Training Camp Report
Marcus Edwards/klcfotos
The Golden Bears listen to instructions during the team's 2018 training camp.

FB8/6/2018 6:37 PM | By: Cal Athletics

Training Camp Report

Increasing Football IQ Being Stressed Early On; Physical Days Ahead

BERKELEY – Justin Wilcox is stressing both the importance of paying attention to details and the need for more physicality from the get go of the team's 2018 training camp as he begins his second season as the Golden Bears' head coach.

"Systematically we're at a place a year in where everybody has more of a comfort level, other than newcomers obviously," Wilcox said when asked about his emphasis during training camp. "It's the detail of our assignment, becoming an expert at your position at our position. Everybody can increase their football IQ. We are working hard on that."

After two practices in helmets and two more in shoulder pads, the Bears will get their first day off Tuesday before resuming camp with another workout in shoulder pads Wednesday followed by the team's first practice in full pads Thursday.

"It's going to be physical once they let us put the pads on," Wilcox said. "We're really going to emphasize the line of scrimmage on both sides, running the football and playing the run because there were certain times last year where that was obviously an issue for us."

Even as the physicality of training camp increases, Wilcox will continue to emphasize the importance of being smart both in the way they prepare and play.

"Sometimes people have a tendency in camp to start so fast and do so much so early then you're dealing with health issues all throughout camp," Wilcox said. "We want to mindful of that."

He carried that over to the field when he emphasized the importance of "playing good, clean football and limiting the self-inflicted wounds" when talking to media members after the team's first workout last Friday.

Check out a few of the notable happenings from the first four days of camp and the days ahead.
 
Offensive Line Attire – The guys up front have been the leaders in the fashion department to this point in training camp. Under the rumored direction of senior left tackle Patrick Mekari, all 19 offensive linemen reported to camp last Thursday in Hawaiian shirts and Crocs. The next day offensive line coach Steve Greatwood followed suit. And other than the time they've been on the field, they've been in it ever since and vow to do so until the end of training camp.

"That everyone did it was really cool," Mekari said. "I was surprised that everyone did it, but it's awesome. It's really cool."
 
"Addison's shirt was like from eighth grade, there's just a lot happening, you see too much," Wilcox quipped about senior center Addison Ooms' getup before expressing his thoughts on the whole group. "I think every o-line group, especially here, they are just like this [holding hands together]. They have their own secret society. It's pretty fun. It keeps it light."

 
Open Practices – Cal held its first of three practices open to the public on Saturday, Aug. 4 and will also have open workouts each of the next two Saturdays. Both practices begin at 9:30 am.
 
Morning Practices – Cal is holding morning practices for the first two-plus weeks of camp before returning to afternoon practices on August 20 the day before the fall semester begins. 

Knowlton Takes In Practice – New Director of Athletics Jim Knowlton watched Sunday's workout first-hand and then stuck around after practice to chat with head coach Wilcox and other members of the staff as well as several players.
   
Plenty Of New Faces – There are 32 new players on the roster since the end of spring football last April and many of them got plenty of reps during their first four practices. The group includes a pair of senior graduate transfers from Michigan in TE Ian Bunting and WR Moe Ways, three junior college transfers (RB Marcel Dancy, PK Greg Thomas, OLB Deon White) and 27 true freshmen (RB Johnny Adams Jr., OLB Nick Alftin, ILB Zach Angelillo, ILB Louie Bickett, OLB Parker Bosche, RB Christopher Brown Jr., TE McCallan Castles, OL Matthew Cindric, OL Will Craig, ILB Nick Henderson, PK/P Dario Longhetto, DE Aaron Maldonado, S Steve McIntosh, OL Brandon Mello, DE Erik Nisich, OLB Joseph Ogunbanjo, OL Miles Owens, WR Ryan Regan, WR Nikko Remigio, QB Robby Rowell, WR Ben Skinner, ILB Evan Tattersall, OLB JH Tevis, ILB Tommy Vanis, ILB Sam Walker, WR Monroe Young, LS Slater Zellers). Four players (CB Chigozie Anusiem, ILB Colt Doughty, OL Jasper Friis, DE Lone Toailoa) had previously joined the Bears in the spring to give Cal a total of 36 newcomers in 2018.
 
Returning Players – Several players that missed all of spring football due to injury have returned to the field with the list including LB Gerran Brown, CB Elijah Hicks, DE Zeandae Johnson, S Evan Rambo, WR Brandon Singleton and OL Semisi Uluave. Several others that set out the spring game due to injury are all back including CB Josh Drayden, ILB Jordan Kunaszyk and DE Lone Toailoa.
 
Sixth-Year Senior – Tight end Ray Hudson officially began his sixth season and just before camp tweeted an entertaining picture of himself from just prior to his 2013 rookie season. It elicited a few comments.
   
Competition Period – At the end of nearly every practice there is some sort of competition pitting representatives of the offensive and defensive units. Typical competitions in the past have involved creative ideas like offensive and defensive linemen trying to catch punts as well as more typical ones where each side of the ball has its fate resting in the hands of a placekicker's ability to put the ball through the uprights. The competition had a different twist after Friday's opening workout when Wilcox picked one member from both the offense and defense and asked them to identify a freshman from the other side of the ball complete with hometown and position.
 
The selected victim on the offensive side of the ball was Hudson, who ironically had Joseph Ogunbanjo's position (outside linebacker) and hometown (Houston, Texas) but couldn't quite come up with his name.
 
"Weirdly enough I was able to get his position and hometown, missed on the name," Hudson said. "It definitely sparked a good amount of conversation in the locker room. Everyone's definitely getting to know all the freshmen a little bit quicker."
 
"It's important to know your teammates," Wilcox said. "Especially Ray because he's been here for a while. It's all in good fun but it also proves a point. We need everybody on our roster. Chemistry is so important. You're not going to be best friends with everybody but the fact that you know them, where they're from and maybe something that makes them tick is really, really important. We've done it with the veterans and we're about to do it with the freshman."
 
Hope you're reading this, rookies!
 
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