Tosh and his two coordinators have not officially started their jobs yet, but they are already kicking ass.
Cal is currently ranked 9th nationally in portal pickups.
Doesn’t mean much this early, but it is exciting.
With Tosh we expected a jump in recruiting. Seeing it actually happen fills me with relief.
Again its early, but here are the changes we are predicting in 2026.
TLDR:
Offense: We are getting JKS the weapons he deserves. Shaping up nicely.
Defense: I have full faith in DL. Secondary and Linebackers I am concerned about.
QB – No Change (All the glory to God)
JKS will be a Golden Bear in 2026. One year the wiser and more mature. Maybe he’ll gain some foot speed.
We promised him weapons…
RB – Large Upgrade
I am sad to lose our 2025 starter Kendrick Raphael (a smart workhorse who just lacked speed).
We already have THREE running backs committed. Each look much, much better than our 2025 backs. Hopefully they are also big brain.
We have a big bruiser from Washington and a couple of speedsters coming from Davis and UTEP.
People are most excited about UC Davis transfer Carter Vargas who was being recruited by LSU.
WR – Large Upgrade
Biggest question right now is whether De Jesus returns. He is trying to use the “Pavia Rule” to legally appeal for an extra year of NCAA eligibility. The ruling says Juco years shouldn’t count towards your eligibility.
In 2025 he led the nation in completions.
If I were him I would be thinking NFL, but maybe His 5’7” height kills his draft stock and another year makes more sense.
4* WR Ian Strong will go down in history as the FIRST big time portal commit in the Tosh era. Big, strong outside receiver with medium to bad speed and good route running.
I am usually out on big, slow WRs. I prefer speed… But because JKS is the king of the back shoulder pass… I can see why we made Strong a priority.
Need a few more adds here but feeling great so far.
2025 WR were so bad… Things can only go up.
OL – TBD… Upgrade?
My gut blames the 2025 under performance on the lack of talent in the RB room.
I love the position coach Famika Anea.
I’d rather keep 2025 lineman than get a bunch of new transfers.
Continuity >>>>>
Looks like we are retaining most starters but I need to do a true deep dive.
TE – Medium Upgrade
2025 unit was excellent IMO.
TE Coach Saffel is an up and coming super star.
Mason Mini got open frequently, made clutch plays and were just sick. He seems be sticking around.
We just added 4* TE from New Mexico who I am NOT sold on.
Decent dance moves, but arrogant cocky vibes… Not giving energy back to the boys who are fired up… It’s especially distasteful because he didn’t do anything impressive on the play. Couldn’t have been more open.
Bad first impression but I’m probably being dramatic.
All in all, things are looking up here.
Defense:
We are losing many players.
Linebackers: Gone.
Despite Ferrelli being ACC Rookie of the Year I am ok with him leaving… I blame him for our issues against the run in 2025. He missed gap assignments constantly.
Same for Cade. His 2025 highlights are probably great but I think he had a sneaky bad season. Like Ferreli, he was inconsistent and missed gap assignments. Maybe it was bad coaching.
Also I did not love his vibe as a leader. Victim to Jaydn Ott syndrome? (swollen NIL dome)
I pray Tosh has a backup plan.
DL + Edge Rushers: Gone… Reinforcements Incoming??
Tosh is a DL coach by trade. I have full faith he puts together an elite unit.
Hate losing edge rushers TJ Bush and Ryan McCullough… But apparently our scheme is changing from (“4 x 3” to “3 x 4” or something like that) and neither player fits the new system.
Our biggest portal add so far is this Texas A&M beast. ‘Hell Raiser”
He must have been so expensive… But I love his tape and have complete faith in Tosh to evaluate DL talent.
Still a lot of moving pieces… But so far so good.
Secondary: Gone… STOLE OREGON SAFETY
We are losing most of our talent.
BUT… We signed the nation’s 5th ranked Safety from Oregon… Could this be the first of several players following Tosh from Oregon to Berkeley??
Again lots of moving pieces but so far so good. Need many adds here.
TLDR:
Offense: We are getting JKS the weapons he deserves. Shaping up nicely.
Defense: I have full faith in DL. Secondary and Linebackers I am concerned about.
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