Cal Football Attends ACC Football Media Day

The Bears were one of a few teams to take the stage on day one in Charlotte

Ron Rivera at ACC Football Media Day. Credit: Cal Athletics

With just over a month to opening kickoff, a Cal contingent consisting of Ron Rivera, Justin Wilcox, Devin Brown, Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele, Cade Uluave, and Aidan Keanaaina flew to the East Coast to meet with the media. A team that turned over more than 50 players from 2024 to 2025 evoked lots of questions about what Cal’s outlook will be and what the coaching staff is working with in year two as a member of the ACC.

Justin Wilcox re-emphasizes the process to win close games

One of the lasting memories from the 2024 season was the misery involved with losing close games. Everyone remembers it, so much so that it continued to work its way into ACC Media Day questions. Justin Wilcox noted that it still stinks to think about but knows its a glaring feature that needs to be corrected. When asked about the process, he explained that its not just one thing that’s on his mind:

“It’s everything. Talent acquisition, nutrition, class schedules, admissions. Having Coach Rivera and the Chancellor be advocates to elevate the program. It’s everything we do on a daily basis, that makes the difference.”

Throughout his appearances on the ACC Network Wilcox emphasized that he likes the competition that this team is building but also notes that its not the be all and end all of what makes a good team, and that his roster will also need to make the concerted effort to build chemistry off the field to become a holistic force.

Finally, Wilcox stated that the question becomes whether its a need of solely having better scoring margins or just improving the ability to finish one score games when it counts. He concluded that it can and is both of these factors and that the effort is going into fixing it for 2025.

Cal’s spheres of influence

Both Devin Brown and Cade Uluave were exclaiming how old relationships have helped foster development heading into 2025. For Brown, he detailed how Kyion Grayes recruited him to Cal with daily phone calls to bring him out west, elaborating on how their relationship since being Arizona prep stars influenced the decision to transfer to Cal.

Brown delivered several answers that the onus would be on him to take the reigns as starting quarterback for the Bears this season. He noted much like Wilcox that its about building rapport with his offensive line and coaching staff, and that he’s continuing to do so.

On the other side of the ball, Cade Uluave beamed at the idea of having Ron Rivera around on a daily basis, soaking up information while taking pointers at the same time. Both Uluave and Wilcox have exclaimed that Rivera has taken on a greater role as an ambassador for the program and is doing a lot of work behind the scenes to elevate Cal as a whole. One of the highlights of media day included a nice meetup with former NFL LB Luke Kuechly, bringing together three generations of great linebackers.

Recollecting effort in this age of college athletics

One of the answers that stuck out to me from media day came from the ACC Kickoff desk when Eddie Royal asked Justin Wilcox how he evaluates putting in effort into building relationships when people jump ship in today’s age of college football.

Wilcox gave a very candid answer about how he has approached it:

The natural response is to get defensive and shield. They are still 17-23 year olds that need mentorship. It’s not the same but if you don’t like it you don’t have to do this job. You have to continue to pour into them.”

That’s a direct answer to a question that didn’t necessarily have to be responded to that authentically. It signals that Justin Wilcox will continue to be all in as a head coach no matter how long he is in Berkeley, and that this program won’t become a transactional one as long as he’s in charge. There’s a certain pride that comes with that mentality and from the reaction online, Cal fans are generally pleased with it.

It would be easy to abandon ship given today’s circumstances and some coaches have. However, Justin Wilcox upheld his ground as a head coach while also recognizing that he has grown from the presence of Ron Rivera in trying to succeed in the mission of building a proud Cal Football program.

Quick Conclusions

Among other storylines, here are some other quick hits from Cal’s tour in Charlotte:

• There will be a quarterback battle into fall camp and the decision will be made “in the interest of what’s best for the program”.

• Aidan Keanaaina believes that the presence of Co-DC’s has been a welcome one so far given the ability to work on both the front seven and secondary.

• Justin Wilcox said he hasn’t been as hands on with the defense in recent years with Peter Sirmon at the helm and it remains to be seen how he interject himself this year. Wilcox noted that he likes to give his two cents early in spring ball and then transitions more to head coaching duties.

• The ACC will require injury reports for football, basketball, and baseball starting this season. Football reporting includes sheets two days, one day, and on game day for all ACC conference games.

Cal has yet to release its fall camp schedule but the clock is still ticking towards opening kickoff against Oregon State on August 30.