Jaydn Ott Participates in Cal Pro Day, Finds It 'Nostalgic'

It was strange seeing Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele toss passes to Jaydn Ott on Thursday at Cal’s Memorial Stadium – one of those eerie could-have-been moments.

Sagapolutele was on hand as someone who could throw passes to NFL-seeking wide receivers and running backs performing drills at Cal’s Pro Day.

Ott was there hoping to impress NFL scouts in agility and position drills, so he was warming up with some throws from Sagapolutele.

Yes, Jaydn Ott, was on hand, a late addition to a group performing for pro scouts that included cornerback Hezekiah Masses, who is expected to be drafted; cornerback Paco Austin, who hopes to be drafted, as well as defensive linemen T.J. Bollers and Aidan Keanainna, defensive backs Dru Polidore Jr and Ja’ir Smith, offensive lineman Jordan Spasojevic-Moko, running back LJ Johnson, linebacker Chris Victor, and wide receiver Jacob De Jesus.

Ott was the only one of those 11 players who did not play for Cal in 2025.

But Ott was one of just two players of that group who had played three seasons at Cal (Bollers was the other).

Ott waxed poetic about his Thursday experience.

“It was nice, Man,” he said. “Nostalgic, Man, looking up onto the hill, feeling the sun beat down on me on this field, it was great.”

He had an odd college career. He looked like an NFL first-round draft pick in his first two seasons at Cal, rushing for 1,315 yards as a sophomore in 2023. But injuries limited him to 385 yards in 2024 before he transferred to Oklahoma, where he had an even more disappointing season with just 21 carries for 68 yards.

He was forgotten as an NFL draft possibility.

But he re-emerged as an NFL prosect with an outstanding performance at the Senior Bowl. “Most definitely,” Ott said, noting that he was able to demonstrate his pass-protection skills.

Ott participated in Oklahoma Pro Day last week, but wanted to improve his times in agility drills, so he asked Tosh Lupoi and general manager Ron Rivera whether he could participate in Cal’s Pro Day. Permission was granted and Ott said he improved his time in cone drills by several tenths of a second.

Does Ott believe he will be drafted?

“I’m putting it all in God’s hands,” he said. “If I do, I do. If not, Man, it’s all good.”

Masses is almost certain to be drafted, probably between the third and fifth rounds. He was the only Cal player invited to the NFL Combine last month, but he was at Cal Pro Day to improve on some of his Combine achievements.

His 10-feet, 1-inch leap in his broad jump on Thursday was two inches better than his 9-11 mark at the Combine, and his 34-inch vertical on Thursday was better than the 31.5-inch vertical at the Combine.

Masses did not run a 40-yard dash on Thursday, figuring his 4.46 seconds at the Combine was good enough.

Austin might be drafted but he might have to latch onto an NFL club as an undrafted free agent. He had the best broad jump of the day at 10-feet, 4-inches, although he said he should have done better than his 31.5-inch vertical leap.