Cal Players to Know for Week Five Football Matchup at Boston College: Just a Minute

In a little over a week, 10 days to be exact, the Boston College football program will host California-Berkeley in Chestnut Hill, Mass., at 3:30 p.m. EST at Alumni Stadium.

The Eagles (1-2, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) have landed on their first bye week at the right time for them, due to the number of injuries which piled up prior to and during BC’s 30-20 loss on the road to Stanford last Saturday.

Last Thursday, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that BC would be playing Stanford without its two starting cornerbacks, Amari Jackson and Syair Torrence, and starting defensive tackle Owen Stoudmire.

Defensive backs Njita Sinkala, Marcus Upton, and Ashton McShane were also listed as out for the game, as well as wide receivers Jonathan Montague Jr., Michael Landolfi, and Will Graves, offensive lineman Souleye Diawara, and tight end Danny Edgehille.

In the defeat, BC’s starting left tackle, Jude Bowry, exited the game, and so did starting linebacker Daveon “Bam” Crouch in the very late stages.

While the Eagles do not suit up for a game this week, their next opponent, the Cal Golden Bears, are traveling just eight and a half hours south this week to face San Diego State before venturing across the country in what will be the second-longest road trip of any ACC football competition this season to visit BC.

Here is a list of Cal players to watch in the Golden Bears’ fourth matchup of the season against the Aztecs who could later play a key role against the Eagles. The Golden Bears would arrive on the Heights unbeaten at 4-0 if they pick up a victory at San Diego State this week.

1. QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele

Cal’s true freshman quarterback, who earned ACC Rookie of the Week honors in Week Three, has picked up the reins of the offense right where former starting quarterback Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) left them.

𝐑𝐮𝐧 𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 🔁@JaronKeawe ➜ ACC Rookie of the Week#SmartAndTough #GoBears pic.twitter.com/w8BH7zAUyA
— Cal Football (@CalFootball) September 15, 2025

Sagapolutele is completing passes at a rate of 67 percent and has manufactured 780 yards, six touchdowns to one interception, and a 7.4 yards per attempt average through his first three career starts.

In the Golden Bears’ Week Three triumph over Minnesota, Sagapolutele, a lefty, registered 279 passing yards (7.3 per attempt) and three passing touchdowns with a QBR of 75.0.

Sagapolutele can sling the rock on the run to the second and third level of the field, and his ability to read the field is highly active for a player who is just 19 years old.

His footwork needs to be less choppy on dropbacks, and he has a tendency to inch back almost too far in the pocket, which has led to sacks deep in the backfield. But his arm talent is evident, and he has the ability to place the ball on a rope from just about any angle.

2. WR Trond Grizzell

Grizzell, a senior who has spent all four years at Cal, is on pace to top his previous receiving yards and receptions totals in 2024 (401 yards, 27 receptions) and 2023 (590 yards, 39 receptions), respectively, with 11 receptions and 175 yards, including a touchdown, through the Golden Bears’ first three matchups.

The 6-foot-4, 205-pound target is primarily a deep-ball threat—Grizzell is averaging 15.9 yards per catch—due to his natural size, which towers over the average defensive back.

Grizzell did not hesitate to present himself as a legitimate target in the Golden Bears’ first game of the season, a 34-15 win at Oregon State, racking up five receptions for 83 yards and a touchdown.

BC will need to get back some of its secondary core in order to shut down Sagapolutele and the Cal air raid, which Grizzell will most definitely be a factor in.

Jacob De Jesus, a 5-foot-7, 170-pound wideout who transferred from Las Vegas, where he totaled 1,118 receiving yards on 96 receptions, five touchdown receptions, 147 rushing yards, and one rushing touchdown, is also a player to watch in the pass-catching realm.

3. DBs Hezekiah Masses and Isaiah Crosby

The Golden Bears have presented a stout defensive plan against the pass this year, surrendering just 197.7 yards per game, and it all starts with Masses and Crosby.

Masses is currently tied for first in the country with three interceptions to go along with eight solo tackles (14 total) and five passes defended. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound senior has notched 69 yards on returns from interceptions, including his longest return of 41 yards.

Crosby is more of a pure disruptor in the deep secondary and has a keen ability to pursue players with the ball in open field. The Fort Worth, Tex., native leads Cal in solo tackles with 14 (21 solo) and has defended three passes this season.

Through three weeks, the Eagles are the best passing offense in the nation in passing yards per game, and their top receiver, Lewis Bond, ranks first in the country in receptions with 29. The tandem of Crosby and Masses will be where the focus is for offensive coordinator Will Lawing and head coach Bill O’Brien in terms of scheming against the Golden Bears’ secondary, which is visibly tough to navigate.

4. LBs Luke Ferrelli and Cade Uluave

On the defensive side, Cal is even better against the run than it is against the pass, surrendering just 82.3 rushing yards per game (247 total), which ranks in the top-15 in the nation for teams which have played three games.

Ferrelli and Uluave are the Golden Bears’ primary run stoppers and lead the squad in total tackles—Ferrelli with 27 and Uluave with 24. Linebacker TJ Bush Jr. is also a dangerous pass rusher who has registered two sacks in 2025 so far.