Justin Wilcox, Cal stays hot on the recruiting trail

It’s an offseason for the ages for many, many reasons but despite the coronavirus pandemic shutting down in-person meetings and campus visits for recruits, the California Golden Bears football team has been on a tear as of late. In the month of April, Cal picked up three commitments and according to 247Sports, offered 12 different athletes on the recruiting trail.

QB Kai Millner, DB Kaleb Higgins and S Hunter Barth all pledged their services to head coach Justin Wilcox and the Cal Bears last month, joining four others who had previously committed to Berkeley.

Cal currently ranks in the top 25 in the nation in recruiting class ranking, and second only behind USC in the Pac-12. They’re also in the final four for four-star RB Damir Collins.

Wilcox and his staff have been pushing forward, and those offers to 12 new athletes are as follows:

LB Patrick Hisatake
DB Kechaun Bennet
LB Keith Cooper
DB Darren Barkins
DB Ty Williams
DB Myzel Williams
DB Devin Lemear
WR Jadyn Marshall (2022)
TE Ryan Otton (2022)
OL Trent Ramsey (2022)
DE Zac Swanson (2022)
LB Lamar Washington (2022)

The linebacker duo represents a three-star duo as Hisatake hails from Oregon and Cooper from Texas. Hisatake is the fifth-best player in the state, according to 247Sports and at 6’5, 240 pounds, is a load of a man who holds at least 19 offers, mainly from Power-5 schools. Cooper has even more offers, currently sitting at 23 and is a two-sport athlete who also plays basketball. His athleticism on note, he was offered most recently, on April 28.

Bennett is from the northeast, from Suffield Academy in Suffield, Connecticut. He’s the No. 1 player in the state and ranks as a four-star recruit on the 247Sports composite, and the 21st-best strongside defensive end. He’s a bit slight for his frame but has a ton of room to grow in a college S&C program.

Both Williams, Ty and Myzel, as well as Lemear also represent out-of-state offers as Myel Williams hails from DeLand High School in Deltona, Florida. He’s a three-star safety prospect and ranks as a top-175 player in the state of Florida for this class. He has nearly 30 offers at this time and seems to be a longshot for Cal.

Lemear, from Manor High School in Texas is another safety prospect, ranking as the 66th-best safety in the country and a top-150 player in Texas. He’s considered to be a lock for Baylor but don’t be surprised if some west coast pressure could alter that fact.

Ty Williams received his offer from Cal at the beginning of the month and has since committed to in-state Oklahoma State on April 26.

Then things get interesting. It’s clear that Wilcox and Co. are interested in continuing to build for the future. The simple fact that they offered five athletes for the 2022 class means multiple that and more.

They’re doing their homework and getting a jump on the rest of the competition while they’re in safer-at-home orders. That’s a great sign of things to come.

One thing is for sure, the amount of work being done on the recruiting trail is certainly paying off and they’re sitting in the top 25 of recruiting class rankings and we’re just in the early stages of May. Think of what this class could look like once it’s all said and done.