin quarterback Tanner Mordecai (6-2, 210), who completed 65% of his passes (204 of 314) for 2,066 yards with nine touchdowns and four interceptions in 10 starts last season.
Mordecai played two seasons at SMU after spending three seasons at Oklahoma as a backup. At SMU, he threw for 7,152 yards with 72 touchdowns and 22 interceptions while making 24 starts. Mordecai is the 49ers’ No. 4 QB behind Brock Purdy, Joshua Dobbs and Brandon Allen.
The 49ers also reportedly agreed to terms with Florida Atlantic defensive tackle Evan Anderson (6-1, 320), Vanderbilt cornerback/safety Jaylen Mahoney (5-10, 188), Southern Miss center Briason Mays (6-3, 298), Michigan center Drake Nugent (6-1, 298), Furman tight end Mason Pline (6-6, 254) and Missouri State wide receiver Terique Owens, the son of 49ers’ Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens.
Nugent spent four seasons at Stanford, where he was a team captain and two-year starter, before transferring to Michigan last year. Pline began his college career by playing basketball for three seasons at Division II Ferris State. He had 32 catches for 287 yards and four touchdowns last season.