SANTA CLARA >> Elic Ayomanor donned a 49ers’ jersey Wednesday like 48 other NFL Draft hopefuls at the team’s local pro day, then he spoke aloud what others surely thought.

“I think I would fit well here,” Ayomanor, the former Stanford wide receiver, said.

He had valid reasons why he wasn’t among those working out in the 45-minute session on the 49ers’ practice fields, an audition that included Nick Nash, San Jose State’s All-American wide receiver.

Ayomanor had just returned to the Bay Area from taking a pre-draft visit to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He had one earlier with the Houston Texans, and more are on the agenda before the April 24-26 draft.

He is no stranger to the 49ers’ brass, and not just because he’s the boy next door. “I think they’ve seen all they needed to see,” Ayomanor said in a non-braggadocious way.

Indeed, general manager John Lynch and wide receivers coach Leonard Hankerson attended Stanford’s pro day last month and had Ayomanor go off-script with specialized routes.

Draft evaluations go far deeper than that, and far beyond the NFL scouting combine, where Ayomanor ran the 40-yard dash in 4.44 seconds, 19th best among 39 wide receivers; he was top 10 in the vertical and broad jumps.

Wednesday offered Ayomanor a chance to visit the 49ers’ facility and reunite on the sideline with Lynch, a fellow Stanford product who was an honorary gameday captain when Ayomanor first introduced himself.

“My personality is a really strong suit for me, so the more I can be around these types — the GMs, the coaches — the better it is for me,” Ayomanor said.

Ayomanor only played two seasons at Stanford, and although the Cardinal went a lowly 3-9 each year, he showed how productive he can be. That goes beyond his season totals for catches (62 in 2023, 63 in 2024), yards (1,013; 831) and touchdowns (six each season).

Ayomanor, a native of Medicine Hat, Canada, surely got on everyone’s radar on Oct. 13, 2023 at Colorado, against the Deion Sanders-coached Buffaloes and fellow 2025 draft prospect Travis Hunter.

Ayomanor set a Stanford record with 294 receiving yards, and he scored touchdowns on three of his 13 catches in a double-overtime victory.

“I don’t know if things really changed that much for me,” Ayomanor said of that breakout game. “I think the perception of who I was as a player changed a lot. But I approach everything the same way I always have from the beginning.”

Some draft handicappers in the media project Ayomanor as a Day 2 selection. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler gave the 6-foot-2, 206-pounder a third-round grade as his 11th-best wide receiver. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. does not list Ayomanor among his 10 ranked wide receivers.

“There was a lot of improvement and growth I had to do over my career, and that’s going to be the case moving forward,” Ayomanor, 21, said. “I wanted to show (teams) I had the ability to learn and grow.”

NASH’S WORKOUT >> It’s not often — if ever — that an AP First-Team All-American wide receiver takes part in a local pro day, but San Jose State’s Nash felt compelled to do so. “Any chance to come out and play ball, I love the sport, so why not?” Nash said. “Just run routes and show what I can do. It’s my favorite thing to do.”

Nash, in his third year since converting from quarterback, led the nation last season with 104 catches, 1,382 yards and 16 touchdowns. He played 25 games at quarterback for the Spartans from 2019-21 (1,317 passing yards, 844 rushing yards).

“I’ve been in the Bay for the last six years. I’ve made this home, so it was awesome when I got the (49ers’) invite,” Nash said. “I hope I showed them that I belong at this level of competition, that I can do this, and hopefully that I’m a guy they consider when the draft comes.”

BUCHANAN MEETS WILLIS >> Cal linebacker Teddye Buchanan, as expected, did not work out but spent time talking not only to linebacker coach Johnny Holland but also Pro Football Hall of Famer Patrick Willis.

“I had a great talk with him, just trying to pick his brain and talk about what made him great. He had simple advice: bring it every single day, wake up ready to attack the day,” Buchanan said. “It was really cool to talk to him. It was a player I grew up watching, so a super cool moment for me.”

Buchanan, projected by Brugler as a fifth-round pick, is a Palo Alto native and St. Ignatius College Prep graduate who played three years at UC Davis before becoming Cal’s leading tackler last season.

“I feel it’s been a successful (pre-draft) process so far,” Buchanan said. “I got to go to the Shrine Game and the Combine, which are things I’ve watched since I was a little kid. Talking to NFL teams has been a really cool process and I’m trying to embrace it.”

COACHING REUNION >> Robert Saleh, four years after leaving as defensive coordinator to coach the New York Jets, returned to the 49ers’ practice field and watched the pro day, at one point alongside Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan. Also on the field were Shanahan’s other new coordinators: Klay Kubiak (offense) and Brant Boyer (special teams).

QUARTERBACK CROP >> Three quarterbacks auditioned: Spencer Petras (Iowa/Utah State; Marin Catholic High), Chandler Rogers (Cal) and Benjamin Wooldridge, who played at Foothill High-Pleasanton before moving on to Fresno State and Louisiana. Another former Pleasanton-bred quarterback, Dominick Mazotti of Amador Valley High, converted to tight end at San Jose State and played last season at Massachusetts.