Cal Football's Projected 2026 Starting Lineup on Offense

Most Cal skill positions seem set, but who will be the starting tight end or will two tight ends be starters?

Tight end Dorian Thomas while at New Mexico last year | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Cal’s preseason training camp starts in less than two weeks, and the Bears’ starting lineup on offense already seems set at the skill positions, although the tight end spot and offensive line remain a bit of mystery.

A bigger question is whether Cal’s base offense will have one tight end and three wideouts or two tight ends and two wide receivers.

The Bears, under new offensive coordinator Jordan Somerville, will use both alignments at times, but it’s unclear which will be more prevalent.

Two clues:

---1. Cal head coach Tosh Lupoi was an assistant coach at Oregon, which last year started nine games with two tight ends, four games with one tight end, and two games with two running backs, one tight end and two wide receivers.

That may hint at what Lupoi wants to do, but he was the Ducks’ defensive coordinator so he may have a different attack in mind as a head coach. Which leads us to . . . . .

---2. The attention transfers to Somerville, who has never been a coordinator and was the Atlanta Falcons’ assistant quarterbacks coach in 2025. The Falcons started two tight ends in 12 of their 17 games last season and started three tight ends one time. Only twice did they start three wide receivers.

Somerville’s offensive philosophy may differ from Zac Robinson, who was the Falcons’ offensive coordinator last year, but Atlanta’s 2025 alignments may hint at what Somerville wants to do.  Cal has the talent to use two-tight end sets as the Falcons did.

It suggests Cal will line up with two tight ends at least occasionally and perhaps a lot, partly because Cal has the talent at that position to do so.

The only offensive player who is absolutely certain to be in the starting lineup is quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, although running back Adam Mohammed and wide receivers Ian Strong and Chase Hendricks seem destined for the starting lineup too.

It would not be surprising to see tight ends Dorian Thomas and Mason Mini, wide receivers Strong and Hendricks and running back Mohammed all on the field together on occasion, perhaps for an entire possession, to get their five best proven skill-position players in the game together.

Here is our projection for the Bears’ starting lineup on offense to begin the 2026 season. (An asterisk - * - is placed by one wide receiver spot and one tight end spot depending on the alignment used to start a game.)

Quarterback – Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele

Comments: The only question at this position is who the backup will be.  It’s likely to be Jackson Brousseau, who started eight games for Colorado State last season as a redshirt sophomore.

Running back – Adam Mohammed

Comments: Mohammed was scheduled to be the starting running back at Washington in 2026, but opted to transfer to Cal, and will be the starter for the Bears. Most teams use a second running back over the course of a game, and the backup will likely be Carter Vargas, who averaged 6.6 yards per carry at UC Davis last season. UTEP transfer Ashten Emory and redshirt freshman Anthony League may get playing time too.

Wide receiver – Ian Strong

Wide receiver – Chase Hendricks

*Slot receiver – Cooper Perry

Comments: Strong may be the most talented player on the Cal squad after catching 54 passes for Rutgers a year ago, and Hendricks was a second-team all-MAC selection at Ohio in 2025, so those two spots seem set.  If Cal goes with a one-back, one-tight end alignment, Perry seems like the best bet to be the slotback starter after catching 10 passes as a true freshman at Oregon in 2025. Jordan King and Trevor Rogers also could figure in the wideout rotation.

Tight end – Dorian Thomas

*Tight end – Mason Mini

Comments: This is a talented duo, and Thomas and Mini could both be in the starting lineup for some games. If only one tight end is on the field to begin a game, Thomas is not a lock to be the starter over Mini, who is Cal’s leading returning receiver after making 35 catches last season. However, Thomas was a first-team all-Mountain West pick last season at New Mexico so he has the edge as a starter. True freshman Taimane Purcell could be a factor at this position.

Left tackle – Frederick Williams III

Left guard – Tyson Ruffins

Center – Bastian Swinney

Right guard – Sioape Vatikani

Right Tackle – Jimothy Lewis Jr.

Comments: There's uncertainty on the offensive line, which has been a Cal weakness in recent years, and the starters could change during the season.  Ruffins seems set at one guard spot after starting all 13 games for Cal last year, and Vatikani, who has made 23 starts in his Cal career, is a good bet to be the other guard.  Swinney started the final four games last season and appears to have the best chance at center, while Lewis, who started four games as a redshirt freshman at Mississippi State in 2025, is the likely starter at one tackle position. The other tackle starter is up in the air, with Williams, who started 11 games over the past two seasons at Cal, and Jacob Arop, who started seven games for FCS school South Dakota as a redshirt freshman in 2025, being the main contenders. It is the right tackle position that protects the blind side of left-handed quarterback Sagapolutele, which would put the pressure on Lewis.

Injuries are common on the offensive line, and Cal changed its starting offensive linemen several times last season, so the offensive linemen that begin the season may not be the same ones that finish the season.