Freshman Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele Named Cal's Starting Quarterback

Cal head coach Justin Wilcox made the somewhat surprising announcement on Monday that freshman Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele will be Cal’s starting quarterback for the Golden Bears’ season-opener against Oregon State on August 30 at Oregon State.

Throughout preseason camp, the expectation was that Ohio State transfer Devin Brown, a redshirt junior, would be Cal’s starting quarterback for the opener.  But instead the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Sagapolutele, who is from Hawaii, will be only the second true freshman quarterback to start a season-opener for Cal, joining Jared Goff, who started the first game of the 2013 season.

In his college debut, Goff completed 39-of-64 passes for 450 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions in a 44-30 loss to 22nd-ranked Northwestern in Berkeley. The Bears went 1-11 that season.

Goff played in the pass-happy offense of Sonny Dykes, while Sagapuletele is not expected to throw nearly that often with Bryan Harsin as the Bears’ offensive coordinator.

Sagapolutele initally signed with Oregon last December, and enrolled at Oregon. But just a few weeks into his stay at Oregon, Sagapolutele entered the transfer portal and signed with Cal in January, allowing him to participate in spring practice.

Presumably this was not a long-term decision by Wilcox. He can’t afford to choose a quarterback that may have the most potential while knowing he would struggle early on but improve over time.  That was somewhat of the sense you got when Goff was chosen a starter for the 2013 opener.

The 2025 season is a pivotal one for the Cal program in general and Wilcox specifically.  The Bears’ first four games, against nonconference foes Oregon State, Texas Southern, Minnesota and San Diego State, are games the Bears need to win to have a winning season. Cal can’t afford to experiment with a quarterback early in the season, so Harsin and Wilcox must believe Sagapolutele gives Cal the best chance to win each of those four games.

Wilcox did not say whether Brown would get playing time in the game against Oregon State, saying it would be a game-plan decision that has not been determined yet.

Wilcox told Brown and Sagapolutele of his decision about the starting quarterback on Sunday, the day after the Bears’ second scrimmage of preseason camp.

“Devin I’m sure is disappointed, which you would expect. I get that,” Wilcox said. “There’s a point, for us, when we need Devin."

This the third straight year that Brown has lost out in a two-player competition to be the team's starting quarterback. Two years ago at Ohio State, Brown lost the competition to Kyle McCord, and last year he lost the competition to be the Buckeyes starting job to Will Howard.

Media members were not allowed to witness the scrimmages, but presumably Sagapolutele acquitted himself well on Saturday.

Wilcox said Sagapolutele “earned” the starting nod and ticked off the things that he does best.

“I’d say his accuracy down the field, keeps his eyes down the field really well, those two things showed up,” Wilcox said. “He’s very, very coachable, learns quickly.”

Wilcox said Sagapolutele made a lot of progress since he arrived at Cal in January.

“A lot of areas,” said Wilcox. “The knowledge of offense, and he picks things up very well, he learns, and then you have the accuracy and the ability to make the throws down the field. He feels the pocket really well”

Wilcox frequently mentioned Sagapolutele’s throwing accuracy, so that apparently was a key factor in the decision.

Wilcox believes Sagapolutele has the mental makeup to handle his role.

“He’s quick to smile, but he’s a very competitive guy,” Wilcox said. “That shows up on the practice field, meeting room. And, again, he’s still learning. A lot of these are firsts for him.. . . . He has shown that he is a guy who can learn, and digests it. Out on the field he’s got the right demeanor.”

Wilcox is not expecting perfection from Sagapolutele in his first game.

“When you have a young QB like that, he’s got enough on his plate. It’s everybody else,” Wilcox said. “He’ll have enough on his plate. All quarterbacks do, but especially a freshman quarterback.

“He’s going to go through things for the first time. He doesn’t have the luxury of experience. I’m sure he won’t be perfect. We’re not expecting him to be perfect. We expect him to be Jaron and get a little better every day.”

Sagapoultele is left-handed, and Wilcox said that might affect some of the game planning.  In other words, Sagapolutele is more likely to roll out to his left and read the defense on that half of the field.

Two weeks ago, at the start of preseason practice, Sagapolutele seemed to be prepared for the possibility that he would not be named the starter, saying it would give him a chance to watch and learn.

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