The time is now in Berkeley.
“I’m very confident. I think we have the opportunity to go out and be successful,” said Ron Rivera, California’s athletic director and football general manager. “If we can be successful early on, we can most certainly build faster than anticipated as well.”
The Golden Bears haven’t delivered an eight-win season since 2009, an outright conference title since 1958 or a national championship since 1937.
Led by a tenacious new head coach and a left-handed prodigy under center, with a loaded offense and an aligned administration to match, the Golden Bears are earnest as ever entering Saturday night’s home opener against UCLA.
“You can feel the anticipation in the locker room,” Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele said. “Everyone’s excited to go out there and play for each other and represent the Bears.”
Lupoi returns
Cal coach Tosh Lupoi waves to fans before throwing out the first pitch before a Giants-Marlins game on April 24.
(Jeff Chiu / Associated Press)
California’s renewed belief largely stems from first-time skipper Tosh Lupoi, who has instilled enthusiasm at his alma mater since taking over for the fired Justin Wilcox in December.
“He’s not scared to get … too hyped,” Golden Bears linebacker AJ Tuitele said of Lupoi said. “The players just match his energy. It’s a big deal for us.”
A Bay Area native, Lupoi was a defensive lineman for the Golden Bears from 2000-05 and became the youngest full-time coach in program history at 26, emerging as an elite recruiter as California’s defensive line coach on Jeff Tedford’s staff from 2008-11.
Lupoi later gained experience at Washington, Alabama, in the NFL and, most recently, as Oregon’s defensive coordinator for the past four seasons. But leading the Cal has always been his dream.
“Every waking second of my life will be dedicated to the success of this program,” Lupoi said during his introductory news conference. “No matter what I say, it’s going to be based off of my actions. And I’m a man of action.”
Nine months in, Lupoi has worked to mold a program that lives by three pillars: relentless effort, ball excellence and power of unit.
The confidence is contagious, prompting Lupoi to take the tarps off at Memorial Stadium for the first time in several years and allow thousands more tickets to be sold for the highly anticipated opener against UCLA.
“Butts in the seats and eyes on the television,” Rivera said. “That engagement is so important.”
A rising star at quarterback
Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele looks to throw a pass against Hawaii during the Hawai’i Bowl on Dec. 24 in Honolulu.
(Darryl Oumi / Getty Images)
The Golden Bears also have a proven leader in Sagapolutele, also known as JKS, on their side.
Sagapolutele threw for 3,454 yards and 18 touchdowns as a true freshman with a limited supporting cast and suspect offensive line. A folk hero in his home state of Hawaii, Sagapolutele is projected to be a first-round prospect in the 2028 NFL draft.
The 20-year-old has shown poise in the pocket, patience when going through progressions and ability to throw receivers open anywhere on the field.
“Even if you’re covered, he finds back shoulders and back hips,” UCLA coach Bob Chesney said of Sagapolutele. “Even when under duress … [the football] seems to still be put right on the money. … A kid that’s very hard to fluster.”
He’ll be manning a pro-style scheme in 2026 constructed by first-time offensive coordinator Jordan Somerville, who comes to Berkeley after three years as Baker Mayfield’s assistant quarterbacks coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“[Sagapolutele] is everything that is said about him,” Somerville said. “He is awesome to be around.”
Reeling in top talent
Washington running back Adam Mohammed is tackled by UCLA linebacker Jonjon Vaughns at the Rose Bowl on Nov. 22. Mohammed has transferred to Cal, calling it “a great place to be.”
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
The Golden Bears assembled what recruiting network 247Sports called the ACC’s second-best transfer portal class this spring, rebuilding its defense with younger, high-ceiling players and stocking its offense with more proven talent.
“Cal is a great place to be,” said running back Adam Mohammed, who transferred in from Washington. “You get a good degree and a great education [and an] NFL coaching staff. That basically sums it up.”
It’ll be on first-time coordinator Michael Hutchings, who was the Minnesota Vikings’ safety coach for the last three years, to put together a competent defense. He has solid returning options to work with as well as an influx of transfers.
“Control what we can control [and] focus on us,” Hutchings said of his approach.
The offense’s personnel is much simpler. In Somerville’s system, Sagapolutele will work alongside seasoned transfers, including running backs Mohammed and Carter Vargas (UC Davis), wideouts Chase Hendricks (Ohio), Ian Strong (Rutgers) and Cooper Perry (Oregon), tight end Dorian Thomas (New Mexico) and right tackle Jimothy Lewis (Mississippi State).
California beat several bluebloods in the transfer portal and continues to win high school recruiting battles, with an elite 2027 class on the horizon led by Westlake wideout Charles Davis and Chaparral quarterback Dane Weber.
Assistant general manager Marshall Cherrington, who has largely led the Golden Bears’ roster-building efforts for nearly eight years, remembers when major recruiting wins weren’t realistic.
“The access we have now is unparalleled to what we’ve had here in my time,” Cherrington said. “The positive trajectory only improves the opportunities to do more selecting rather than recruiting.
“It’s not like, ‘Oh, we can’t go after a kid because he’s in Florida or Mississippi or wherever.’ It’s like, ‘Oh, we got access.’”
Claw or nothing
Cal football general manager Ron Rivera, right, and new football coach Tosh Lupoi hold up a jersey during Lupoi’s introductory news conference on Dec. 5.
(Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images)
Lupoi was the missing piece alongside Rivera and Chancellor Rich Lyons, forming a trio of Berkeley graduates who understand the importance of elevating the university’s profile with a contending football program.
“It’s hard to overstate the importance and benefit of the fact that Tosh, Ron Rivera and I are all Cal alumni who share profound respect for Berkeley’s values, traditions, and persistent pursuit of excellence in all that we do,” Lyons said.
The trio has worked to tap into Berkeley’s alumni network, from Silicon Valley to the NFL — and it’s paying off.
California Athletics recently announced it received $88.5 million in “gifts and pledges” from July 2025 to June 2026, in a year when the football team posted a 7-6 record and both basketball programs missed the big dance.
“This is not a normal university in terms of what people expect and don’t expect from you,” Rivera said. “The expectations at Cal are high.”
It all starts with Saturday’s “Pac-12 After Dark” throwback against UCLA, with game kicking off at 7:30 p.m. and airing on ESPN.
“You should be really excited about what you’re going to see,” Sagapolutele added. “You’re going to want to keep coming to our games, for sure.”