Cal Football

Spring Practice Day 6 -- Sirmon Hints at New Food Plan

By Max Frincke

March 5, 2021

5,622

On a a beautiful Friday morning that doesn’t feel like winter, the Cal football team took Memorial Stadium for the 6th time this year. Afterwards, Peter Sirmon sat down to talk about the defense.

One unit that is very deep and talented is Cal’s linebacker corps. Sirmon pointed out that sophomore Muelu Iosefa has shown significant improvement from last season, where he was one of three freshman to play in all four games, along with Damien Moore and Trey Paster.

“Mo has made significant strides. With the abbreviated camp, there wasn’t the same amount of detail we were able to get in. Mo is doing well over the first 5 or 6 practices. I think he’ll continue to do that. He’s a very instinctual player. I call him slippery sometimes. He can slip some blocks and get through tight spaces.”

One new face this spring up the middle is redshirt frosh ILB Trey Paster‍.

“Trey is doing a really nice job in the meeting room and on the field,” said Sirmon. “We’ve talked about guys moving forward in the defense. He’s made significant improvement with his eyes, just in these first six practices that we’ve had. Playing time will be determined how he continues to develop.”

In the secondary, Sirmon feels as though there are opportunities for more than a few players to get reps at each position, however that it is too early to say whether newcomers will be able to crack starting positions in Cal’s most promising part of the defense in years past.

Cal Football / Instagram

Junior Ray Woodie in his new colors

“Craig Woodson is a guy that we feel really good about, and he’ll have the opportunity to play more than he did last year,” said Sirmon. “The addition of Ray Woodie. It is fun to watch him get involved in things. As a transfer, he’s still new to us. There’s a significant learning curve in terms of the vocabulary, some of the ways and techniques that we play.

“Hunter Barth is out there getting some reps. I’m really optimistic about what Hunter is gonna be. He’s very mindful and has great skills. He’s a lot bigger than I anticipated. He’s got good length and runs well.”

With regards to the defensive line, Sirmon had a few things to say about redshirt frosh DTs Stanley McKenzie and Ricky Correia.

“The first thing you notice when they’re on the field is that those are two big human beings,” said Sirmon. “Our emphasis has been getting people who have greater stature. Football is a big person game and we want to continue to get big. Ricky coming back is really good. He’s a big guy. He has really nice feet and the more reps that he gets, we’ll find packages to get him in there.

“The other day (Stanley) had a great one-on-one in pass rush. That’s exciting to see for a player that plays the interior of the defensive line, to be able to win that one-on-one. That guy is really exciting.”

Sirmon was asked about being bold and announcing who the starting four linebackers in a 3-4 defense would be if the season were to start now, but he didn’t bite. What he did want to talk about however, was Justin Wilcox’s new plan for food.

“Has anybody talked about Coach Wilcox and what he’s gotten done with training table?” said Sirmon. “Oh my gosh. He has worked his tail off along with that admin. If you guys want to write a story, write a story about the improvement in how we’re taking care of our players and feeding them and treating them as well as we can in terms of nutrition and strength.

“Coach B has done an awesome job. Cal dining is undefeated right now, this season. They’re making it happen. I’m all about Cal dining.”

Stay posted for more on Cal football’s new nutrition plan.