Cal Football: Offensive Grades for 2024

The Cal Golden Bear football team’s season is officially over. However, we will look at the position groups on the offensive side of the ball and issue grades based on their performance this season.

There were many highs and lows for the offense this year. However, the main takeaway was that this offense was anything but consistent. That was the most frustrating thing about watching the Bears this season. At times, they looked like they could move the ball on anyone, but most of the time, it was subpar. I will review each position group below and highlight the offense’s strengths and weaknesses.

Cal Football Offensive Grades

Quarterback: A-

Fernando Mendoza is no longer a Golden Bear, but he was the quarterback this season for all but two games. We’ll focus our grade primarily based on his play.

Mendoza played phenomenally in Berkeley, and delivered in big moments at Auburn and in the Big Game against Stanford. He finished his season with 3,004 yards, 16 touchdown passes, and six interceptions. Certainly not mind-boggling numbers, but still really good.

It didn’t help that there were injuries on the offensive line and wide receiver group. Still, not all of the sacks were on the offensive line, as Fernando would hold on to the ball for too long at times. Who knows what sort of implications there were with the changing of quarterbacks early in the season with Chandler Rogers? Mendoza was certainly the best quarterback Cal has had in quite some time and it’s a shame he won’t be finishing his career here.

Offensive Line: D+

Let’s be honest, it’s cool to see flashy plays and high-flying offenses, but the game of football is still won and lost in the trenches. This was especially true for the Cal football team this year. Plain and simple, the offensive line was a hot mess. It’s yet to be determined whether this is based on the scheme or if the players simply weren’t good enough, but it’s probably a combination of the two.

There weren’t too many standout players on the line who gave up a total of 50 sacks this season, good for dead last in the nation. As aforementioned, the sacks were not all on the line. However, when a number is that high, it’s a pretty clear indication that a majority were at the fault of the line.

One of the hardest things to watch about this season was the team’s inability to run the ball. Besides a few long runs here and there, Cal ranked 101st in the nation in rushing yards per game with 123.2. That’s pretty horrendous considering the talent at the running back position. It wasn’t all bad, but definitely one of the worst offensive lines I think I have ever watched.

Wide Receivers: C

The wide receiver position group was hit hard with injuries early in the year. Two presumed starters, Tobias Merriweather and Kyion Grayes, missed time for the majority of the season. Mendoza did a great job of spreading the ball around, but it didn’t allow for a true WR1 to step up.

Nyziah Hunter played well at the beginning of the year but was not much of a threat until the Stanford game. Wide receivers are tough to grade because there are so many of them, but they did a relatively good job at making life easier for Fernando.

Mikey Matthews, Josiah Martin, and Hunter have all entered the transfer portal, but there are still some good players in that group. The emergence of Jonathan Brady was great to see towards the end of the season and could be a key piece to the offense next year. All in all, they weren’t super exciting, but they were reliable.

Tight Ends: B+

Cal brought in Corey Dyches to compete for the starting tight-end job at the beginning of the year. He was mostly limited in his production, but one player who was key to the Bears’ offense was tight end Jack Endries.

Endries was a major bright spot on a struggling offense and it showed. In his sophomore season, he caught 56 passes for 623 yards and two touchdowns. And looking back on the season, it was clear that Endries was Mendoza’s favorite target.

Dyches and the rest of the tight ends were pretty much a nonfactor, but Cal may have something in Endries. It’s a shame he didn’t score more touchdowns, but his 57-yard score against Miami was electric. Should he stay at Cal, he could be one of the better tight ends to play for the Golden Bears.

Running Backs: C+

Listen, I love Jaydn Ott and Jaivian Thomas. Both players are incredible athletes and football players. That’s what made this season so disappointing. Cal has two fantastic running backs, and they couldn’t get either of them going.

Ott and Thomas each had some incredible runs this season, but other than that, not much production. I would think that most of this comes from the offensive line and playcalling so I won’t put much heat on them. Jaydn was also dealing with an injury for most of the year. There were a few other players that ran the ball this year such as Kadarius Calloway, Byron Cardwell, and Jamaal Wiley. Neither of those players got the ball enough in crucial moments to put much on tape. With the future of Jaydn Ott up in the air, Cal did receive good news that Thomas was coming back. If the offensive line gets fixed, this group should perform much better.

Cal Football Overall Grade: C+

It was a challenge to move the ball this year. It seemed that if Mendoza wasn’t dealing, Cal wasn’t scoring the football. There were far too many slow starts and questionable play calls. Most Bears fans were tired of seeing the first play in every drive be a one-yard rush up the middle. Still, it’s up to the players to execute, and more often than not, they didn’t.

The offensive performances were a damn shame considering how good the defense was. We’ll see what’s in store for next season with a new quarterback and coaching staff, but the Bears need beef up front. As aforementioned, games are won and lost in the trenches. The Bears must continue to hit the transfer portal hard and build the trenches up. It quite literally is the main difference between wins and losses. All in all, this offense was very average and should make for an interesting offseason.