Cal enters the 2025 season with a new head coach, a returning quarterback, and a general manager who isn’t interested in putting a ceiling on what the Bears can become.
Ron Rivera, who serves as Cal’s general manager and athletic director for football, said this week that he likes the direction of the program under Tosh Lupoi as the Bears get ready for their 7:30 p.m. opener at Memorial Stadium on Sept. 5.
“I think one of the things about Tosh’s leadership style,” Rivera said this week, "is from the beginning you know one thing: He’s all in and he’s focused on one thing, and that’s getting this program to an elite level, to win football games and training the developing the players.”
Rivera drew a line between Lupoi’s approach and the mindset he sees in Cal Chancellor Rich Lyons.
“We want to get as many things done as we can. If we can get this done and do these things the right way, yes, we’re going to do these things,” Rivera said.
“I like that approach. We’re trying to get away from a `no’ culture.
And I think this is the road that starts it. You have a guy who wants it and wants it now.”
Rivera also said the energy around practice has stood out to him.
A big part of the optimism starts with Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who was one of the ACC’s most productive freshmen last season. The left-hander from Hawaii threw for at least 200 yards in every game and quickly emerged as a leader for the Bears. Rivera said he expects more growth from the sophomore quarterback this fall.
“I think the biggest thing is just seeing the growth in terms of the ease in which he’s around his teammates has been tremendous,” Rivera said. “His skill set continues to grow and get better.”
Cal has also given Sagapolutele more help around him. The Bears added wide receivers Chase Hendricks and Ian Strong, running back Adam Mohammed, tight end Dorian Thomas and have strengthened the offensive line.
Rivera declined to name a target number of wins, but he made it clear he sees no reason to limit the Bears’ upside.
“There’s no number. It’s about winning,” he said.
“We can win 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 games, get ourselves in the playoffs. That’s it - just win.”
The Bears were picked to finish 12th in the preseason ACC media poll after going 7-6 last season in Justin Wilcox’s final year. Cal has not won as many as eight games in a season since 2019.
Rivera pointed to his own coaching background as a reason he believes records can be misleading. He cited his time with the Carolina Panthers, when the team went 7-8-1 in 2014, his fourth season, but still won the NFC South.
For Rivera, the division title mattered more than the final record.
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