This feature originally appeared in the 2021 Fall edition of the Cal Sports Quarterly. The Cal Athletics flagship magazine features long-form sports journalism at its finest and provides in-depth coverage of the scholar-athlete experience in Berkeley. Printed copies are mailed four times a year to Bear Backers who give annually at the Bear Club level (currently $600 or more). For more information on how you can receive a printed version of the Cal Sports Quarterly at home, send an email to CalAthleticsFund@berkeley.edu or call (510) 642-2427.




There are plenty of images of Cameron Goode celebrating wildly while yet another opposing quarterback lays on the ground behind him, the result of yet another sack. But those on-field emotions are about the only time you'll see the normally mild-mannered sixth-year Cal outside linebacker outwardly fired up.
 
When he's off the field, you'll be lucky to get more than a peep and a quick nod from him. You would not be alone in wondering just what makes this guy tick. Even his long-time teammate and roommate Josh Drayden isn't quite sure, although he offers some intriguing possibilities.
 
"I don't know what it is when he's on the field, but he's a whole different person" Drayden said. "It's like James Bond or John Wick. It's like Superman after he goes into a phone booth or a werewolf when there's a full moon."
 
Indeed, off the field Goode is more like Clark Kent than any movie superhero or villain.
 
"I've always been pretty quiet off the field since I was young," Goode said. "I have always had a little celebration I did when I make a play. People used to joke about it when I was a kid, but I just feel like it's a way I'm able to express myself and have fun."
 
Through his first five-plus seasons at Cal, Goode has certainly had a lot of fun with more than 30 tackles for loss and 15 quarterback sacks during his career. He has even returned two interceptions for touchdowns.
 
Goode is also proud of his achievements off the field. His eyes sparkle a bit when he remembers the time he gave a graduation speech in the fifth grade. More recently, he was widely praised for a eulogy he gave at the funeral of a former middle school coach.
 
"I surprise people with my public speaking," Goode said.
 
Maybe it's his competitiveness creeping in. 
 
"I've always been a real competitive person," Goode said. "On every play in football, there's a bunch of one-on-ones on the field. There's 11 people on each side of the ball. But there's always one person that you are going up against each play, and I always feel like I've got to win that matchup to help the whole team. I'm really competitive that way."
 
His competitiveness has also driven him to want to impress his father, James, a college football defensive end at Oklahoma selected in the fifth round of the 1991 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons.
 
"I'm always trying to be like him," Goode said. "We used to butt heads a little back in the day because you never want to hear you're doing bad from your dad. You always want to make your dad proud and happy. He's someone I'm always trying to impress. I just want to make him happy all the time. It drives me."
 
It's his mom, Crystal, who he goes to in tough times, such as after season-ending injuries that prematurely ended both his 2017 redshirt freshman and 2018 sophomore campaigns.
 
"Cameron and I have a really good relationship," said Crystal, who shares daily texts with her son to check in on each other.
 
Crystal paid especially close attention to Cameron after his 2017 and 2018 injuries, visiting him on several occasions. Joined by her mother and Cameron's sister, she even flew out to California from her Houston-area home for the team's final game of the 2017 season at UCLA and a little surprise the following day.
 
"We took him to Universal Studios on his little scooter," Crystal recalled with a quick laugh. "We were just trying to keep him active and get him out of the house. That was kind of a dark time for him."
 
 "My mom is a lot more emotional and sensitive," Goode said. "So if I'm feeling down, I'll go to my mom. My dad's not going for that. He's definitely a soft teddy bear, but he doesn't like to show it. I try to hide that part of me, too. We're usually more stoic."
 
It's not the only trait they share.
 
"I'm a big listener and I like people watching, too, just like my dad," Goode said. "I may be quiet, but I know what's up. I'm not just out there in space. I'm always aware and looking around, and I'm studying people. I don't have to be loud. I'm able to talk in public when I need to, but I don't need to be the center of attention all the time."
 
NFL scouts, though, comprise one particular group he would like to show more attention.
 
"I feel like I've always been slept on, and I'm still being slept on today," the normally reserved Goode said with emphasis.
 
Projected as a late-round pick for the 2021 NFL Draft, Goode decided to return to Cal for a sixth and final collegiate season in 2021.
 
"For a long time after last season I had it set that I was going to leave for the NFL, and then my family talked me out of it," Goode said. "They wanted me to stay at Cal and be a kid as long as I could. I'm honestly happy that I made the decision to come back. There was no negative in coming back. I feel like I'm in the best shape that I've been in, and I'm excited to prove a lot of people wrong."
 
"He knows he has a chance to be really good for a really long time," Drayden said. "He wants to take full advantage of it, and every Saturday is just another opportunity for him to put on a show. He knows where the game can take him and what it can do for him and his family."
 
Goode is also finally starting to talk as good of a game as he plays in this, his final collegiate season.
 
"I've been joking with some of my teammates that I feel like the high school kid who graduates but still goes to all the high school parties," Goode said with a smile.
 
The 23-year-old has even picked up a few affectionate nicknames from his younger teammates – "Big Bro" and its Hawaiian slang equivalent, "Big Uce." Now in his last year in Berkeley, he has been working hard with first-year outside linebackers coach Keith Heyward on improving his leadership skills that will pay benefits down the road.
 
"Coach Heyward had me lead one of our meetings and coach our young guys," Goode said. "It's forcing me to be a little more vocal. I like leading by example, and I always feel like I have to be at the front of the line, but if the young guys aren't giving enough effort I feel like I've got to say something. I still don't like doing it in front of the group, but I'll say something to them one-on-one."
 
And they had better be listening, just like he would.