Cal football general manager Ron Rivera speaks: "I'm driving the car"

Rivera will speak with the media on Monday, where hopefully we will have more clarity on the situation.

Credit: Cal Football

When Ron Rivera was first brought in to help out Cal football, the hope was that he would be the one to fix the structural issues plaguing the program. Unfortunately, the announcement didn’t quite seem to clear up exactly how he would be holding the team accountable. Despite essentially being named general manager, there was no clear reporting structure that would have had head coach Justin Wilcox in some way reporting to him. This led to a donor revolt that wants Rivera in charge of the football program, cutting out beleaguered and criticized athletic director Jim Knowlton.

With Cal football currently in a crisis state around a quintet of running backs leaving, and an offensive coordinator still struggling to win over the locker room, Rivera did end up making a statement to Mike Silver. It's a hopeful statement, but there's still some ambiguity.

I just had a long talk with Cal football GM Ron Rivera. He's fired up. "People are wondering if I have the power to make decisions," he said. "Yes, I do. I'm driving the car. Chancellor (Rich) Lyons, (Athletic Director) Jim Knowlton and (HC) Justin Wilcox are in the car with me. We're all charting a course. But I'm driving." Of recent player defections via the portal, he insisted, "We have a plan. We are fortifying key positions as we speak and we are excited about the team we are building."

So Ron Rivera is in charge. Cool!

In the car is Rich Lyons, his boss. Okay!

Also in the car is Jim Knowlton, who is not his direct report. As of right now, we assume Knowlton still reports to Lyons, meaning that Rivera and Knowlton are essentially at the same level on the org chart.

And then there is Justin Wilcox, who reports to…Jim Knowlton, who does not report to Ron Rivera, but Rich Lyons.

However, Rivera does say that he is in charge, and he will speak to the media on Monday, where hopefully more clarity will be reached on the reporting structure. It sounds as if moves are on the horizon, hopefully.

So if anyone wants some positive vibes from what has otherwise been a dreadful week, this is where I’d look. Stay tuned to Monday!