ESPN Ranks Cal's Recruiting Class 25th - Are Players Staying Local?
ESPN released its latest ranking of the top 25 recruiting classes for 2021, and Cal was listed in the last spot, No. 25.
These rankings are likely to change several times before the early signing day on December 18. For example, Alabama moved up 11 spots from ESPN's previous ranking, now standing at No. 2 behind only Ohio State.
The Golden Bears have received commitments from 12 players so far, but several more commitments could be coming in the next few weeks. The Bears' most recent commitment came from offensive tackle Dylan Jemtegaard.
There have been many more verbal commitments at this point this year than there were at this same stage last year, as we noted in a previous story. Presumably the pandemic is influencing coaches' decision to make offers sooner and players' willingness to commit sooner.
Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports noted in a Twitter message that players this year also seem more likely to commit to a school close to home.
Last year, only one player from the Bay Area (DeJuan Butler of Antioch) signed with Cal. The Golden Bears already have two commitments from Bay Area athletes in the class of 2021 -- tight end Jermaine Terry of Richmond, Calif., and defensive end Akili Calhoun of Brentwood, Calif.
And defensive end Kaleb Elarms-Orr of Hayward, Calif., seems to be leaning toward committing to Cal.
The local attraction could be key for two offensive linemen Cal is targeting.
Brock Bowers, a four-star tght end from Napa, Calif., has Cal among his five favorites, along with Georgia, Oregon, Notre Dame and Oregon State. However, Bowers' most likely destination seems to be Georgia, which obviously is not close to home.
The other local offensive lineman on Cal's radar is Ryan Lange, a three-star offensive tackle from Pittsburg, Calif., who has Cal among his four favorites along with USC, Arizona State and Washington State.
Just a little bit outside the Bay Area, Cal received a commitment from Moses Aladejo of Elk Grove, Calif., which is near Sacramento. Cal has interest in another Sacramento-area athlete, three-star outside linebacker Keleki Latu of Carmichael, Calif., who has Cal along with Nebraska, Oregon, Arizona State and Sacramento State as his top schools of interest.
Whether that loal attraction has an impact will become apparent over the next few weeks and months. None of those local players will be playing football in the fall, so the local angle may become more important.
The possibility of a fall without college football also may have an impact.
Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53
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