Training camp means the start of a new football season, and that sounds like paradise to Patrick Mekari.
 
So Cal's senior offensive lineman thought, if he's in paradise, why not dress like it and get his fellow linemen to follow suit?


 
The Golden Bears' offensive line strolled into last Thursday's training camp report day all wearing Hawaiian shirts and Crocs in unison.
 
"Sure, camp is tough, but it's also a lot of fun and everybody got a good laugh seeing us all wear that," Mekari said. "There is a lot of hard work, but there's also a lot to smile about during camp. When the tough days come and we're all tired, hopefully we can remember the Hawaiian shirt day and have a good laugh.
 
"Coordinating all the offensive linemen to do it, that was hard, but for all of us to be on board to do it, that was awesome and brought us together even more."
 


Unity and cohesiveness is something that offensive line coach Steve Greatwood can scratch off of his training camp to-do list. The Bears have all of their offensive line starts from 2017 back this season with seven linemen returning who started at least two games each a year ago.
 
Through the initial days of practice, Greatwood can already see how much that experience is making a difference. His linemen didn't have any beginning-of-camp jitters or nerves, and they're already correctly doing things during practice reps that it usually takes a few workouts to have down. 
 
But while he's excited about the depth at the position and the experience he has to work with, Greatwood couldn't help but playfully tease his linemen about leaving him in the dark about their attire plans for report day. He couldn't resist but show up the next day in a Hawaiian shirt and Crocs himself.
 
"We have kind of a goofy group so why not have some fun and look goofy, too?," Greatwood said. "They looked pretty good in those shirts. I've always told the guys that this has to be the most tight-knit unit on the team and the backbone of the team. I believe these guys are living up to that and carrying that torch. It's a good room. They all get along, respect and trust each other. That's all you can ask for as a coach."
 
Head coach Justin Wilcox did not join in the dress code party, although he did get a good kick out of it when he saw it. But like Greatwood, he is looking forward to the luxury of having so much depth at offensive line this season.
 
"It's great to have all that experience coming back," he said. "What's more important is that we improve individually and collectively as a unit, and they have. Even physically, they just look different. That's a very tight-knit group, which is important. There's nobody better to coach that position than Steve Greatwood."
 
Depth is very important at a position like offensive line, according to senior Addison Ooms, who is on the preseason watch list for the Rimington Trophy honoring the nation's top center. In addition to the obvious cushion if any of the Bears suffer injuries during the season, it helps keep everyone fresh with more reps to share during practice and games.
 
It also allows more time to teach the incoming freshmen and new Bears the ins and outs of the offense, getting them all up to speed to contribute themselves as quickly as possible.
 
"Everybody is a little different, so all of us have a different piece of advice that we can offer the younger guys," Ooms said. "The fact that so many of us know the offense allows us to get the younger guys up to speed faster."


 
Getting the freshmen integrated into the offense would be greatly beneficial since Cal's 2018 recruiting class had an emphasis on the offensive line, with the Bears signing five of the nation's top-100 ranked offensive tackles or guards.
 
The highest-ranked among those Cal recruits is freshman Will Craig (No. 13 OT, Rivals). He has appreciated the support from the older linemen since he first arrived in Berkeley.
 
"You can ask them anything and they have an answer for you," said Craig, who added he's been wearing Crocs since high school so he had no issues joining in the fun. "A college football playbook is so much more complex compared to a high school football playbook, so us young guys have a lot of questions to ask."
 
Now that the bar has been set, Ooms said he heard the linebackers might be cooking something up for future training camps. But he added that it could just be that the offensive linemen are "creative geniuses."