Quarterback Decommits From Cal for the Class of 2026

Brady Palmer, a three-star quarterback from San Diego who committed to Cal in June, announced on social media on Thursday that he has decommitted from Cal for the class of 2026.

Palmer attends Cathedral High School in San Diego and announced that he has re-opened his recruiting.

Palmer has also received offers from Ohio State, Washington, Auburn, Kansas State, Utah, TCU, Michigan State, Minnesota, Boston College and Arizona among others. Ohio State offered Palmer in April of 2024 and Washington offered him in January 2024.

On3/Rivals now rates Kansas State as the school with the best chance of landing a commitment from Palmer.

Grateful for it all. I am re-opening my recruitment. @adamgorney @PeteNakos @mzenitz @BrandonHuffman pic.twitter.com/vW8L8vS6ON
— Brady Palmer (@bradypalmerqb) November 20, 2025

The 247Sports site rated Palmer the 56th-best quarterback prospect in the class, and On3/Rivals ranked him as the 66th-best quarterback prospect in the class.

Cal still has one quarterback commitment for its class of 2026, and that’s Nainoa Lopes, a three-star prospect from St. Louis High School in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Of course, Cal is hoping to have Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele as its starting quarterback for a few more years. He is the Bears starting quarterback this season as a true freshman and has helped the Golden Bears to a 6-4 record heading into Saturday’s game at Stanford.

The Bears are trying to retain Sagapolutele for at least the 2026 season instead of seeing him transfer to another school after this season. Sagapolutele has said this week he is “pretty sure” he will be at Cal for the 2026 season, and general manager Ron Rivera is “confident” Cal will retain him for another season.

The Bears have a total of 20 commitments for the class of 2026, and none of those commitments are binding. Players are not bound to the school of their choice until they sign a financial agreement contract (formerly a letter of intent) with the school.

The earliest a player can sign with a school is December 3, which is when the early signing period begins.

Cal’s 2026 class ranks as the 40th-best in the country, according to Rivals, and that ranks the Bears class eighth in the ACC.