Another college football program fired its head coach on Sunday

California has fired head coach Justin Wilcox after nine seasons, making the Golden Bears the latest program to jump into a coaching market that is already moving fast across the sport. ESPN first reported the decision Sunday evening, one day after Cal's 31-10 loss to rival Stanford in the Big Game.

Sources: Cal has fired Justin Wilcox.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 23, 2025

Wilcox finishes his tenure in Berkeley with a 48-55 record, including a 6-5 mark this season that still has the Bears bowl-eligible heading into next weekend's regular-season finale against SMU. Cal has reached a bowl in three straight years (including this year) but has not posted a winning season since 2019, when it went 8-5.

Cal was favored at Stanford Stadium on Saturday, but a sloppy performance — 13 penalties for 123 yards and three lost fumbles that led directly to Cardinal points — turned the 128th Big Game into a rout and reignited long-simmering frustration around the program.

Former California Golden Bears head coach Justin Wilcox | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The firing of Wilcox is the end of an era that never fully broke through. The Bears under Wilcox were consistently competitive on defense and sent at least one defensive back to the NFL draft in six straight years. The other side of the ball never caught up. No offensive player from Wilcox's tenure has been drafted, and Cal has not posted a winning conference record since 2009.

After back-to-back 6-7 campaigns, Wilcox overhauled his offensive staff, bringing in former Auburn and Boise State coach Bryan Harsin as offensive coordinator and adding Nick Rolovich as a senior offensive assistant. A freshman quarterback, Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, flashed star potential in an early upset of No. 15 Louisville, and Cal opened 4-1. The momentum faded in ACC play, where the Bears are 3-4 and were blown out by San Diego State in non-conference action.

Rolovich will now get the program on an interim basis. The former Washington State and Hawaii head coach is expected to lead Cal through its finale against SMU, with his future beyond that left to the upcoming search.

Cal analyst Nick Rolovich is expected to be the interim coach, per ESPN sources. https://t.co/PoQZVEDs6X
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 23, 2025

Cal currently has co-athletic directors Jay Larson and Jenny Simon O’Neill and a high-profile football general manager in Ron Rivera, the former Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders head coach. Rivera was hired to modernize the program and has been heavily involved in roster and NIL strategy at a time when Cal has struggled to keep pace with other programs. Per his contract, Cal is now set to owe Wilcox around $10.9 million.

Per his contract, Cal is set to owe Justin Wilcox nearly $10.9 million. https://t.co/OawlJxSZdJ
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 24, 2025

For Wilcox, a former Oregon defensive back and longtime Power Five coordinator, the firing ends a run that produced occasional peaks — multiple Big Game wins, an eight-win season and a bowl victory in 2019 — but never the sustained climb Cal hoped for when it hired him in 2017.

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