Thomas Cole

A look into who we see as some of the realistic offensive recruiting priorities in the 2021 recruiting class along with insight into the approach taken by the staff in their recruiting efforts

Thomas Cole 's decision to commit to UCLA was a surprise and a blow. Cal had been in a strong position with him, however, he really felt Westwood vs. Berkeley in terms of a college town feel and give credit to UCLA's staff for building a strong relationship with him.One thing the Bruins can sell is a sparse depth chart on the offensive line, whilst Cal's is far healthier. Generally, that's not a factor at offensive line where players generally take 2+ years to develop into potential starters, however, there's been a real trend of freshman and RS freshman playing early and often.The Bears like where they sit at this position group. With Swinny on board, taking two to three more would be ideal from a group that still contains Austin Barry , Noah Pulealii , Garrett DiGiorgio , and Jordan Moko Despite 16 offers, Moko is unrated and we believe is looking to leave Utah. Cal needs to get him on campus and then the odds go up dramatically.In the wake of Cole's decision, the Bears chances with Barry can only have risen. Puleali is focused on Oklahoma and Cal. In the midst of COVID, it's good to be the hometown school.DiGiorgio will be a battle. He was leaning to the Bruins before the Cole commitment. Cal feels good about where they sit with all four, much as they did with Cole. And remember, this is the one year where the gap between verbals and signed LOIs may be miles wide.

6-7/255 San Luis Obispo High School offensive tackle Thomas Cole talks about last month's visit to Cal and his recruitment