Cal’s football season is still eight weeks away, but the real countdown has already started. Tosh Lupoi has spent more than seven months building momentum since taking over on Dec. 4, and the early returns have given Golden Bears fans plenty to feel good about. He made the quick trip to Hawaii to keep quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele in the fold, put together a promising staff and showed he can recruit, both in the transfer portal and with high school prospects set to arrive for the 2027 season.
Now comes the part that actually defines a season: winning games.
The Bears open the 2026 schedule against UCLA at Memorial Stadium, and there’s still a lot nobody can say with confidence about how this team will look once the ball is kicked off. The roster has been reshaped, the staff is new in key spots, and the biggest questions are the kind that only get answered under the lights. Here are the issues that will likely decide how far Cal can go.
Sagapolutele is the centerpiece. Beyond Lupoi, he’s the face of the program, and after a freshman season that turned heads, the expectations are rising fast.
Cal needs more from him now - not just production, but leadership, command and the ability to settle the offense into a real rhythm. With new pieces around him, the Bears are betting he can handle the attention and pressure that comes with being the guy.
That help around him starts at receiver and tight end. Cal made it a priority to upgrade the passing game, landing wideouts Ian Strong from Rutgers and Chase Hendricks from Ohio U, along with tight end Dorian Thomas from New Mexico. None of them is expected to replicate what Jacob De Jesus did last season, when he set the Cal receiving record with 108 catches, but the goal is clear: a bigger, faster and more varied group of targets.
The offensive line may be the biggest swing factor of all. For years, it has been the soft spot, and last season the numbers were brutal - just 81.7 rushing yards per game and 32 sacks allowed. Cal attacked the problem by bringing in six offensive linemen from the portal, and the offense’s ceiling depends heavily on whether that overhaul pays off.
Defense, meanwhile, has usually been a Cal strength. Under Justin Wilcox, the Bears were at least solid on that side and often better than that, especially in the secondary, where they’ve had a defensive back selected in the NFL draft in seven straight seasons. But this group has real holes to fill after losing cornerbacks Hezekiah Masses and Paco Austin, plus linebackers Cade Uluave and Luke Ferrelli, who were the team’s two leading tacklers and both transferred out.
The schedule may be Cal’s best path to a strong record. The Bears can reasonably expect to have a shot in all three non-conference games - UCLA, Wagner and at UNLV - and they avoid Miami and Louisville, two teams viewed as among the ACC’s best. Clemson comes to Berkeley, which gives Cal at least one heavyweight test at home.
Still, the toughest part of the slate is hard to miss: three straight road games, with a bye tucked in there, against SMU, NC State and Virginia. If Cal can steal one of those, then finish at home against Stanford and Pitt, an eight-win season is there for the taking.
The offseason work has been impressive, especially on the recruiting front. What remains is the part Lupoi and his staff have yet to do in their current roles: preparing for opponents, making game-day calls and adjusting on the fly.
Lupoi is a first-time head coach. Jordan Somerville is a first-time offensive coordinator.
Michael Hutchings is a first-time defensive coordinator. Nobody knows exactly how that will look once the season starts - not even them.
There’s no obvious reason to doubt they can manage it. But that’s one of the biggest things worth watching when Cal finally kicks off.
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Gavin Eddy Just Ended A Brutal Draft Wait For Cal
Gavin Eddys climb this spring gave Cal something it badly needed in the MLB draft: a name off the board early enough to reset the mood around the program. The right-hander, a 21-year-old junior, put together a strong season for the Bears, going 6-3 with a 2.87 ERA and establishing himself as the first Cal player selected in the 2026 draft.
For a program that went through a year without a single draftee, Eddys selection carried extra weight beyond one players next step. It also underscored how far his stock rose over the course of the season, with a late surge that included a dominant outing against No. 23 Virginia and a finish that suggested he was peaking when it mattered most. [Read more 🡒]