Early Enrollee Spotlight: Trey Paster

There's a handful of players that you can make the case for the most impactful in the 2020 class for Cal. Trey Paster could be one of those just for his play, but also for his impact on the rest of the class. Paster was vocal with his fellow recruits behind the scenes, a big piece in unifying the 2020 class.

That said, Paster is someone who the Bears needed, a bigger framed safety type who cover on the outside as well. With Jaylinn Hawkins and Ashtyn Davis headed to the NFL, there's playing time available at safety. The Buhach Colony product may be able to claim it.

Hometown: Merced, CA
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 205 lbs
Class: Freshman
Rivals Ranking: A three-star (5.6) ATH, rated as the 63rd best player in the state of California

Paster played both ways at Buhach Colony, notably reaching the semifinals of the D3 San Joaquin Section playoffs. He played a myriad of spots, including some corner, some safety, some running back and receiver for an excellent Buhach Colony team (11-1 overall).

Paster finished his senior year with 33 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 interceptions, 3 PBUs, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery on the defensive side, along with 33 carries for 305 yards and 4 TDs and 9 receptions for 163 yards and 4 TDs on offense. Paster played three years of varsity football at Buhach, with one year at Stoneridge Christian as a freshman.

Cal had been Paster's 'dream school' since the age of 9, when he ran in a track meet at Edwards Stadium.

"Ever since I ran a track meet there when I was nine years old, ran a track meet there, the Tommie Smith track meet (a youth meet named for the 1968 Olympic Gold Medalist, one ongoing to this day)," Paster told GoldenBearReport last February, "me, my little brother, my father and mother, we went and walked around the campus. I wasn’t even playing football yet, but I just knew I loved that school so much walking around campus. Then I saw the football stadium, I’ve seen the practice field, but the campus was the first one I really fell in love with as a kid. I remember going back home and researching about Cal, I’m a 9-10 year old doing this research about how to get in, stuff like that."

Paster will likely start out at safety for the Bears, with a similar frame to Jaylinn Hawkins coming in. Depending on how quickly he takes to the speed of the college game, he could be competing for the safety position in spring ball with the likes of Elijah Hicks, Daniel Scott, Craig Woodson and Isaiah Humphries among others.

Paster's long term position is an interesting philosophical debate, considering how cornerbacks with similar length have had success in the NFL and in college over the last 10-15 years. Paster is a long, lanky athlete capable of running and defending big wideouts straight up, but he also has good run stopping ability at the safety spot, coming down in run support, filling the alley, and making the tackle.

Either way, Paster gets a jump start at learning Cal's defense, as spring ball starts in all of 22 days for the Bears.

Jaden Casey

Muelu Iosefa

Everett Johnson

Mason Mangum