Wisconsin DL TJ Bollers commits to Cal
Relationships matter in recruiting, and that is as important as ever in the age of the transfer portal. Cal previously recruited and built a relationship with Wisconsin outside linebacker TJ Bollers, and he even made the trek from Iowa to the West Coast to visit the Bears before deciding on the Badgers.
Still, when Bollers decided to enter the transfer portal after three seasons in Madison, Cal was again ready to begin pursuing the 6-foot-2, 280-pound redshirt junior.
The Bears were the first program to offer Bollers after he entered the portal last week followed by Miami (Ohio), New Mexico, Kent State, Northern Iowa, Ohio and Utah State.
He again made the trek to Berkeley, and the Bears were able to quickly lock up his transfer commitment Thursday.
Bollers played in 16 games over three seasons with the Badgers and collected two tackles in that time. His move to Cal will give the former Rivals250 prospect an opportunity for a career reset as he moves into a role along the defensive line.
That transition began at Wisconsin as he moved from playing outside linebacker to defensive end last year, but now he will be part of Andrew Browning's group up front for the Bears after adding a significant amount of weight in recent seasons.
Bollers is the third transfer portal addition for Cal since the spring portal window opened last week, and he is the second addition Thursday alone after Maryland tight end Corey Dyches gave the Bears his commitment earlier in the day.
Cal also recently added Michigan State offensive line transfer Braden Miller and earlier in the spring added Princeton inside linebacker Liam Johnson.
Bollers will have two seasons of remaining eligibility at Cal.