Jacob Spomer’s path to the Chargers looks like the kind of climb that keeps getting steeper - and then somehow opens up at just the right time.
Born on October 10, 2002, in Brentwood, California, Spomer came out of Liberty High School as a 2019 honorable mention All-League lineman. The source material doesn’t list a star rating for him coming out of high school, which helps explain why he landed at Diablo Valley and started his college journey the hard way.
His first season at Diablo Valley was wiped out by the 2020 COVID year, but he came back in 2021 and earned All-Conference honors. That season helped him move on as a three-star JuCo recruit, according to 247Sports, and Fresno State became his next stop.
At Fresno State, Spomer began building real momentum. In 2022, he started all 14 games at left tackle and picked up All-Mountain West honorable mention.
The next year, he started 10 games, earned Mountain West honorable mention again, and then his season ended with a torn ACL. That injury also carried over into 2024, when he managed only five games at left tackle.
Then came the reset. Healthy in 2025, Spomer made the switch to center and turned in his best season yet, earning First-Team All-Mountain West honors.
He also finished with 13 starts, was the highest PFF graded center in the Mountain West, and posted a 75.5 PFF overall grade, a 76.6 run-blocking grade and an 81.5 pass-blocking grade. He allowed zero sacks, gave up eight pressures and was charged with seven penalties.
That production, plus the position change, helped build the buzz around him. Chargers draft expert Thomas Martinez described Spomer this way: "Spomer is on the smaller side physically but where he excels is his ability to explode out of his stance, reach difficult targets and adjust on the move very well...
Spomer clearly identified protections and was never fooled by twists or stunts. He did flash very good awareness and an ability to see through traffic."
Los Angeles acted on that upside by giving him an undrafted rookie contract, betting he could compete for a roster spot on a team that does not have a true backup center. The Chargers currently list Tyler Biadasz, Josh Kaltenberger and Spomer as their three true centers, while rookie Jake Slaughter could also work there but is expected to push for a guard job.
Spomer’s athletic profile also stands out. His RAS card lists him as an OC prospect in the 2026 draft class with an 8.22 RAS out of 10.00, which ranked 131 out of 729 OC from 1987 to 2026.
Spotrac says, "Jacob Spomer signed a 3 year, $3,110,000 contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, including $10,000 signing bonus, $10,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $1,036,667. In 2026, Spomer will earn a base salary of $885,000 and a signing bonus of $10,000, while carrying a cap hit of $888,333 and a dead cap value of $10,000."
Now the question is whether Spomer can keep the momentum going after his move to center and turn that opportunity into a real case for the final 53-man roster.
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