Cal will start the season without a single player on the preseason All-ACC team, a result that fits the league’s Wednesday announcement and leaves the Golden Bears on the outside looking in.
The preseason squad, chosen by a vote of 188 media members, included players from 11 of the ACC’s 17 teams. Miami led the way with eight selections, and Malachi Toney was listed at two positions. Cal was one of six programs left off entirely, along with Stanford, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh and Wake Forest.
Miami quarterback Darian Mensah was named preseason ACC player of the year, with SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings finishing second. Quarterbacks made up four of the nine players who received votes for the award: Mensah, Jennings, CJ Bailey of North Carolina State and Mason Heintschel of Pitt. Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele did not draw any votes, even though On SI ranked him 16th among all Power Four conference starting quarterbacks.
This also marks another year without preseason recognition for Cal on the league’s all-conference team. In 2025, the Bears had no players on the preseason All-ACC list either.
After the season, though, three Cal players - wide receiver Jacob De Jesus, linebacker Cade Uluave and cornerback Hezekiah Masses - earned first-team All-ACC honors. None of them is on this year’s roster.
There are still Cal players who could force their way into the conversation by the end of the season. Sagapolutele, wide receivers Ian Strong and Chase Henricks, and tight ends Dorian Thomas and Mason Mini are among the names to watch. Much of that will hinge on how the Bears perform overall, and the preseason media poll pegged Cal to finish 12th.
Cal opens the season Sept. 5 at home against UCLA, picking up a rivalry that was paused when UCLA moved to the Big Ten and Cal joined the ACC. The teams didn’t meet in either of the last two seasons, but they are set to play each other in each of the next four.
In Other News...
Cal Fans Are About To Notice Familiar Bay Area QBs All Over The ACC
The first training camps under Tavita Pritchard at Stanford and Tosh Lupoi at Cal are already giving the Bay Area a familiar feel at quarterback, even as both programs settle into new eras. Cal enters camp with Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele already established as its starter, while Stanford is leaning toward transfer Davis Warren, who missed last season because of injury before arriving from Michigan.
And the ripple effect does not stop there, because the ACC is suddenly full of quarterbacks with Bay Area ties or Bay Area familiarity. Duke, Florida State, Miami, Georgia Tech, SMU and NC State all have notable situations unfolding at the position, which means Cal fans are likely to keep seeing names they know pop up well beyond Berkeley as the season approaches. [Read more 🡒]
National Respect For Cal's QB Is Turning Heads Fast
Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele is starting to draw some real national attention before his sophomore season at Cal, and the latest rankings suggest the respect is not just coming from the usual local corners. On SI placed him No. 16 among starting quarterbacks in Power Conference programs, which puts him near the top of the ACC conversation and behind only Miamis Darian Mensah in that leagues pecking order.
The broader national picture looks even more encouraging for Cal, with The Athletic slotting Sagapolutele No. 14 among FBS starters while some other preseason outlets are less bullish. Either way, it is a notable rise for a quarterback still early in his college career, and it gives the Bears a rare kind of advantage heading into a schedule where the opposing quarterback profile may not stack up as favorably. [Read more 🡒]