At Stanford last year Jim Harbaugh was the only coach in major college football to use a full-time two-way player, with fullback/linebacker Owen Marecic in the starting lineup on both offense and defense. Now Harbaugh is the head coach of the 49ers, and he still likes having players work on both sides of the ball.
Rookie sixth-round draft pick Colin Jones is primarily a safety in 49ers camp, the same position he played in college at TCU. But Harbaugh is also giving him some time at wide receiver in training camp. And seventh-round pick Bruce Miller was a defensive end at Central Florida, but Harbaugh has him playing fullback primarily, with some extra time at linebacker.
Harbaugh has told young players that the more they can do, the better chance they’ll have to make the 53-man roster. That’s good news for versatile players like Jones and Miller.
Harbaugh once referred to Marecic (who’s now with the Browns) as “the football player I always wanted to be.” Two-way players are players Harbaugh loves.