Cal is nearing double-digit practices in training camp, and the Bears will reach that number on Sunday when they go through their first full scrimmage of the fall. It will be an important day and should give the players battling for starting jobs and spots in the rotation an opportunity to take hold of a job at a crucial point in camp.
Saturday's practice brought some intriguing moments, and here is a rundown of what I observed at one the most well-attended practices of camp up to this point.
Day 9 notes and observations
- The top priority for Cal right now is going to be getting healthy. We'll get a full (as much as he can) medical update from Justin Wilcox on Sunday when he speaks after the scrimmage, but there are a number of either projected starters or contributors who are simply not able to practice right now because of injury. The sideline has been getting more filled every day. Wilcox has been optimistic that most of the injuries aren't going to be long term, but it is starting to become a bit more concerning with how many contributors are not able to practice as the team heads into its first scrimmage of camp.
- The quarterback battle hasn't felt like a major battle up to this stage, but the shift has started to happen a bit in terms of it truly being a competition. Fernando Mendoza has been a bit, I'll say, flat over the last couple practices. I wouldn't categorize him as playing poorly, but he has not been as sharp over the last couple practices as he was earlier in camp. Meanwhile, Chandler Rogers has settled into a nice comfort zone with his ability to make the right plays. From my perspective, this is as close as the two have been in terms of competition since Rogers arrived on campus.
The staff continues to alternate and split reps evenly between Mendoza and Rogers, so there are no clear indications who would be the starter right now. The feeling is that it would be Mendoza, but there is certainly some things that need to be settled before any kind of determination can be made. I'm not sold that Mike Bloesch and Sterlin Gilbert will get the clear winner of the competition that it sounds like they expected.
- Meanwhile, CJ Harris has clearly been the most consistent quarterback among the group. The Ohio transfer has almost exclusively worked with the third unit, so you have to keep that in mind, but he's made the most amount of scoring plays and has not had many mistakes at all. It will be interesting to see if he gets any opportunity to work with the first unit before the end of camp, but he has accounted for many of the top offensive plays in recent practices. Saturday, he tossed two of the three touchdowns that came during the team periods.
He hit Nyziah Hunter on both occasions, first finding the second-year receiver on a 6-yard touchdown play before connecting with Hunter again to close out the red zone team period on an 11-yard play that came on an inside route.
- Mendoza accounted for the other touchdown during the first team period (there weren't any touchdowns scored by the offense in the second team period) when he found Jaivian Thomas leaking out on a screen for a 5-yard score during the red zone period. He did have a couple notable passes that didn't end in touchdowns. Mendoza linked up with Cole Boscia on a 15-yard play during his time to open the first team period — Mendoza worked with the second unit to start. He later found Trond Grizzell for 18 yards during the second team period on one of the best looking plays of the day.
- Rogers' best work came during the 7-on-7 period Saturday, as he accounted for a few touchdowns with the team working in the red zone. he opened things up with a 10-yard throw to Mason Starling for a score and followed that up with another 10-yard touchdown pass to Corey Dyches. Late in the period, Rogers hit Tobias Merriweather on a 20-yard play that was great on both ends with Merriweather doing a nice job of getting behind the defense.
- The injuries have allowed me to see what some of the depth chart could look like as players have stepped into some new roles in recent practices. Some moves have not been surprising at all while others have certainly been intriguing. Among the moves that took place Saturday was Grizzell moving back into the slot with the first unit. He's spent quite a bit of time on the outside during camp, but he played almost exclusively inside on Day 9. When lining up alongside Merriweather and Kyion Grayes, which he did a bit Saturday, it certainly gives the Bears an intimidating look at receiver.
Aidan Keanaaina looks like he'll be the next man up in the defensive line rotation. With Ricky Correia on the mend, the Notre Dame transfer was moved into the starting group alongside fellow newcomer T.J. Bollers.
Elsewhere, the depleted secondary has forced the coaches to move some players around just to make practice work. Saturday, that move was sliding Lu-Magia Hearns III into the slot allowing freshman Khamani Hudson the opportunity to work at the cornerback spot with the second unit. Hearns looked natural in the nickel position while Hudson held his own with the second unit. Hearns came up with a pass breakup in the second team period working against Grizzell while Hudoson had a pass breakup in the end zone during the first team period with Mendoza attempting a pass to Boscia.
- The defense didn't have a ton of opportunities to get into the backfield, but it excelled in slowing down the run and making plays at the line of scrimmage in the passing game on Saturday. That is a nice step in the right direction for that group with Ryan McCulloch, Nate Escalada, Isaiah Crosby and Curlee Thomas IV all having some nice moments on Day 9.
Post-practice interviews
Practice 9 clips
Practice 9 photo gallery
PHOTOS: Cal training camp 2024 (Day 9)
A collection of our best shots from Saturday's practice at California Memorial Stadium.
