Bears Make First Spring Portal Addition in Chattanooga Edge Chris Victor
The Bears made their first pickup of the spring portal with the addition of 6-4/240 Chattanooga edge Chris Victor with Wednesday’s opening of the spring transfer portal.
"I took my visit to Cal Monday and Tuesday," Victor said. "It was great. "It was my first time in California as well. So just having a chance to be out there for the first time, it was really good for me and my family as well, because that was their first time too. It was cool. It felt like a movie, I kept telling them.
"I remember one of the coaches, I was like, they had asked, 'Hey, how does it feel being here? I told them it was like something you would see in the movie. And then I think it was Coach Brown who said, '@hy not make this movie a reality? So once he said that and then when I went to our last meeting that we had with Coach So'oto, I got on the plane, just going back home. I want to say I committed around, like, 12:45am our time in Tennessee. I was just like, you know, I might as well like just go ahead and do it."
Last season as a junior, Victor totalled 37 tackles, 6.5 TFL, 4.5 sacks and one forced fumble for Chatanooga. As a soph, Victor had 12 tackles, a half sack and 2 QB hurries.
Victor spent his first two seasons as Mississippi Valley State where he had 25 tackles, 4 TFL and 1 sack after redshirting his first season. As a prep in Jacksonville, Florida, Victor had 43 tackles and 13 sacks in eight games as a senior.
The newest Bear had an official visit set up to Florida State this week but decided to wrap up his recruitment after the trip by committing to the Bears.
"I had a visit set up with Florida State right after right after the Cal visit so it was between Cal and Florida State for me, because at the end of day, doesn't get any better than them, as well as the ACC."
Victor aslo cited the comfort level he felt interacting with the coaches and players and he and his family came away confident that he’d found a new home at Cal.
"They were family oriented, like the togetherness of the program, I felt like they just showed me and my family that they can develop me and just take my game to a whole nother level," Victor said of his commitment.
Victor also noted his comort level with Co-DC and outside linebackers coach Vic So’oto as a big factor in his commitment."I felt like he showed me everything that I can work on and how I can improve," Victor said. "And then he showed me the things that that I already bring to the table. So I felt like we're building the bond.
"And another one of my key things for me choosing to commit to Cal was that my previous coach, he was a receiver and a DB, and he they made him outside linebackers coach. But I have a coach who's actually played the position so he knows what it takes. And he's been to the NFL so he actually knows. So that was the cool thing for me about Cal."
As for what he’ll bring to the table as a player at Cal?
"I would describe myself as someone who works hard and just doesn't give up and then just looks to improve, looks for things to improve on, you know? So never the jobs never finished with me,” concluded the newest Bear.