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Golden Recruiting Wire: Cal football offers and commitment updates

How are our recruiting efforts fairing so far in 2014???

By JahvidKnowsBest
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Instead of focusing in on a specific position group, for this post I want to take a general look on how Cal football recruiting is doing on the whole. I was happy to see (and a bit surprised), that a lot of these players, all of which are high quality, appear to be really interested in Cal. Although we did lose a few big names recently, the general picture has been clearly optimistic early on in 2014.

Jake Browning, Folsom, QB.

4 star pocket passer QB recruit Jake Browning just recently committed to UW. This one is a real bummer, as it seemed possible that we'd stand a decent chance at landing the kid. He was actually just in Berkeley last month for an unofficial, right before he made his unofficial at Washington. At least this narrows down the QB search a bit for us--we're only going to sign one anyway.

Kevin Dillman, Denton (TX), QB.

4 star dual threat QB from Texas that recently committed to the Cornhuskers. I don't feel as bad about this as I do Browning because I don't think we had any real chance of getting him. He displayed some interest in PAC-12 schools, but nothing concrete enough to make me really think he'd bite.

Despite the two losses, the good news is that we're still in contention for Brady White, who in my opinion is one of the most talented QBs in the nation (ranked as ESPN's 105th best player in the country).

White says that he would like to make his final decision in June.

He currently has us, ASU, and Penn State in his top three. He just recently visited ASU and said he enjoyed himself a lot.

He's also set to visit Cal later this month. In terms of recruiting, I always want to be the last school visited before a decision is made. I like our odds here--fingers crossed for a commitment from White in early summer.

Also connected to the White story is the fact that one of his receivers, Trent Irwin, is also very high on Cal, and has the Bears in his final top 5. Unfortunately, Furd is also in the mix for him. Again, I like our chances here, especially considering the fact that White--his quarterback--does not seem to be quite as high on Stanford as Irwin is. Hopefully if White commits to Berkeley, Irwin will follow.

Lavan Alston, St. Bonaventure, ATH.

This talented play-maker visited Berkeley this past week. He is apparently very high on Cal, and I think we have a really good shot of getting him.

In my opinion, Alston is a player that would make an immediate impact, likely on special teams, simply because of his great overall speed. I'd love to take Khalfani off the kick return unit and let him focus solely on running back; a player like Alston would be a safe yet also dangerous alternate.

Ykili Ross, Riverside, CB.

Another exceptionally talented player who is very familiar with the Cal program. With speed to burn, Ross could be a real impact player in the secondary for us if he decides to commit. However, I'm not even sure we'd put him at corner; I think he's talented enough to play receiver or even running back depending on what the coaching staff wants. I'm hoping we can sway him away from the likes of Oklahoma and USC.


Malik Psalms, Chino, Cornerback.

Another talented California CB. Malik is a player that I also believe we have a real shot at acquiring.

Here are some of his Hudl highlights.

James Williams, Burbank, RB

A bit of an under the radar guy, I really like what Williams brings to the table. A very strong all around back, but perhaps what impresses me most about him is his character. Check out this article about what he's overcome in life to get where he is today.

Hard not to root for guys like this. I'm very happy that we offered him.

Here are his Hudl highlights.

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