National Signing Day 2018: Analysis and Live Updates

Cal goes hurtling forward into National Signing Day 2018 in a muted fashion, unlike Ross Bowers against Washington State. With 18 signed early in December (Recap of that is here), the Bears are set to only add a few more to finish off the class.

Currently the Bears have two commits unsigned in the class in WR Monroe Young and LB Chris Fatilua. They have one player they're waiting on in OLB Joseph Ogunbanjo, who's announcing shortly.

We'll be updating those here as they come in, with analysis on the prospects that sign with the Bears this morning and afternoon.

Cal has their first signee of the day in Joseph Ogunbanjo, a speedy pass-rushing outside linebacker out of Alief Taylor in Houston.

Nam: “Ogunbanjo might appear like another one of those athletic, developmental pass rush take guys we had to gamble on -- Chinedu Odeogu comes to mind -- but I really think his frame and speed, like Young’s, will play up to the next level. He’s a great pursuit guy with burst and change of direction, and given some development, could round out into a full three-down player against the pass. There’s an opportunity for him to play this year as a package guy, I’d expect.”

Trace: “The young man I’ve preemptively nicknamed ‘Deliverance,’ mainly due to his pass rushing ability and that his name has Banjo in it, Ogunbanjo is the type of athlete that I don’t think Cal has on its roster at the moment. A 4.5 40 type, an explosive guard on the basketball court, a 4x100 sprinter on the track, Ogunbanjo could easily play right away, and considering the medical retirement of Cameron Saffle, it’s likely that he will, coming up behind fellow Texas natives Alex Funches and Cameron Goode. I may have to put him in my receipt guys for the year, as I think his speed off the edge will have Tim DeRuyter overjoyed when he gets to work with the OLBs this spring and summer.”

Our longer breakdown of Ogunbanjo's signing is here

Next up is San Diego linebacker Chris Fatilua

Nam: “Fatilua’s probably my second favorite linebacker of the class behind Evan Tattersall for me. Just really good pursuit speed and athleticism from the middle of the field spot, combined with a knack for solid tackling. There are some questions remaining on how he’ll take on blockers and if he’ll grow -- reports suggest he’ll be able to add that weight easily -- but I’m confident that those are easily solvable issues. Gotta trust this staff’s eye for linebacker talent when they pulled production from JUCO and walk-on talent last year.”

Trace: “What stands out with Fatilua for me is tackling form and getting downhill through holes. He brings his hips through on tackles, and if he’s already at his listed 6’3” and 220 when he comes in, then he should be able to translate that to the next level. With the explosiveness through the holes, that may not continue due to the uptick in competition level, but I do think he’ll have the ability to go on blitzes and cause havoc. He may need a bit of time to develop, but he’ll have that time, unless injuries strike big at the ILB spot in spring and summer.”

And likely the final commit of the day is Onate WR Monroe Young

Nam: “Is there any more room for me to add a receipt? No? Damn. Well, Monroe Young’s going to play offense first, and what excites me the most about him is his speed actually looks like it’s going to play up to this level of competition. There’s times when guys’ reported speeds don’t look nearly as fast on the field, and I understand Monroe doesn’t compete against a lot of D1 guys out there, but he just looks like a special talent with the ball in his hands. Given time and some development as a route runner, plus Beau Baldwin’s imaginative mind for putting playmakers in space, and the Bears could have stolen one from out of New Mexico.”

Trace: “NFL pedigree with Young here, as the Onate athlete is slated to play wideout at Cal. Size has been missing from the Cal wideouts in this class, and Young is someone who the staff feels is wildly underrated, due to him playing football in New Mexico. As Nam said, the level is competition is a bit suspect, but the tools are there, he had a 4.59 40 when electrically timed at the Nike Opening regional in Oakland last May (7th best Sparq rating there, 100th nationally), and he’s been someone the Cal coaches had their eye on since then. Got to like his athleticism as it fits into the offensive plans in the future.”