National Signing Day!

[Update: 4:24 - Thoughts on Linebacker and Defensive Line Recruits]

Ok. I'm back. Don't ask where I was. Seriously.

But what better day to get back into blogging than National Signing Day?

As of now, the Bears are slated to bring in a pretty full class this year with 26 recruits (barring any surprises).

[Update: It looks like some of the surprises I had hoped for aren't happening. Class still isn't terrible, but I am going to say it's looking a little underwhelming.] Most recruiting services rank Cal's class in the Top 30, which is hardly spectacular, but fairly decent given the complete trainwreck of a season last year. It is worth noting that that ranking seems to be inflated a bit by the sheer number of recruits that Cal's bringing in.

ESPN: 29th
Rivals: 28th
Scout: 24th (but still has Cameron Hunt included)

Some have raised eyebrows at Cal's average rating per player that seems to be hovering just above the 3.0 range (out of 5 stars). It appears that Coach Dykes and his staff are taking a shot with some relatively unknown prospects who aren't as highly ranked but again fit into their mantra of "fit."

I'll be updating this post throughout the day with thoughts on some of the more notable recruits as their letters of intent roll in.

Speaking of which, readers will probably want to keep one of their tabs permanently locked on Cal's official signing day page as they'll be updated the list of official new Bears.

So stay tuned. Signing Day is exciting more often than not, though there are likely only one or two more real surprises out there in terms of recruits. We shall see. Read on for thoughts on the players who've come in.

Quarterback:
Jared Goff
I don't think people realize how good Jared Goff is. The consensus 4 star quarterback was one of the first to commit to the Bears in this year's class, yet those fans who follow recruiting have likely been a bit swept up by some of the more recent and close recruiting battles and have subsequently undervalued just how good this guy is.

Goff has been superb both in camps and in high school. He's gone 39-4 as a starter and threw for 3,692 yards and 40 TDs in his senior season, leading his team to CIF Division III championship game. He was named the most accurate passer at the elite 11 Regional Camp and just missed winning the Elite 11 MVP by the narrowest of margins.

Elite 11 Coach Trent Dilfer on Jared Goff:
“Jared's going to be a rock star. He's got more intuitive qualities than I know how to explain. He's special, and he was in the running for the MVP. He made one bad decision, and that cost him that on the fourth down play. That's how intense this was. It came down to really a decision here, little, tiny things. He's a rock star kid."

The kid is good, and has the tools to be really successful and Dykes and Franklin's offense. In fact, the new offense has exponentially increased Goff's chances of player sooner than later.

"Under coach Tedford, I was probably going to redshirt because the offense was ... hard to learn. It took longer to learn than this offense," Goff said. "It shouldn't take more than a month to learn. It's a very simplistic offense but very effective." (Crumpacker)

I do think Goff's slight frame does put him at a disadvantage and it's hard for me to picture a scenario where Goff might be named the starter outright. But based on what I've seen and heard about Goff, I wouldn't at all be surprised to hear him make waves in camp and firmly entrench himself in the middle of the depth chart.

Offensive Line:
Erik Bunte (4 stars - ESPN, 3 stars - Rivals, Scout)
Aaron Cochran (4 stars - ESPN, 3 stars - Rivals, Scout)
JD Hinnant (3 stars - ESPN, Rivals, Scout)
Chris Borrayo (3 stars - ESPN, Rivals, Scout)
Vincent Johnson (3 stars - ESPN, Rivals, 2 stars - Scout)

The Bears needed help on both sides, and as a position, this unit might be one of the biggest hauls, both figuratively and literally speaking. All the players are big bodies that are going to provide some major depth for years to come.

The big story though is losing Cameron Hunt who would have easily been the best lineman in this class for the Bears. After waivering all year, Hunt finally decided to decommit and has signed with the Ducks up north. I'm bummed, but honestly, I could have seen this coming as Hunt as appeared to be in limbo for almost an entire year now. A huge miss, but his decommitment doesn't destroy this o-line haul in any way.

The one downside is that none of these players seem ready to play right away. Cochran and Hinnant are coming off injuries and will need to get back into shape, while Borrayo and Johnson are going to need to put on a good 30 pounds before they're ready to play. Physically, the only who I could see competing for playing time right away is Erik Bunte, who is absolutely massive at 6'7 and 310 pounds, but he'd have to pick up this offense pretty quickly.

Again, there wasn't necessarily a pressing need for players to step up immediately. The Bears have some nice young players who will likely start next year, but if we've learned anything over the past few seasons, it's that you can never have enough big bodies in the trenches.

Runningback
Khalfani Muhammad (4 stars - ESPN, Rivals, 3 stars - Scout)

I wasn't too worried about this position until I read that both Brendan Bigelow and Daniel Lasco will miss spring practice with injuries. Now, the prospect of either one of those guys missing any part of the season seems scary.

Enter Muhammad who suddenly looks like he might play right away. The guy is an absolute speedster, who's been clocked in the 10.4- 10.5 range in the 100m. The state track champion can absolutely fly, so don't be surprised if he gets involved in this offense or on special teams as a true freshman.

Not being able to get another body here might hurt though. The Bears missed out on the Terrell Newby sweepstakes, and didn't seem to be sold on anyone else. The Bears need for the runningback corps to stay healthy, and see if they can get some depth from walkons. I like Muhammad, but showing up empty witha RB2 spot is disappointing.

Wide Receiver
Jack Austin (3 stars - ESPN, Rivals, Scout)
Caleb Coleman (3 stars - ESPN, 2 stars - Rivals, Scout)
Drake Whitehurst (3 stars - ESPN, 2 stars - Rivals, Scout)

This is one of the more disappointing recruiting units from this year's class. The disappointment is offset a bit by the fact that this wasn't a huge need given last year's whopping class of five WRs, but it's certainly a bit perturbing that the coaching staff wasn't able to bring in some more highly rated wideouts given the huge potential for that position in Dykes and Franklin's offense.

Only netting wideouts that were lightly recruited by major BCS conferences is the definition of underwhelming. I hope to be pleasantly surprised with this class, but as of now I'm not really jumping for joy.

Defensive Line:

Kyle Kragen (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)
Sione Sina (4 stars - ESPN, 3 stars - Rivals, Scout)
Raymond Davison (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)
Garret Hughes (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)
Jacobi Hunter (3 stars - ESPN, 2 stars - Rivals, Scout)
Marcus Manley (2 stars - Rivals, Scout, Not Rated - ESPN)
Takkarist McKinley (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, Not Rated - ESPN)
Tony Mekari (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)


Defensive Line went from being the strength of the defense to a huge recruiting need in just one year. After amassing a wealth of talent at the position, the Bears suddenly found themselves in desperate need of some quality depth and future star talent after sustaining a ridiculous number of injuries.

Dykes' staff certainly got some bodies, but the jury is still out as to how they'll pan out at the collegiate level.

They definitely stocked up at the defensive end position signing JC DEs Kyle "Release the" Kragen, and Sione Sina. Sina in particular might be one to watch as he had his choice of Division I schools to transfer to. Look for both to contribute sooner than later.

McKinley and Davison are actually more OLBs than true DEs, and will probably play at the OLB predator positions at Cal. I'm going to go on record and say that if McKinley catches on in the classroom and with his understanding of the defense, he's going to be one to watch. He's got absolutely ridiculous athleticism for his size. He's a 6'3, 240 pound track champion for crying out loud. The only reason he wasn't recruited so heavily was because he's relatively new to the sport, having only played for his junior and senior seasons. He's still a project, but man, if the lightbulb clicks for the kid, he could be something special.

Most disappointing is the haul at defensive tackle. Tony Mekari can provide some nice depth, but the Bears clearly must know something most recruiting pundits don't with the additions of Marcus Manley and Jacobi Hunter. I'm not trying to badmouth the kids, but take one look at their offer lists and it's hard to argue these were the most sought after prospects. It certainly reeks of "reach" when you're trying to build depth in the most critical positions on defense.

Linebacker
Chad Whitener (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)
Edward Tandy (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)
Johnny Ragin III (4 stars - ESPN, 3 stars Rivals, Scout)

The Bears didn't notch any huge names here, but don't sleep on this group. I think the Bears picked up some quality linebackers here. It's still a bit perplexing as to how Chad Whitener, who recorded close to 150 tackles in both his junior and senior seasons in a competitive league in Texas, could have gone so lightly recruited. He's a true middle linebacker with a nice nose for the ball.

Edward Tandy's a bit of a sparkplug at linebacker, at a decent size of 6'0 and 220. But the late addition of Ragin III might have been one of the biggest late pickups for the Bears. Ragin III spurned an offer from his dream school in Oregon, and has got off the charts athleticism for his size. He's a guy you can see playing in a year or two.

The Bears didn't need any immediate stars here, they simply needed some players to develop and provide depth, and they definitely got that with this group. Some real sleepers.

Secondary:
Cameron Walker (4 stars - ESPN, 3 stars - Rivals, Scout)
Darius Allensworth (4 stars - Rivals, 3 stars - Scout, ESPN)
Trey Cheek (3 stars - Rivals, Scout, ESPN)

Not a bad haul, but with Steve Williams declaring early for the draft, this was a huge position of need this offseason, and the Bears struck out for some highly rated players.

The biggest misses were at the safety position, with the Bears losing out on Tyler Foreman, and it looks like LJ Moore will be signing with Oklahoma. The Bears have missed out on safety in back to back years, and this could be a huge issue moving forward. I am officially afraid of how we look at this position.

Previous Cal commit Shon Atkins "decommitted" a few weeks ago, but all reports seem to indicate it was more of the new coaching staff more or less pulling Atkins' offer because of concerns about grades.

All in all, we got some pretty good at the CB position, but the lack of safeties are going to hurt the Bears.