Cal Football Recruiting: Bears Look To Salvage Class

In the last month, Cal has lost commitments from five-stars Ellis McCarthy (to UCLA) and Shaq Thompson (to Washington). The Bears also saw Arik Armstead, an elite lineman, go to Oregon. That was especially painful because he was considered a lock to play for Cal until defensive line coach and ace recruiter Tosh Lupoi bolted for the same position at Washington. Cal also lost a commitment from safety Zach Hoffpauir, who seems likely to choose Stanford on National Signing Day.

Additionally, receiver Kenny Walker is likely to switch his commitment to Washington. “Too bad. Walker is a local kid (from Richmond), and has been in the fold since August. He’s also our fastest WR commit and a versatile, talented guy,” said Tausend.

Walker is a three-star prospect from Richmond, CA. He ranks 60th out of all California prospects and in the 2012 class he ranks No. 71 out of all wide receivers in the Rivals rankings.

Walker isn’t an elite prospect, but it’s certainly bad news indeed that the Golden Bears recruiting class seems to be falling apart leading into National Signing Day.

Jordan Payton, a top receiver recruit, has committed to Washington and decommitted from the Cal Bears. Payton stars for Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.). He holds offers from California, USC, Michigan, Washington and Notre Dame. Payton had committed to Cal during the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Previous to that, Payton had been committed to USC for some time.

At 6’2” and 200 pounds, Payton has excellent size for the receiver position. He is rated four stars by most major services, and is widely regarded as one of the top-20 receivers in the country.

Cal’s recruiting class is falling apart, according to SB Nation Bay Area:

For more on Cal recruiting, head to California Golden Blogs.

Cal fans should immediately read Tosh The Traitor Backstabs Jeff Tedford, Backstabs Cal, by the uber-talented Avinash Kunnath of CaliforniaGoldenBlogs. I don’t agree with everything Avinash wrote, particularly the part about a coach needing to stop recruiting a player if he switches schools.

But I do agree with Avinash that the way in which Tosh went about his business, if he did indeed do so in the manner presented in the article, is completely underhanded and unethical.

Despite Cal not having a winning Pac-12 record in the last three years, Lupoi’s efforts landed Cal many top recruits who would have previously never seriously considered Cal as a destination. The loss of the coach who is arguably the best recruiter in the country is already having implications for the Golden Bears.

Cal recently landed a commitment from the top safety in the country, Shaq Thompson. The commitment was due in part to the tireless work of Lupoi. After hearing the news, Thompson tweeted:

The West team convincingly beat the East, but the real story of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl was the huge recruiting day had by the Cal Bears.

It started early for Cal, as Cal grabbed a commitment from four-star receiver Jordan Payton. That one wasn’t exactly a surprise, but when Ellis McCarthy pulled the trigger, more than a few Bears fans were surprised to see that one of the top defensive tackles West of the Mississippi was headed to Berkeley.

Shaq Thompson, the top safety prospect in the country has committed to the Cal Bears. From Grant Union High School in Corona, California, Thompson held offers from most of the top schools in the country, including California, USC, Oregon, Washington, Florida, Michigan and Notre Dame.

For more on Cal recruiting, check out California Golden Blogs.

At 6’5” and 315 pounds, McCarthy is a mountain of a man. McCarthy is pretty quick, for his size. He definitely doesn’t lumber like many men this size in high school. And again, for his size, McCarthy shows good lateral quickness. He destroys the competition in high school, often beating double teams.

But what the video doesn’t show much of is McCarthy playing in tight spaces. He seems very comfortable chasing down quarterbacks and pursuing. Without seeing more, it’s tough to tell how he handles playing in a phonebooth. And he does need to play lower, otherwise that great length and size will become a curse, not a blessing.

Jordan Payton, a top receiver recruit, has committed to the Cal Bears. Payton stars for Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.). He holds offers from California, Michigan and Notre Dame. Payton had long been thought to have favored the Golden Bears, and made it official today during the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Payton had been committed to USC for some time, before making a switch.

At 6’2” and 200, Payton has excellent size for the receiver position. He is rated four stars by most major services, and is widely ranked as one of the top-20 receivers in the country.