Cal has their 2018 quarterback: JT Shrout commits to the California Golden Bears

The California Golden Bears have found their quarterback for the 2018 recruiting class. Meet JT Shrout out of Newhall (Ca.) Hart!

Cal had two major 2018 quarterback targets left on the board last week, but with Tyler Shough deciding to commit to the North Carolina Tar Heels, Shrout became priority number one, and Cal was quick to leap.

A three-star prospect (0.8188 from 247 Composite) ranked as the 58th best pro-style quarterback and 172nd best California prospect, Shrout holds offers from a few Mountain West programs like Hawaii, Fresno State, Colorado State and UNLV, with Cal being the first major Power 5 offer. Here are his junior video highlights.

You won’t see a lot of tape, as Shrout was the backup last season at his school. This is part of the reason why Shrout flew under the radar of most major programs (although Oregon had begun inquiries). We’ll get a better taste of Shrout’s abilities this fall when he takes on the starting role for the first time. Should be exciting to see how he blossoms!

The interesting part is that Shrout’s predecessor at Hart (who got the starting reps in 2016) ended up at Eastern Washington, where new Cal offensive coordinator Beau Baldwin was the coach last season.

Shrout joins South Carolina quarterback transfer Brandon McIlwain as Cal’s two quarterbacks in this class. With Adrian Martinez flipping to Tennessee and Victor Viramontes and Max Gilliam transferring, two quarterbacks were definitely needed. The Bears are rebooting this position from the Bear Raid era, and Cal will constantly be on the lookout for new talent at this position!

If Hart sounds familiar, it’s the program where Kyle Boller went to high school. Can Cal land two marquee starters from the same high school?

Welcome to Cal JT! GO BEARS!