After a standout season for several Cal players, a handful of them were rewarded by conference coaches Tuesday when the Pac-12 postseason awards were announced.
Leading the squad is standout inside linebacker Cade Uluave, who earned the Pac-12 Defensive Freshman Player of the Year award after a stellar first season with the Bears. With the honor, Uluave became the first Cal player to win any Pac-12 Freshman of the Year award following a season that saw him collect 58 tackles, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries, one of which was returned for a touchdown.
Uluave was key to the Bears’ defensive performance later in the year and started the team’s final five contests, which included Cal’s three-game winning streak to end the season.
“Prior to here, I think I’ve coached four or five different freshman All-Americans at some of my different stops and Cade kind of shares some of the similarities that those guys had. I think those similarities that reveal (themselves) to me (are) guys that are extremely consistent. They don’t behave like newcomers,” said Cal’s defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon earlier this season. “He’s very consistent in his approach.”
Monday, Uluave was named a Freshman All-American by College Football News.
Cal’s starting quarterback Fernando Mendoza was the other Cal player to earn freshman honors, being recognized as an honorable mention for the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman Player of the Year award. Mendoza took over the starting job in Week 6 against Oregon State, and holds a 62.2% completion percentage on the season. The redshirt freshman out of Miami, Florida, threw for 1,447 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions through seven games — also his first seven career starts.
The Bears also earned recognition at the first team All-Pac-12 level, with star running back Jaydn Ott being selected alongside Oregon State’s Damien Martinez on offense. Ott led the backfield with 1,260 yards this season, placing him at the top of the conference list in rushing yards per game with 114.5, which is seventh in the NCAA.
Despite various struggles with special teams this season, a Cal player was also honored for his effort as a specialist, with punter Lachlan Wilson receiving second-team honors. In just his first year with the Bears, Wilson holds the best single-season mark in yards per punt in Cal history with 45.7 and is second in the conference in average yards per punt.
Outside of first and second team All-Pac-12 selections, two Cal players earned honorable all-conference recognition: outside linebacker David Reese and defensive back Craig Woodson.
Reese is coming off an impactful first season with the Bears, the sixth in his collegiate career, with a career-high 31 tackles. The Florida transfer had an especially productive final stretch with 13 tackles and 5.5 sacks over the last three games.
Woodson was only one of eight players on the team to start all 12 games, and tallied 78 tackles and two forced fumbles as well as an interception this season. The defensive back is a redshirt junior, in his fifth year with the Bears.
Cal will close out its season Dec. 16 in Shreveport, Louisiana at the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl against Texas Tech.
