Piecing Together a Cal Offensive Line That Will Prosper in 2026

Spring football in this era of massive annual player turnover is about blending the old with the new, and that is particularly true of the offensive line where unity and chemistry are paramount.

And perhaps the biggest factor in Cal’s football 2026 success is whether its offensive line can show significant improvement.

Cal returns four offensive linemen who started at least four games apiece last season – Tyson Ruffins (13 starts), Sioape Vatikani (nine starts), Bastian Swinney (four starts) and Frederick Williams III (six starts).

Cal offensive line coach Famika Anae says having that kind of experience back is “huge.”

“That is a huge help of acclimation of the new guys into the program,” Anae said.

But five transfer offensive linemen have been added to the mix via the transfer portal – Jacob Arop (from South Dakota), Jimothy Lewis Jr. (from Mississippi State), Mykeal Rabess (from Florida International), Ashton Rivera (from Kent State) and Kahlee Tafai (from Minnesota).

Anae is not thinking about naming a starting five for 2026 in the spring, but it seems Lewis and Rivera have a chance to be starters, and Lewis probably has the best shot among the newcomers to jump into the starting lineup.

“Extremely good athlete,” Anae said of Lewis. “I’m really excited about his progress.”

A lot depends on how well he can meld with the other offensive linemen, and Anae admits that having new faces is a challenge when it comes to piecing together an offensive line.

“But it’s not unique to the University of California,” he said. “Everybody’s going through it right now so it really becomes the race of who does more with the same allotted time given all across the country to build chemistry.”

Cal did a lot of experimenting with different combinations on the offensive line last season, with eight players getting at least four starts at the five starting positions.

That’s part of the reason the offensive line had its struggles.

“I thought we got better as the season went on,” Anae said. “I thought guys really bought into their roles as we went. We did some things mechanically to help them out in terms of their splits and things like that. I think the guys did a really good job of trying throughout the entire year.”

The Bears’ running game struggled last season. They ranked 133rd of 134 Division I teams in rushing yards per game (81.7) and 131st in yards per rushing attempt (2.76).

The Bears yielded 32 sacks in 2025, which was near the bottom nationally as well.

Ruffins is a good bet to retain a starting role in 2025, but there will be considerable competition for the other spots.

Lewis likes the chemistry that is developing.

“I think we’re all binding together,” he said. “We go out to eat. We do stuff together. I think that’s very important.”

The 6-foot-6, 315-pound Lewis was a four-star prospect coming out of IMG Academy, and he had offers from Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Miami, LSU, Mississippi, Florida State, Louisville and Tennessee before signing with Mississippi State.

He started four games for Mississippi State as a redshirt freshman last season, so he has three seasons of eligibility remaining with the potential to be special.