Princeton transfer linebacker Liam Johnson commits to Cal

Just a day after former standout linebacker Jackson Sirmon was participating in Cal’s pro day in front of a number of NFL scouts, the Bears landed a new piece to help fill out a depleted position group: Liam Johnson, a Princeton graduate transfer with one year of eligibility remaining. Johnson, who announced his pledge via X, formerly known as Twitter, Friday morning, is the second transfer linebacker to commit to Cal this offseason after Teddye Buchanan from UC Davis.

Johnson spent four seasons with the Tigers, not seeing any action in 2020 and playing primarily on special teams in 2021. While not seeing much of the field in his first two years, Johnson made up for it with two productive seasons to cap off his Princeton career.

In 2023, Johnson tallied a total of 83 tackles, with a season-high 13 at Brown in October, as well as 3 sacks for 26 yards and an interception. In 2022, the 6-foot, 225-pound New Jersey native registered a total of 90 tackles and two defensive touchdowns.

Following his successful 2022 season, Johnson earned Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year and First-Team All-Ivy honors.

The Bears have been lacking some depth at the linebacker position, as Sirmon is entering the 2024 NFL Draft following his last season of eligibility in 2023 and star linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr transferred to TCU over the winter. Position coach and defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon described his inside linebacker unit as “extremely youthful” Friday after the Bears’ third spring practice.

Luke Ferrelli and Eze Osundu joined the Bears as early enrollees, but they are both freshmen. Osundu only celebrated his 18th birthday Friday. So, adding another experienced player for the linebacker position certainly doesn’t hurt as the Bears look to make up for the loss of talent due to portal attrition and graduation.

Johnson is set to arrive in Berkeley in time for fall camp following his graduation from Princeton this May.