Tennessee Transfer RB Justin Williams-Thomas Commits to Cal

Running back had committed to Stanford two weeks ago, but he switched to the Bears.

Cal began to restore its running-back depth by getting a commitment from Tennessee freshman Justin Williams-Thomas, who announced on Sunday he is transferring to Cal.

After entering the transfer portal Williams-Thomas had committed to Stanford late last month, but the Bears were able to get him to switch his commitment to the Bears.

Stanford had announced his commitment to the Cardinal and new head coach Troy Taylor on Dec. 28, saying Williams-Thomas was Stanford's first undergraduate transfer signing. Presumably Williams-Thomas did not sign anything that prevented him from switching to Cal.

He was on the dean's list in his first semester at Tennessee.

Williams-Thomas was a four-star recruit coming out of Dallas.  He played in three games for Tennessee this past season and carried the ball 11 times for 37 yards.  But because he played only three games he did not use up a year of eligibility so he still has four seasons of eligibility remaining.

Cal needs running backs because four running backs who played for Cal in 2022 entered the transfer portal -- DeCarlos Brooks, Damien Moore, Chris Street and Ashton Hayes.

The 6-foot, 210-pound Williams-Thomas ran for 1,956 yards and added 190 receiving yards in his senior year at East Paulding High School.

Rivals ranked his as the 11th-best running back prospect in the nation in the class of 2022. He signed with Tennessee after getting offer from Michigan, Auburn and USC among others.

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