10 days ago by
Greg Richardson
This follows the series of articles we did prior to the start of Fall Camp on the most competitive position groupsTHE OFFENSIVE LINE:The group appears set though they mixed and matched a lot over the first 8 practices. The surprises here are in the two deeps:From left to right, the 2nd team OL appears to be: Kahlee Tafai, Mykeal Rabess, Ashton Rivera. Ben Howard and Mike Klisiewicz The one wild car is Jacob Arop who has been practicing for the past week and has a high celling. He's a tackle and could push Kahlee Tafai into the top IOL backup. Howard and Klisiewicz have been nice surprises. Lots of kudos from the staff and observers (such as Troy Auzenne) about the true Freshman class, in particular Daniel McMorris THE OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS:Solomon Williams and Jayden Wayne have seemingly cemented their starting roles. Injuries to Justin Beadles and Joshua Pierce have muddled things behind them with Odera Okaka standing out having a nice camp and Emmanuel Okoye getting in some good pass rush reps. Recently, Cal has moved Jonathan McKinley around getting him reps both inside and out and I wouldn't be shocked to see him get some snaps vs UCLA on the outside. Serigne Tounkara is almost 100% back and is practicing so he could find his way onto the depth chart as well.I suspect Pierce will be the next player back healthyTHE INSIDE LINEBACKERS:This one is hard to evaluate as a lot of players having get reps with the first team this camp. I suspect four players will see significant snaps in the opener vs. UCLA. The surprise here is Mckinley, who started the scrimmage and looked solid. He's so big and athletic and seems to play with a maturity and aggressiveness beyond the normal Freshman. Perhaps the most consistent player here has been AJ Tuitele. Despite his not being as big, he's aggressive and physical and his pass coverage skills are special. Tristan Jernigan has also played well and he'd be my odds on favorite to start alongside Tuitele. Aaron Hampton will be somewhere in the rotation though he hasn't stood out as much as others and Kamar Mothudi has been in and out of practices with a minor injury. THE SECONDARY:Even less seems settled here than at ILB. Ricky Fletcher will start at one CB position and right now Kingston Lopa and Isaiah Crosby seem set to start at Safety. The NB and other CB position seem open with Quimari Shemwell and Cameron Sidney having the edge in the slot and a three way battle between Marquis Groves-Killebrew . Daniel Harris on the outside. This room is deep as Niles Davis, Aiden Manutai, Michael Hurst Jr and Khamani Hudson have all played well and will provide depth across the secondary. My sense is that if Groves can get fully healthy (he's been banged up), he and Shemwell will start (on the outside and at NB respectively) I expect to see some rotation at Safety and the NB/OCB positions vs UCLA
19 days ago by
Jim McGill
Many of you have probably seen that we've highlighted how the staff has chosen to season the depth on offense this season by mixing a consistent group of starters and backups together, practicing together on both sides of the field.On the line, that's played out with JKS on the South half of the field playing with the left side of his line - Big Fred at LT, Ruffins at OG and Swinney at center. The right side has pretty consistently featured Mike Klisiewicz at RT and Ben Howard at RG.On the North side of the field with QB2 Jackson Brousseau, the other two starting OL - RT Jimothy Lewis and RG Vatikani have teamed with LT Mykeal Rabess, RG Kahlee Tafai and C Ashton Rivera.Hard to get a feel for the first team as a unit since they haven't fully played together but in 1x1s and 11x11s, all the starters have excelled, particularly Big Fred and Ruffins. The backups have gotten valuable experience working with some OL starters and seem to be developing pretty well, especially Klisiewicz and Howard so far in the first week.Will be interesting to see the starters all play together and how they function as a unit as the rest of the offense looks ready to bust out if the OL does it's part this season.
Some inside info on the Offensive Line
I got some grease on how one of, if not the most pivotal, position group on the field is coming together.Bryan Harsin vs. Jordan Sommerville evolution will have two big impacts on the OL. Harsin had a system that he had used to great success prior to Cal and every Offensive position coach had to adapt to that system. It was very regimented. Sommerville is more collaborative and wants to have very position coach give input on what will best set up their charges for success. Secondly, the protection schemes under Sommerville will reflect what the OL personnel does best. Rather than what the system proscribesThe Cal staff believes Frederick Williams III made a big jump this Spring and is playing at a much higher level than he did in 2025. They are confident Jimothy Lewis is a future NFL player and simply a "dude". However, those guys need more snaps and experience and the Bears will lean on their hugely experienced interior OL for leadershipThere's a belief that Vaikani's inconsistency had a lot to do with his carrying too much weight last year. They've revamped his nutrition plan, his BMI is much improved and they saw him have his best Spring ever at Cal. Swinney has cemented himself as the starting Center. He played really well at the end of the year last year, is comfortable at Center and snapping the ball and his confidence is sky high. Ruffins is the bell cow of that interior groupThey believe this group can be a very good run blocking line and they want to lean into that. Williams is likely a better run blocker than pass protector right now. My sense is that early in the season, they will utilize protections to help the tackles on obvious passing downs.Jacob Arop looks like the next Tackle up as he's recovered/recovering from an injury and Kahlee Tafai will push hard for snaps on the interiorThey really like Mike Klisiewicz (perhaps a year away) and think the 2026 incoming OL class is the best they've had in many years
The Most Competitive Position Groups Entering Fall Camp - Interior OL
We go deep on five areas of the roster where the battle for playing time will be fierce. Our third analysis focuses on the interior offensive line, where a transfer and a now-healthy transfer from 2025 plan to push the returning starters.
The Offensive Line
Lots of good discussion in a variety of threads about who is returning at OL, who the Bears have landed to date and how to think about the coaching staff's impact.Let's start with the fact that the OL has underperformed the past two seasons and 4 of the last 5 years. Anae is being retained and he was that groups leader in 2025. They've added a second OL coach particularly to oversee the Tackles and that's a significant move.It allows Anae to be the energy guy, the recruiting whiz and focus on the IOL where frankly Cal did get a lot better in 2025. At the same time, you have someone focused on the techinque's and unique mental challenges of playing tackle in todays football.The question becomes was it talent or coaching or both? One thing we've seen around the country is that the best OLs generally had continuity being developed within a program, with a consistent system and coaching staff. Thus, the grass is not always greener simply by adding players who performed well elsewhere. And recognizing that your best players in 2026 may be players who struggled as they learned in 2025 or were not yet ready to play.Our evaluation of this position group relative to the portal was that it was a Medium priority with few must retains. Morrow was one of those as was Moko. The challenge with Morrow is his mental focus - is he physically and mentally tough enough to realize his athletic potential? The new staff made a decision to not retain him. Moko's eligibility is still a question and the Hawaii Bowl post game was not an ideal springbroad for his retention. The staff really likes the returning core and believes they will be better as a result of continuity and development. Ruffins, Williams III, Vatikani and Swinney represent a core of four players with a ton of starts and added to that is Lamar Robinson who they like a lot but who battled injury issues in 2025. This is a veteran group of all RS Junior and Seniors that have now been together under Anae for a year. This is the foundation.Coach Anae also loves the potential of some of the youngsters including Justin Hasenhuetl and Mike Klisiewicz. Both are going to have a real chance to earn a spot in the two deeps at the very least this Spring and Fall Camps.Thus far in the portal, Cal has added two players: RS Soph Mykeal Rabess and Sophomore Jacob Arrop at Tackle. Rabess is really a talented athlete although without a lot of experience. Arrop is another high ceilinged player whose performance this year is not felt to be indicative of his potential in 2026. Both are perceived as potential starters. A lot was learned in terms of the mental makeup and mindset that works for Anae and that filter informed these additions.That means the Bears (at this point) have WIlliams III, Rabess, Arrop, Hasenhuetl and Klisiewicz at Tackle with a possibility of another starter level addition.The IOL core is Ruffins, Vatikani, Swinney and Robertson and look for another addition to this room through the portal. Another IOL is a possibility to be added. The last two years have shown a lot of money being spent on proven OL by other programs without a great ROI. And this years OL class hasn't been strong. Programs are getting better at retaining proven OL (particularly OT) along with proven CBs and Edge rushers. Those are key priorities. You have to be careful not to get caught up on trying to win the portal vs. making your team better. This is a position group that is worthy of curiosity and concern given the past few seasons and the retention of a lot of the current core as well as Anae. The proof will be in the pudding. The Bears have to get better Tackle play in 2026 and more mental and physical consistency throughout.
