How Cal Finishes the Season Could Affect Its Recruiting

Cal and coach Tosh Lupoi have more on the line in the Bears' final four game that just a respectable record. How the Bears finish the season could affect commitments from high school prospects, specifically four-star quarterback Dane Weber.

The top high school prospects have a lot of options in choosing a college and a considerable amount of money is at stake for them these days. But they are also teenagers, who can be swayed by what they see.

Cal is 3-5 heading into Saturday's road game against North Carolina State (3-4), and when Lupoi was asked this week whether Cal's showing the rest of the season will affect recruiting and commitments, Lupoi had this to say.

"I think it could, certainly," he said. "Great players want to be part of winning equations. Super fortunate thus far with the players that we've recruited [in] this elite class, and the strong majority have really been strong with us. But certainly it can affect . . . . .Great players want to go win just like I do . Also I think a lot of those great player see the possibility of making an immediate impact, and that's exciting for them."

Cal's 2027 recruiting class is ranked as the 24th-best in the country by 247Sports and 26th by Rivals Industry Composite based on the player commitments, but it's been interesting to see the reaction of some of Cal's top committed players to the Bears' 2026 results.

Wide receiver Charles Davis, the highest rated prospect in Cal’s 2027 class, committed to Cal in May, but had some misgivings about his choice after Cal’s weak offensive showing in the Bears’ 24-10 loss to Clemson on September 25 when Cal did not score an offensive touchdown. Davis reopened his recruitment one day after that game.

Then, two days after seeing Cal’s strong showing in the Bears’ 25-20 upset of Virginia Tech on October 3, Davis re-committed to Cal, pledging to enter Cal in January.

It was just four days after that disappointing Cal loss to Clemson that cornerback Alius Mayo, the top-ranked junior college prospect in the country, flipped his commitment from Cal to Georgia after committing to Cal in August.

Four-star tight end prospect Rahzario Edward didn’t wait either. He also committed to Cal in May, but one day after the Bears’ poor showing in their 41-7 loss to Wake Forest on October 17, Edwards switched his commitment to Mississippi.

Perhaps Cal’s most important commitment is quarterback Weber, and his recent uncertainty is a story worth paying close attention to.

He committed to Cal in May, choosing the Bears over UCLA and Cincinnati.

However, he took another visit to UCLA on the weekend of October 12, when Cal’s got crushed by Wake Forest. Not much was made of the trip then, but one day after Cal’ 59-20 loss to SMU, Adam Gorney of Rivals/On3 quoted Weber as saying, “I feel like I have the right to explore everything.” He was wavering.

UCLA, under new head coch Bob Chesney, has no quarterback in its 2027 recruiting class yet and is pushing hard for Weber.

UCLA and Cal entered the 2026 season with similar expectations, with neither expected to challenge for a conference title.

But UCLA is 7-0 overall, the only unbeaten team in the Big Ten, and is ranked No. 7 in the country this week. Meanwhile Cal is 3-5 overall, 2-3 in the ACC, and has lost four of its past five games.

Weber presumably is watching.

If Cal pulls things together and has a strong finish to the season it might affect the ultimate decision by Weber and several committed players.

Nothing is binding until the player signs a financial agreement (previously known as a letter of intent) with a given school. The earliest a high school player can sign with a school is December 2, four days after Cal’s final regular-season game against Pitt on November 28.

Cal’s 2027 class is still ranked among the top 30 in the nation, and Weber is still committed to Cal. We’ll see what happens over the next 30 days, but Cal might help its recruiting effort by winning a few games in that span.

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