A familiar surname on a new roster
Nathaniel Burleson II, often called Nate Burleson II or Nate Jr., is a college football wide receiver whose family has connections across football, basketball, track, and television. I see his story as an athlete’s developing career within a crowded family trophy room. The background is notable, but his own playing record remains the most useful way to understand where he stands.
Born around May 2004, he is the eldest child of Nate and Atoya Burleson. His upbringing connects the Seattle area with later family life in New Jersey. He attended Don Bosco Prep and Ramapo High School, participating in both football and basketball before moving into college football.
High school and the move to Nevada
At Ramapo, Nathaniel played wide receiver. His reported senior season production included nine receptions for 225 yards and four touchdowns. He also played basketball, averaging approximately 11.5 points per game as a junior. Those numbers describe a multisport background rather than an exclusively football focused adolescence.
He signed with the University of Nevada in December 2022 and joined the Wolf Pack in 2023. Nevada was already a central location in his family story: both parents had competed there, and other relatives had basketball connections with the university.
I find that choice meaningful without treating it as destiny. Attending the same school as accomplished parents creates continuity, but it also places comparisons close at hand. Nathaniel’s college record should be read on its own terms rather than measured only against what his father achieved years earlier.
Three seasons with the Wolf Pack
Nathaniel appeared in three games during his 2023 redshirt season, making two receptions for 18 yards. In 2024, he played in nine games and started twice. His three catches produced 71 yards and his first college touchdown, a 46 yard score against Fresno State.
That touchdown was a particularly memorable family milestone because it came around the weekend of his mother’s Nevada Athletics Hall of Fame recognition. Atoya’s earlier track achievements and her son’s first scoring play occupied the same family celebration, while remaining separate accomplishments.
In 2025, Nathaniel appeared in 11 games and recorded three receptions for 58 yards. Across those three Nevada seasons, his totals amount to approximately eight catches, 147 yards, and one touchdown. My reading is of a developing receiver with limited production and occasional long gains, rather than an established college star.
A new chapter alongside his brother
Nathaniel entered the transfer portal in December 2025. In January 2026, he and his younger brother Nehemiah committed to the University of New Haven, an FCS program that had recently moved up from Division II. Their shared move continued a family connection within a new football setting.
Nehemiah, born around April 2006, played football and basketball at Ramapo. His football role differs from Nathaniel’s: he is associated with the defensive edge or defensive end position. He joined Nevada in 2024 before making the move to New Haven with his brother.
The distinction between their positions matters. They are siblings pursuing football together, but one works on the receiving side and the other on defense.
Nate Burleson and a career beyond the NFL
Their father, Nathaniel Eugene Burleson, was born in Calgary on August 19, 1981, and grew up primarily in Seattle. After starring at Nevada, he was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the third round in 2003. His NFL career also included the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions, followed by an offseason association with Cleveland in 2014.
He finished with 457 regular season receptions, 5,630 receiving yards, and 39 receiving touchdowns. His return work was another distinctive part of his career, including three punt returns of at least 90 yards. Those are the father’s professional statistics, separate from Nathaniel II’s college totals.
Nate subsequently built a broadcasting career through football analysis and television hosting, including Good Morning Football, The NFL Today, CBS Mornings, and Nickelodeon’s NFL Slimetime. The family’s public visibility consequently continued after his playing career ended.
Atoya and Mia add their own dimensions
Atoya Shaw Burleson was a Nevada hurdler and sprinter. In 2000, she won Big West Conference gold in the 100 meter hurdles and contributed to the women’s team’s first outdoor conference title. Her 2024 induction into Nevada’s Athletics Hall of Fame recognized a record that stands independently of her husband’s football career.
Her later work has included lifestyle content and the Inside Lines podcast, with a focus on women connected to sports. I regard her as an important part of the family’s athletic foundation, rather than merely the parent attending her sons’ games.
Mia Pearl Burleson is Nathaniel’s younger sister. She has participated in family media appearances, including NFL Slimetime, and modeling events. Her creative and media activities broaden a family portrait that could otherwise become entirely about football rosters.
The wider Burleson sports network
Nathaniel’s paternal grandfather, Alvin Burleson Sr., played defensive back at Washington and later in the Canadian Football League. His grandmother is Valerie Burleson. Among his uncles, Kevin played professional basketball, Lyndale played basketball at Nevada, and Alvin Jr. played college football.
On his mother’s side, Joey Shaw also played basketball at Nevada. The university therefore appears repeatedly across the family tree, connecting track, football, and basketball rather than just one father and son.
My interest in that network is its variety. Nathaniel has relatives whose experience spans different sports and levels of competition. His own move from Nevada to New Haven adds another route through that landscape, with future accomplishments dependent on his play rather than his pedigree.
FAQ
Is Nathaniel Burleson II the television host Nate Burleson?
No. He is the television host’s eldest son. The father is Nathaniel Eugene Burleson, the former NFL receiver. Nathaniel II is a college receiver whose Nevada career began in 2023 and whose transfer to New Haven was announced in early 2026.
What was his most notable Nevada scoring play?
His first college touchdown was a 46 yard reception against Fresno State in 2024. It formed part of a season with three catches for 71 yards and coincided with a family weekend celebrating Atoya’s Nevada Hall of Fame recognition.
Why does Nevada feature so prominently in his family?
Both parents competed there: Nate in football and Atoya in track. His uncles Lyndale Burleson and Joey Shaw also played Nevada basketball, while Nathaniel and Nehemiah later joined the football program before transferring together to New Haven.
