Former Cal Star Running Back Jaydn Ott Headed to Oklahoma

The senior-to-be rushed for 1,315 yards in 2023, struggled with an ankle injury last fall

Jaydn Ott celebrates a winning moment at Cal / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Former Cal star Jaydn Ott wasted little time finding a new school. The senior running back will play his final season at Oklahoma.

Just one day after word surfaced that Ott planned to enter the transfer portal — and one day before the portal officially opens on Wednesday — Ott settled on the Southeastern Conference school.

The news was reported on the 247Sports transfer portal site and on ESPN.com.

Ott rushed for 1,315 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging 5.3 yards per rush as a sophomore in 2023.  But after sustaining an ankle injury that never fully healed, Ott totaled just 385 yards and four TDs last season, averaging 3.3 yards per attempt.

Still, he was a hot property on the wide-open college transfer scene. ESPN rated Ott as the No. 3 available player in the transfer portal, behind former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava and Stanford edge rusher David Bailey.

Here’s what ESPN wrote about Ott: 

Background: Cal fought hard to keep Ott in the fold for 2025, but one of the top returning backs in college football is hitting the open market. Ott got off to a spectacular start to his career with the Bears, earning Freshman All-America honors as a true freshman starter in 2022 after putting up 1,218 all-purpose yards and 11 touchdowns in his debut season. He was even better as a sophomore, leading the Pac-12 with 1,315 rushing yards and 12 TDs on his way to first-team all-conference honors. Last year, though, an ankle injury suffered in the season opener made it tough for Ott to play up to his potential. He still managed to play in 10 games but finished the year with 385 rushing yards on 3.3 yards per carry and five total scores. After receiving significant SEC interest this offseason, Ott is ready to get back to playing at a high level but is now looking to do so elsewhere for his senior season.

Scout's take: Ott could be at the top of NFL draft boards if there wasn't a drop-off in production last season. While he lacked a formidable offensive line and played on an injured ankle, he still lacked the explosive runs we saw as an underclassman. He'll still be highly coveted in the spring portal market as an instant-impact weapon with his dynamic traits. Ott possesses exceptional feet and lateral agility. He's a verified 4.5 laser in the 40-yard dash with impressive explosive metrics, but his best asset is his vision and ability to pick and slide gap to gap with quick-twitch elusiveness. Ott doesn't give defenders a clean shot in the hole and can stretch and bounce to the perimeter just as effectively. He breaks tackles with balance more than power and is a productive pass-catching weapon out of the backfield, which raises his value and ability to fit into most schemes. Given the wear on the tires, he might not be able to carry the whole load in the backfield.

Ott totaled 2,597 rushing yards in his three seasons at Cal and was within reach of the program’s career record.

Over his career, Ott has accumulated 3,460 all-purpose yards, third-most among returning FBS players.

He debuted as a freshman by rushing for 104 yards against FCS opponent UC Davis. In his fourth game, he rushed for 274 yards and three touchdowns against Arizona. Ott had five games of at least 150 rushing yards in 2023.

Now junior Jaivian Thomas assumes the No. 1 running back assignment with the Bears. The Oakland native rushed for 626 yards and seven touchdowns last year with Ott often on the sidelines.

The Bears, who also have lost running backs Kadarius Calloway, Byron Cardwell and Justin Williams-Thomas to the transfer portal this spring, figure to give greater opportunity next fall to redshirt freshmen Jamaal Wiley and Jayden Parker.

Coach Justin Wilcox and his staff are also certain to pursue additional running backs through the transfer portal.

Ott will join an Oklahoma backfield that includes former Washington State quarterback John Mateer, who passed for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns last season. He will make his debut with the Sooners on Aug. 30 against Illinois State.

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