Derek Wilkins Commits to Cal

A recruiting hot streak is showing no signs of slowing down in Berkeley, as the Bears landed arguably their top target on the defensive side of the ball. Derek Wilkins, from Santa Margarita Catholic, made the call to commit to Cal an Instagram Live stream moments ago.

Cal offered Wilkins at the beginning of November of 2019, and the Bears have been consistent in their communication with the Santa Margarita Catholic standout.

"Cal’s always been a school where I’ve felt that I’ve had a great relationship with," Wilkins said last month, "they were one of the first schools that offered me, I’ve been talking with them for the longest."

Defensive line coach Andrew Browning has been the main recruiter for Wilkins, as they've built up a strong relationship prior to and during quarantine, and Justin Wilcox also hopped in to give Wilkins more familiarity with the head coach.

"Before quarantine, (Browning and I) had a good relationship," Wilkins said last month, "I’d been up there a few times, but during quarantine, I talk to him two to three times a week and it’s not always about football, it’s about life. He’s definitely a guy I can trust. I talk to Wilcox once a week or once every other week. I definitely get to talk to him a lot and maintain the same thing coach Browning maintains. I have great conversations with him about everything that’s going on, it doesn’t necessarily have to be about recruiting."

With Wilkins commitment, Cal now has three defensive linemen in the 17-man class so far, as he joins Myles Williams and Akili Calhoun. Calhoun, along with WR commit Mavin Anderson, had been talking to Wilkins about joining the class.

"Mavin’s been a guy that I’ve grown up knowing," Wilkins said last month, "we’ve been playing together since I was nine or ten, and then Akili, we’ve continued to build our relationship, we play Call of Duty all the time, and it’s nice to not only talk to them about recruiting, but just in general. Akili’s said multiple times, we want you to come here to Cal, but wherever you go, we’re still going to be rocking with you."

Now they'll be together in a class that currently ranks 32nd in the Rivals Recruiting Rankings, with the possibility of going higher as the 2021 cycle goes on. Wilkins is someone Cal has targeted for his positional flexibility on the defensive line, either as a defensive end in their 3-4, or as a defensive tackle in their 2-4-5 nickel.

1. WR Mavin Anderson, Mission Viejo, CA (February 1st, 2020)

2. OL Bastian Swinney, Edina, MN (February 8th, 2020)

3. TE Jermaine Terry, Richmond, CA (February 24th, 2020)

4. DE Akili Calhoun, Brentwood, CA (March 7th, 2020)

5. QB Kai Millner, Gilbert, AZ (April 9th, 2020)

6. CB Kaleb Higgins, Folsom, CA (April 14th, 2020)

7. S Hunter Barth, Queen Creek, AZ (April 23rd, 2020)

8. DB Fatuvalu Iosefa, Mililani, HI (June 12th, 2020)

9. WR J. Michael Sturdivant, Flower Mound, TX (July 4th, 2020)

10. OL William Reed, Sammamish, WA (July 15th, 2020)

11. ILB Moses Oladejo, Elk Grove, CA (July 19th, 2020)

12. OL Dylan Jemtegaard, Yelm, WA (July 20th, 2020)

13. OL Ryan Lange, Pittsburg, CA (July 25th, 2020)

14. DL Myles Williams, Mission Hills, CA (July 31st, 2020)

15. OLB Patrick Hisatake, Portland, OR (August 2nd, 2020)

16. DB Lu-Magia Hearns, Pittsburg, CA (August 6th, 2020)

17. DL Derek Wilkins, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA (August 8th, 2020)

By Position

QB - 1

WR - 2

TE - 1

OL - 4

DL - 3

LB - 2

DB - 4

By State

CA - 9

AZ - 2

WA - 2

HI - 1

MN - 1

OR - 1

TX - 1