The Bears signed one of the primary portal targets on the defensive side of the ball when they picked up Ole Miss cornerback Ricky Fletcher heading into spring practice.
A 6-3/200 junior, Fletcher gives the Bears the type of long and athletic cover corner they covet.
After starting out at South Alabama Fletcher totaled 38 tackles along with 12 passes defended and 1 fumble recovery in his redshirt frosh season before transferring to Ole Miss. After missing 2024 with an injury, Fletcher added 11 tackles and 2 pass breakups for the Rebels, playing in 14 games and starting in 3.
“It's been great,” Fletcher said of his transition to Cal. “Everybody at Cal Berkeley is just very welcoming,” Fletcher said. “Like I said, we’ve got a coaching staff that's very high energy that's always alongside doing everything that you do. So it's been a very smooth transition coming from the South.”
Fletcher noted that his off-the-field studies have paid dividends on the field for him at Ole Miss and now at Cal.
“Myself, my edge is just my preparation for the game. I feel like I'm a
student of the game. I have a very high IQ of the game, alongside with my intangibles. I'm a very long, physical guy that can run. It's gonna bring an edge to the game. I’m a high energy guy that’s always gonna give 100% You always know what you're gonna get out of me.”
With a spring session under his belt at Cal, Fletcher walked away impressed with the receivers and tight ends he faced in practice and had a hard time singling out standouts.
“Man, that list is very long,” Fletcher said. “We’ve got a lot of depth on the offense side. We’ve got two or three tight ends in Dorian. We got a young guy named Taimane (Purcell). We got Mason (Mini) just coming back. He’s elite. So the tight end room is loaded.
“And then you get to the receivers. You’ve got Ian Strong, you’ve got Cooper Perry, you’ve got Chase Hendrick, you’ve got Quaron (Adams), you’ve got all those guys that's that's gonna bring it to you every day. So it's been it's been a challenge to come in every day and just approach it kind of like it's game day, knowing you're going against some elite guys and just battling every day.”
Consider Fletcher a big fan of working with new defensive coordinator Michael Hutchings who moved from Minnesota safeties coach to DC for the Bears.
“It means everything,” Fletcher said. “Just knowing he’s coming from one of the best secondaries in the NFL prior and just knowing that he's been at that level and coached very high at that level, it's been everything to me. Just him being in my area every day talking about being a pro, having a pro mindset. I mean, there’s really not too much as well within a coach.”
The Vikings were known for their aggressive defense and all indications are that the new Bears’ DC is bringing the same style to Berkeley.
“Two of the main pillars in our program are relentless effort and ball excellence,” Fletcher said. “I mean, you win football games by taking the ball off people. So that's one thing Coach Hutchings has been harping on us about just getting the ball off people.
“Coach Da’von (Brown) has been very great for me. A guy that believed in me out of the portal. Just having me keep my head down. He knowing what I need for this last year to try to get to where I want to be. So he's been in my ear about just being intentional in everything I do. I do anything. I do everything. So I’ve just been all ears and been a sponge.
Asked about his fellow DBs, the new Bear has lots of praise for his defensive back mates.
“I feel like our DBs are great,” Fletcher said. We’ve got four to five guys in just the corner room alone that I feel like are good. You’ve got a young guy in Jae’on Young. You’ve got Daniel Harris. You’ve got Marquise Groves-Killebrew and then you’ve got our safety room. You’ve got Kingston Lopa, Michael Hurst. You got Q (Quimari) Shemwell. You’ve got Cam Sidney. I mean, we’ve got a lot of guys with a lot of depth that's going to play a lot of big time off for us this year.”
Fletcher was asked if there were any standouts in that group that brings something extra special to the field.
“Man, I just feel like it'll be kind of kind of crazy for me just to say one guy that brought an edge.
“A guy that surprised me a lot when I got here was was Jae’on Young,” Fletcher said. He’s a younger guy that that played last year as a freshman. I didn't know too much about him before I got here, but just how he approaches every game. He keeps his head down and just to take it with that fight. That's been big. Another guy will be Marquis Groves-Killebrew and Daniel Harris. They approach every day the same. They are guys that love the game.”
“Kingston Lopa’s going to be for real. Kingston’s a big guy that can run like he's 5’8.” He's going to come downhill and hit people. He's going to get the ball off people. He’s got good ball skills. Kingston is going to be a great piece for us for sure.”
With a fairly high level of turnover on defense and a lot of young and talented but untested players hoping to play key roles on D, what does the veteran DB expect out of the Bears’ defense this season?
“I feel like our defense can accomplish as much as we put our mind to,” Fletcher said. “Just staying focused on the main thing, just harping on all the things our coaches and the game plan, the scheme that they're gonna put it within us in the season and within game week.
“I feel like we can be as good as we want, but we’ve just gotta lock in.”
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