George Kittle’s grandma, Lucky, turns 103, and 49ers fans want that luck for Philly

George Kittle posted a Levi’s Stadium photo Tuesday, Jan. 6, to celebrate his grandmother Lucky’s 103rd birthday. Lucky is already a mini legend with San Francisco’s fan base after her 100th birthday moment in 2023, when fans serenaded her during a game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Kittle’s post was simple, but the timing hit. San Francisco is headed into a road Wild Card game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, Jan. 11, at 4:30 p.m. ET on Fox, and the 49ers do not exactly look like they want smoke right now.

George Kittle Put Grandma Lucky Front and Center, and It Fits the 49ers’ Moment

Kittle has kept Lucky close to the fan base for a while, and Tuesday’s post leaned into that again. He captioned it, “It’s my grandma Lucky’s 103 birthday today!!,” and the photo was taken at Levi’s Stadium.

The rest of the Instagram Stories leaned into the same “this is family” lane Kittle always seems to be in off the field. His wife, Claire Kittle (née Till), showed up in the story, and so did their dog, Deenie.

That is the point. Kittle can be loud on Sundays, but he stays personal the rest of the week. With San Francisco walking into Philadelphia as the underdog vibe team, a post like this does two jobs at once. It celebrates Lucky, and it reminds the fan base what it is rooting for.

Peyton Manning’s Podcast Advice, a St. Elmo Invite, and the Kittle Week That Kept Moving

Kittle also spent time this week talking football and media with Peyton Manning on the podcast hosted by George and Claire. Manning talked about why the behind-the-scenes stuff matters for players, framing it as something that turns into personal memories later.

Claire also addressed why Kittle was slow to jump into it at first, saying, “I was like, ‘Listen, Payton wouldn't ask you to do this if it was going to be not good for you,” Claire said.*

Manning also revisited his own rookie interception record and used it to make a point about how teams handle young quarterbacks, saying: “Am I proud to hold the NFL interception rookie record? No. Would I like to get it broken? Yes. Do I think it should be with 17 games now? Yes. Do the coaches take the rookies that are struggling out too early? 100%. Leave them in there. Let them learn.”

Then the episode drifted into something that sounded like a real plan. Manning invited George and Claire to Indianapolis for dinner at St. Elmo Steakhouse and a basketball game, and he sold it like a host who knows the assignment: “I mean, we're going to St Elmo Steakhouse… good time to be with your family, celebrate a win… we can go there early and just stay,” Manning said. “Craig, the owner he did a great thing… he put a TV in there, George, which now you can watch Sunday Night Football, you could watch the highlights with Chris Berman and Tom Jackson… Why do we need to go anywhere else?”

Now here’s the part that matters for San Francisco. Kittle’s week has been warm and personal, but the football reality is still sitting there. A separate report noted Kittle openly cheered for the Arizona Cardinals to beat the Los Angeles Rams after the Week 18 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, because it could have pushed a different Wild Card opponent. San Francisco did not get that break, and now it gets Philadelphia on the road.

Lucky just turned 103. Kittle put that “Lucky” name back into the timeline for a reason. The 49ers are walking into a game that feels like a nightmare draw, and if fans are going to cling to anything, it is going to be the woman whose nickname is literally the word they need most.


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