Thanks to some late transfer portal additions, the Golden Bears offense is shaping up to be a speedy and experienced one. Devin Brown (Jr.), the former Ohio State quarterback, has agreed to join the Cal football program in the fall. Brown expressed his desire to finish the season with the Buckeyes regardless of the result. He made the right choice and celebrated with his teammates one final time on the biggest stage in College Football.
Along with Brown’s joining, a few other seasoned offensive players have committed to Cal. Let’s discuss a few.
Offensive Additions
Brown has a small sample size from his time with Ohio. However, he has the most experience of the group of quarterbacks at Cal by far. He played 17 games across three seasons and had nine appearances in 2024, with a 55 completion percentage, 114 yards passing, and a touchdown.
The Bears have added three quarterbacks to their offense: Brown, Oregon transfer Jaron Sagapolutele, and College of San Mateo transfer Dominic Ingrassia. Brown is mainly known for his arm strength and athleticism. During his time at Ohio he sat under CJ Stroud, Kyle McCord, and Will Howard. Brown said he still has close relationships with the former QBs and has seen a variety of styles under center.
Ohio State Transfer QB Devin Brown has committed to #Cal, per ESPN
Brown comes to Cal with 3 years of experience at Ohio State, having sat under CJ Stroud, Kyle McCord, and Will Howard
Scouts love Brown’s arm strength and athleticism.#GoBears pic.twitter.com/hqaWaqFgse
— Cal Sports (@CAL_SPORTS_) January 21, 2025
Cal lost their starting QB Fernando Mendoza to Indiana last month, who was ranked No. 2 overall in the transfer portal. This left the Bears with huge shoes to fill at the quarterback position. Yet with these new additions, the battle for the starting role this spring will be an exciting one.
No offense is complete without a few deep threat wide receiver options, and Cal signed two speedy seniors at the position. Dazmin James (Sr.) joins Cal from Arkansas, and Jacob de Jesus (Sr.) from UNLV committed earlier this month.
James set a program record with a 94-yard touchdown in the Liberty Bowl where he showed off his quickness. De Jesus returns to California after two years at UNLV where he was awarded numerous accolades. The most recent being named the LA Bowl Offensive MVP in December against the Bears.
Defensive Additions
On the other side of the ball the Bears defense added Edge, Jayden Wayne from UW where he had 6 tackles, and is a Top-85 recruit in the ‘23 Class (On3 Industry). This is his second university in two years as he started his collegiate career in Miami.
Finally, Cal adds a huge piece to the secondary, Dru Polidore (Jr.) from Montana State. Funny enough Polidore was choosing between Stanford and Cal. After his visit to Cal he said it, “wasn’t really necessary to drive down to Stanford,” and picked Cal on the spot.
Polidore helped Montana State reach the FCS national championship in December, and has one year of eligibility remaining. This season at Montana, he had 35 tackles, 2 interceptions and helped Montana State to a 15-1 record. Unfortunately, the Bobcats lost to North Dakota State in the FCS national championship game.
These veteran roster additions should help the Golden Bears build off of last years momentum. Cal added a total of 20 transfers before the spring semester of the football season.
Ashmere Prasad
Ashmere is a passionate sports content creator and journalist with a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Oregon. Her professional experience spans production, social media management, and live television, including roles with NBC Sports. She currently resides in the Bay Area and looks forward to covering Cal Berkley's football team in the fall of 2025.