Cal Spring Football Notebook: The Spring Showcase

Where do things stand with the Bears?

Credit @calfootball on twitter

Spring has sprung for the California Golden Bears, and with that comes the Spring Showcase. Amidst a beautiful day in Strawberry Canyon there was a watch party that saw Cal Women’s Gymnastics duke it out for a national championship, Cal baseball going blow for blow with top five Oregon State, and the football team scrimmaging for the final time in front of the public for several months.

In past seasons, I’ve made misguided conclusions about the stock of the Golden Bears after spring ball, leaving me to make less declarations in this years iteration. Some new and returning faces shined, other position groups looked like a giant unknown, and the team has a whole has progress to be made if they want to get where they want to go.

Winners from Spring

QB Fernando Mendoza

• Over the course of spring football, Fernando Mendoza looked like he’s made some big strides after the end of last season. With new OC Mike Bloesch calling plays, there has been a bigger emphasis on stretching the field for explosive plays. Last season, Mendoza was very comfortable with intermediate routes between the hashes but less confident outside the numbers. This spring he has shown a willingness to keep attacking the outside on go routes, back shoulders, and fades. The first play of the Spring Showcase ended up being a 50 yard bomb to Trond Grizzell over the top, putting that development on full display. Throughout spring, there was a poise and desire to showcase more from Mendoza and that should serve him well as the presumptive starter when fall camp opens

The RB Group

• With Jaydn Ott being held out for a lot of spring, there was ample opportunity for others to step up and stake their claim as the number two back. And they all did. One day its Kadarius Calloway, another its Byron Cardwell, and eventually Jaivian Thomas. All six backs had great days at certain points of spring, including Dean Taylor-Chapman and Justin Williams-Thomas (who unfortunately suffered what looked like a moderately severe injury while being tackled during the showcase). This group is talented, disciplined, and each bring their own piece of the pie. Calloway bulldozes, Cardwell is shifty, JET and DTC bring the jitterbug energy, its a great group under Aristotle Thompson and they had their chance to shine this spring

LT Nick Morrow

• One of the players who constantly received praise throughout spring ball was Nick Morrow. Morrow, who has put on a lot of weight to fit into the offensive line has taken centerstage as a guy who people didn’t necessarily know about before, but know now according to Justin Wilcox and Mike Bloesch. The coaches do have a bit to unwind when Victor Stoffel and new commit Braden Miller enter the fray in the fall, but Morrow has been put through as much of the fire as he could have been in spring, and has come out on the other side better for it.

DB Marcus Harris

• With the defensive backs doing a lot of mixing and matching throughout spring, one of the constants was the emergence of Marcus Harris. The Idaho transfer looks to have locked up a starting corner spot alongside Nohl Williams. Harris showcased great ball skills in spring, notably having a pick six of Chandler Rogers in the last week before the showcase. While fighting for a spot that was up for grabs with Lu Magia Hearns sidelined for spring, Harris made his impact and then some. How that domino effects the rest of the defensive backfield remains to be seen, whether there is still a battle between him and Hearns for the other outside spot, or they move Hearns elsewhere

Ricky Correia on the run via @calfootball on twitter

Questions

The defense

• These past two spring seasons, I’ve come away with the conclusion that the defense was prepared for the upcoming season after consistently strong performances in the abbreviated sessions. As mentioned earlier, I’m no longer inherently running with that assertion regardless of the evidence, but this year presents more unknowns. Generally, starters were missing at several points during spring. Craig Woodson would be out one day, David Reese another, and what felt like the whole starting defensive line on Saturday with no Reese, Xavier Carlton, Nate Burrell, Myles Williams, and Aidan Keanaaina. This front four needs more depth if they want to be considered a top group in the ACC, as having more production from them makes the back 7’s job easier. There’s no answer with who is starting alongside Cade Uluave this year, but getting Teddye Buchanan in the fall may provide the answer for that. Finally, can the defensive backs continue to hold in coverage and make plays? There are a lot more questions this year with the defense as a whole and I don’t believe we will have a clear referendum until after the Florida State game as to who they really are

The new receivers

• Newcomers Mikey Matthews, Josiah Martin, and Jonathan Brady had strong springs. However, as Justin Wilcox has noted with other position groups, its one thing for players to be connecting in a competitive practice setting versus in the heat of battle with 50,000+ fans breathing down your neck. Matthews provides good versatility in the slot and return game, and should be a prime target for either quarterbacks that takes the reigns in the fall. Brady also fits the mold of versatility, fitting in the slot and outside with breathtaking speed and Martin consistently was finding holes in the zones and moving the chains in 11 on 11 settings. I liked what I saw from these three guys, but there’s more to go, especially when the timing gets thrown off to see what’s really out there.

The return game

• I imagine that Mikey Matthews will get the nod in the punt return game, but if not, Jonathan Brady, Marquez Dortch, and Isaiah Crosby all also took return snaps from punter Lachlan Wilson. Other than the Jaydn Ott kick return against UCLA at the end of the last regular season, the Cal return game has been largely silent during the Justin Wilcox era. If Matthews is named as the punt returner, there’s a significantly greater chance that this group becomes more of a strength than its ever even come close to being, and could even tilt a game. But until that time comes, the unknown of the return game gives me some pause into the overall explosiveness of the team. Lachlan Wilson, David Bird, and Michael Luckhurst all seem locked into their starting positions in the procedural division, however, Ryan Coe is knocking on the door if Luckhurst struggles to start in fall camp/during the season.

Conclusions

Cal is far from a finished product. Players were understandably held out on certain days due to the amount of tread on their tires and game reps they’ve had according to Justin Wilcox. It’s hard to necessarily glean in and pencil anything as the bread and butter for the Bears other than their power/stretch running game and ability to attack the middle of the field. Mike Bloesch noted a willingness to scrap tendencies that didn’t work in spring, so while it was a bit of a middling offensive effort during the showcase itself, the offense was building in spurts during spring. Questions such as can Fernando Mendoza attack the outside with the confidence that he has this spring, or will the offensive line continue their steady course of development with no Matthew Cindric/Brian Driscoll, and does the defense have the depth and fortitude to withstand injuries/efficient offenses will need to be answered.

With the transfer portal opening up, Cal will be a player according to Wilcox. He declared in his post spring showcase media availability, other than kicker there is no position he and the staff are not going to look at.

Cal fans, what are you looking for as we head into the 2024 season? Questions, comments, concerns? There’s still a lot to figure out.