Cal has a lot riding on the final four games of its season, and not just in the standings. The way the Bears finish could ripple straight into recruiting, with four-star quarterback Dane Weber among the prospects watching closely.
That has become especially true for coach Tosh Lupoi, who has already seen Cal’s 2027 class respond to what happens on the field. The Bears are 3-5 going into Saturday’s road trip to North Carolina State, and Lupoi was asked this week whether the team’s play over the final stretch could influence commitments.
"I think it could, certainly," he said. "Great players want to be part of winning equations.
Super fortunate thus far with the players that we've recruited [in] this elite class, and the strong majority have really been strong with us. But certainly it can affect . . . . .
Great players want to go win just like I do . Also I think a lot of those great player see the possibility of making an immediate impact, and that's exciting for them."
Cal’s 2027 class is currently ranked 24th nationally by 247Sports and 26th by Rivals Industry Composite. But the bigger story has been how quickly some of the class’s key names have reacted to the Bears’ results in 2026.
Wide receiver Charles Davis, the highest-rated prospect in the class, committed in May, then had second thoughts after Cal’s offense was shut out of a touchdown in a 24-10 loss to Clemson on September 25. He reopened his recruitment the next day. After Cal turned around and beat Virginia Tech 25-20 on October 3, Davis moved back to Cal and re-committed two days later, saying he would enroll in January.
Other prospects have gone the opposite direction. Four days after the Clemson loss, cornerback Alius Mayo, the top-ranked junior college prospect in the country, flipped from Cal to Georgia after committing to the Bears in August. Four-star tight end Rahzario Edward also backed off his pledge, switching from Cal to Mississippi one day after the Bears’ 41-7 loss to Wake Forest on October 17.
Weber remains the commitment worth tracking most closely. He picked Cal in May over UCLA and Cincinnati, but the situation has not stayed settled.
He visited UCLA again the weekend of October 12, when Cal was getting crushed by Wake Forest, and then, one day after the Bears’ 59-20 loss to SMU, Adam Gorney of Rivals/On3 quoted Weber as saying, “I feel like I have the right to explore everything.” He was wavering.
That matters because UCLA has not yet landed a quarterback in its 2027 class and is making a hard push for Weber. Under new head coach Bob Chesney, the Bruins have the kind of season Cal wishes it had: they are 7-0, the lone unbeaten team in the Big Ten, and ranked No. 7 in the country this week.
Cal and UCLA started the season with roughly the same expectations, with neither projected to contend for a conference title. The seasons have split sharply since then. Cal is 3-5 overall and 2-3 in the ACC, and has dropped four of its last five.
Still, nothing becomes final until a player signs a financial agreement, previously known as a letter of intent. High school players can first sign on December 2, which comes four days after Cal closes its regular season against Pitt on November 28.
For now, Cal’s 2027 class remains inside the top 30 nationally, and Weber is still on board. The next month will tell the story, but the Bears can give themselves a better shot if they can stack a few wins before signing day.
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