Cal’s defense is about to look almost nothing like the one that took the field last season.
With Tosh Lupoi taking over as head coach and Michael Hutchings stepping in as defensive coordinator, the Bears are staring at a full-scale rebuild on that side of the ball. Only one regular Cal starter from last year appears to have a starting job safely in hand for 2026 - outside linebacker Jayden Wayne - and as many as eight transfers could end up in the opening-day defense when Cal meets UCLA on September 5.
The uncertainty is real everywhere, and it starts with how the Bears will line up. Cal’s base look might technically be listed as a 3-4, but the more likely setup is two down linemen, two outside linebackers and five defensive backs. That would give the Bears a four-man front with a nickel on the field, which is the kind of structure Lupoi used at Oregon.
That Oregon defense, with Lupoi calling the shots, started two down linemen and five defensive backs in 13 of 15 games last season. The Ducks never opened a game with three defensive linemen, and in the two games they went with four defensive backs, they compensated by starting five linebackers instead of four. Cal’s old depth chart under Justin Wilcox listed three defensive linemen, but the Bears were actually starting two down linemen and five defensive backs in almost every game anyway.
That’s why these depth charts can get messy. In practice, the Bears could be looking at 12 defensive starters: three defensive linemen, two inside linebackers, two outside linebackers, and five defensive backs, including a nickel. But depending on the package, not every listed starter is guaranteed to be on the field at once.
Up front, the picture is cloudy. Cal may use only two of the three players competing for those spots, and it’s not clear which two.
Nusi Malani Burrell missed all of last season because of an injury, and at 285 pounds he may be the odd man out if Cal wants more size in the middle. Still, he has 21 starts across the previous three seasons and has shown he can deal with bigger offensive linemen.
The 345-pound J.M. Johnson, who played in nine games as a redshirt freshman at Oregon last season, brings real mass inside, while Ben Wilkins has Cal experience.
Mississippi State transfer Ashun Shepphard is also in the mix.
The inside linebacker jobs may be even more important, especially after Cade Uluave and Luke Ferrelli transferred out. Luke Jernigan played sparingly at Texas A&M last season, and AJ Tuitele appeared in only three games as a true freshman at USC in 2025.
Even so, their talent makes them the favorites for those two spots. Aaron Hampton, who flashed in limited action for Cal last year, and Oregon transfer Kamar Mothudi are pushing to change that.
Wayne looks set on the edge after starting nine games for Cal last season, and Solomon Williams also appears locked in after playing in 12 games for Texas A&M last year without starting any of them. Williams is expected to be Cal’s top pass rusher after posting three tackles for loss in limited work as a redshirt freshman for the Aggies in 2025. Justin Beadles, now at his fourth school, could factor in there too, while the most intriguing name is Tennessee transfer Emmanuel Okoye, described as the most athletic player on the Cal roster but also one with very little football experience.
The secondary has its own questions, and only one spot there feels settled. J.P.
Fletcher is the lone defensive back with a starting job that looks secure. At corner, Jahlil Groves-Killebrew is expected to battle Daniel Harris for the other starting job, a major issue for Cal after losing standout corners Hezekiah Masses and Brent "Paco" Austin, who are both on NFL preseason teams.
Safety is a three-man race for two spots. Koa Lopa, who played 13 games off the bench for Oregon last season as a redshirt freshman, and Daryan Manutai, who started 11 games for Cal as a true freshman last season, seem to have the edge. But Isaiah Crosby could jump either one after opening 2025 as a Cal starting safety for the first four games before a season-ending injury.
Nickel will almost certainly be part of the starting group most weeks, if not every week. The main contenders there are Darius Sidney, who started eight games for Cal last season, and Utah transfer Quimari Shemwell.
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