What Cal's Offense Will Look Like Under Offensive Coordinator Jordan Somerville

Somerville has never been an offensive coordinator so we must collect hints of his plans for Cal's attack in 2026

Jordan Somerville | Photo by Jake Curtis

Two things seem evident regarding Cal's 2026 offense:

---The Bears have considrable skill-position talent in quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, wide receivers Ian Strong and Chase Hendricks, running back Adam Mohammed and tight ends Dorian Thomas and Mason Mini.

---We know little about what Cal's offensive structure and play-calling will look like because Cal's 30-year-old offensive coordinator Jordan Somerville has never been a coordinator before and because the media cannot watch preseason Cal practices or scrimmages.

What makes Somerville particularly unusual is that he did not play college football, graduating from Arizona State in 2019 with a business degree. He worked as a student assistant at ASU in 2017 and 2018 and as a graduate assistant in 2019. (Mike Leach did not play college football either, and he is considered one of the great offensive minds of his generation).

The Bears' September 5 opener against UCLA will unveil at least part of what Somerville has in mind.

The Bears have said Cal will run a pro-style offense, which already distinguishes it from a lot of FBS schools, most of whom run a version of the spread offense. Cal head coach Tosh Lupoi may have chosen the pro-style to appeal to quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele and Sagapolutele's NFL aspirations.

Pro-Style Vs. Spread Offense

The spread uses up to five wide receivers to stretch the field horizontally for a quick passing game. It makes use of a good running quarterback to execute the RPO (run-pass option) plays. The quarterback almost always operates out of the shotgun

The pro-style attack emphasizes a balanced attack with a strong running game leading to a play-action passing game based on rhythm and favorable matchups. The quarterback is asked to make a lot of presnap reads to get to the proper play, and he operates out of the shotgun or under center.

This doesn't tell us much about how Somerville will structure the Bears offense or his play-calling habits. We can only surmise what the Bears' offense will look like based on the offensive philosophies of three people -- Kenny Dillingham, the current Arizona State head coach and former Oregon offensive coordinator; Liam Coen, the current Jacksonville Jaguars head coach and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator, and Dave Canales, the current Carolina Panthers' head coach and former Bucs offensive coordinator.

Those are the three people that Somerville says most influenced his offensive philosophy, and it makes sense since Dillingham was on the Oregon staff when Somerville was an assistant with the Ducks, and Canales and Coen were the Bucs offensive coordinators in 2023 and 2024, respectively, when Somerville was the Bucs assistant quarterbacks coach.

So will Cal's offense will look more like Oregon's offense under Dillingham or the Buccaneers' offense under Coen or Canales.?

"You'll see reminiscences of both for sure, between Oregon, Tampa, early years Oregon, when Dan [Lanning] first got there and Kenny Dillingham was the OC," Somerville said.

Let's look at the offensive philosophies of those three offensive minds -- Dillingham, Coen and Canales -- then we'll conclude what Somerville might do with Cal's offense.

Kenny Dillingham Offensive Philosophy

Somerville made a points saying his style follows Dillingham’s “early” schemes, so we go back to 2022.

In 2022, Dillingham’s offense at Oregon had Bo Nix as its quarterback.  That year Dillingham used a pro-style offense with a varied tempo, sometimes playing at a breakneck pace, and sometimes allowing time for the quarterback to make presnap reads.

The offense was based on making the best use of the offensive personnel. That meant a steady diet of runs if he felt the offensive line had an advantage. It also meant using certain personnel groups to get attractive one-on-one matchups and get athletic players in space.

Liam Coen Offensive Philosophy

Liam Coen’s offenses are based on offenses Sean McVay used with the Los Angeles Rams. It has a heavy dependency on the quarterback making presnap reads to get to the proper play. The idea is to avoid having the quarterback face a defense he can’t exploit.

The use of motion and shifts is used to help the quarterback read the defense and get attractive matchups. There is an emphasis on a physical running game, and Coen puts a premium on toughness and efficiency in the offensive line.

Dave Canales Offensive Philosophy

Canales emphasizes a balanced attack with a premium on running the football. The establishment of a tough, effective running game then sets up a play-action passing game based on high-percentage intermediate passes. A variety of formations are used to get the desired matchups.

The quarterback is sort of like a playmaking basketball guard in the Canales offense.  The quarterback directs the offense, making sure the proper play is run, but is asked to get the ball out quickly to play-makers so they can produce chunk plays. Versatility among the skill-position players is important.

What to Expect from Somerville’s Offense

Look for Cal to try to develop a physical, downhill running game, often using two or three tight ends at a time to aid the offensive line.  Oregon used two tight ends in its starting lineup in most games last season. (Cal had the second-worst running game in the country last season so establishing a consistent running threat this may be a challenge.)

Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele will work out of a shotgun formation or under center and will be asked to make a lot of presnap reads to get Cal into the proper play. There may be occasional use of a hurry-up offense, but that will be rare. Cal will usually huddle, then allow Sagapolutele to take a look at the defense.

Receivers (Ian Strong and Chase Hendricks), tight ends (Dorian Thomas and Mason Mini) and running backs (Adam Mohammed and Carter Vargas) will be asked to do a variety of things to get them open in space or create favorable one-on-one matchups.

This offense would seem to suit Sagapolutele, who is strictly a drop-back passer and not an RPO threat. Other than the occasional scramble, he will not be asked to run in Somerville’s pro-style offense.

Somerville said Sagapolutele is doing a good job of adjusting to the new offense. We'll see on September 5.