Stanford Football Lands Ivy League All-American Wide Receiver

Nico Brown was a star from Yale and chose Stanford over some big name schools.

White Stanford helmet with red lettering | Stanford Athletics / ISI Photos

For most of the transfer portal window, the Stanford Cardinal stayed relatively quiet, bringing in only four new players in the midst of all the chaotic movement around college football. But now the Cardinal have their splash. On Wednesday, Jan. 21, the Cardinal bolstered their wide receiver core, adding ex-Yale standout, Nico Brown. CBS Sports' Matt Zenitz was the first to report the news.

Brown, an All-American Ivy League wide receiver during his time at Yale, led the FCS in receiving yards per game at 108.5 and finished the 2025 campaign with 71 catches for 1,085 yards and 11 touchdowns in 10 games played.

Receiving offers from other big name schools such as Alabama and Washington, Brown instead opted to take his talents to a rebuilding Cardinal program and join his brother, Marcus Brown, where he will look to establish himself as the program's top receiver with two years of eligibility left.

Joining the Yale program ahead of the 2022 season where he played in only one game, Brown missed the entire '23 season due to injury and took some time to regain a feel for the game, playing in only three games during the 2024 season before breaking out in '25.

Prior to his career at Yale, Brown prepped at Edison High School in Huntington Beach and enjoyed an accolade-filled high school career, winning Sunset League Offensive and Receiver of the Year honors, second team all-state and was a three-time all-league selection. He left Edison as the school's all-time leader in receptions and second all-time in touchdowns and receiving yards.

Brown's addition is much needed for a Stanford receiver room that was decimated by transfers last season and struggled to fully reinvent itself for 2025. Adding guys like CJ Williams and Caden High last year, the Cardinal will lose Williams and will also most likely see other players depart as well, making Brown a big boost to a position group with a lot of questions.

The Cardinal are entering a new era under head coach Tavita Pritchard and while there was a lot of growth in the '25 season, finishing 4-8 and improving from four straight 3-9 finishes, the Cardinal are nowhere near where they want to be.

Hungrier than ever to win even more in '26 and compete for championships, the Cardinal are ready to surprise people this season and prove that they are ready to return to the national spotlight.