Personal Approach on Visit Draws Manley to Cal

Zahran Manley was the only recruit on campus for Cal this past weekend. That amount of focus may have led to the Upland cornerback being the first member of the 2019 class for Cal.

"I committed on my trip. It was great," Manley said, "it was my third time up there visiting. I've been blown away on some trips, but this trip took it to another level. It was intimate, it was personal, and this is where I want to be for the next few years of my life. Just the fact that the coaches really took time to meet my family on the trip, the whole coaching staff. They said that they care, they said that they wanted me at their school, and I just felt comfortable."

Manley noted before that he'd built a relationship with Gerald Alexander, and he got more opportunities to talk with his future position coach.

"We had dinner the night before," Manley noted, "and then the next morning he talked about what he sees me playing, and he really wants me to be a Golden Bear, and now I am."

The Cal staff may owe an assist to one of their departed seniors, as Darius Allensworth also played a role in Manley's recruitment, due to their prior relationship.

"His mom and my mom work together at Kaiser," Manley noted, "He actually took me around the school last year, so I have a pretty good relationship with him, I talked to him a lot about Cal."

Manley also got the time to talk to a professor at the Haas School of Business, as Manley, sporting a 3.8 GPA, wants to major in business.

"I talked to one of the professors at Cal on my visit," Manley noted. "He specializes in business and that's something I want to do. Cal has one of the top business schools in the nation and as of now I want to major in business."

Manley also noted that talking with head coach Justin Wilcox played a part.

"I had a very good conversation with him," Manley noted, "he talked to my family as well. He's a great coach and he definitely has a goal for Cal, without a doubt that he will reach that goal and take Cal to the next level. He's a very approachable dude, he knows a lot about the game of football, and he cares about his players."

Manley plans to make his way back to Berkeley in the fall, possibly in the spring again for some spring practices, but he's locked in with Cal and could be participating in spring practice in 2019

"I'm good in my commitment," Manley said, "I plan on enrolling early, signing early. I'm just glad that it's over with, and the stress is off my shoulders."