The 2015 California Golden Bears football team represented the University of California, Berkeley in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bears were led by third-year head coach Sonny Dykes and played their home games at Memorial Stadium.
At the beginning of the season, Cal jumped out to a 5–0 start, their best since 2007. In Week 3, the Bears defeated Texas 45–44 in Austin, marking the program's first-ever victory over the Longhorns. The following week, Cal beat Washington 30–24, earning their first victory in Seattle since 2005 and snapping a six-game losing streak to the Huskies. Cal then went on to lose five of its next six games, including losses to rivals UCLA, USC, and Oregon, and a 13-point loss to arch-rival Stanford for their sixth consecutive Big Game defeat. The Golden Bears rebounded with a 54–24 win over last-place Oregon State, in which Cal gained a school-record 760 yards while becoming bowl-eligible for the first time since 2011. With a 48–46 win over Arizona State on Senior Day, Cal finished the regular season with a 7–5 record, clinching their first winning season since 2011. They finished the year 8–5 including a 55–36 victory over Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl. Nevertheless, at 4–5 Cal finished with a losing Pac-12 record for the third consecutive season.
The 2015 season was the last at Cal for three-year starting quarterback Jared Goff, who entered the program at the same time as Dykes and set 26 team records during his time in Berkeley. Following the Armed Forces Bowl, Goff declared for the 2016 NFL draft. He was selected first overall by the Los Angeles Rams, and went on to lead the Rams to Super Bowl LIII.
Following the season, Sonny Dykes' contract was extended until 2019, owing to the team's athletic and academic improvements during his tenure.
Schedule
Personnel
Coaching staff Name Position Before CalSonny DykesHead CoachLouisiana Tech - Head Coach 2010–2012Tony FranklinOffensive coordinator/QB/RB Louisiana Tech – Offensive coordinator/QB 2010–2012Art KaufmanDefensive coordinator Cincinnati – Defensive coordinator/linebackers 2013Greg BurnsLinebackers Umass – Defensive backs 2013Brandon JonesRun Game Coordinator/offensive line East Carolina – Offensive line 2010–2014John LovettDefensive backs Philadelphia Eagles – Defensive backs 2013–2014Jacob PeelerWide receivers Cal - Graduate assistant, offense/wide receivers 2013–2014Fred TateDefensive lineCincinnati - Defensive tackles (2013)Mark TommerdahlAssistant head coach/special teams coordinator Louisiana Tech - Special teams coordinator/inside receivers 2009–2012Damon Harrington Head Strength and Conditioning Louisiana Tech - Head strength and conditioning 2006–2012Dr. Casey Batten Team Physician University of California San Francisco, Assistant Clinical Professor of Orthopedics - Prior to 2006Source: California Golden Bears Football 2015 Coaching Staff
Roster Offense
Quarterbacks 7 Ross Bowers - FR - Bothell, CA 15 David Maaghul - FR - San Francisco, CA 11 Andrew Black - FR - Spokane, WA 14 Chase Forrest - FR - Santa Ana, CA 16 Jared Goff - JR - Novato, CA 18 Cole Webb - SR - San Pedro, CA
Wide receivers 17 Austin Aaron - FR - Napa, CA 81 Kanawai Noa - FR - Honolulu, HI 19 Brandon Singleton - FR - Boutte, LA 6 Carlos Strickland - FR - Dallas, TX 13 Erik Brown - FR - Fontana, CA 84 Justin Dunn - FR - Lafayette, CA 87 Kyle Wells - FR - Loomis, CA 32 Nick White - FR - Irvine, CA 21 Jack Austin - SO - Chino Hills, CA 6 Chad Hansen - SO - Fillmore, CA 11 Raymond Hudson - SO - Pleasanton, CA 28 Patrick Laird - SO - San Luis Obispo, CA 24 Matt Rockett - SO - Santa Ana, CA 7 Vic Wharton III - SO - Spring Hill, TN 4 Kenny Lawler - JR - Pomona, CA 88 Patrick Worstell - JR - Danville, CA 9 Trevor Davis - SR - Martinez, CA 3 Maurice Harris - SR - Greensboro, NC 10 Darius Powe - SR - Lakewood, CA 1 Bryce Treggs - SR - Inglewood, CA
Tight ends 82 Frank Kapp - FR - Los Altos, CA 85 Nick Palleschi - FR - Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i 80 Jake Ashton - FR - Indio, CA 89 Stephen Anderson - SR - San Jose, CA
Running backs 38 Alex Netherda - FR - Santa Rosa, CA 22 Lonny Powell - FR - Sacramento, CA 23 Vic Enwere - SO - Austin, TX 33 Fabiano Hale - SO - Santa Cruz, CA 5 Tre Watson - SO - Corona, CA 20 Jeffrey Coprich - JR - Watts, CA 29 Khalfani Muhammad - JR - Sherman Oaks, CA 36 Vincent"Bug" Rivera - JR - San Diego, CA 2 Daniel Lasco - SR - The Woodlands, TX
H-backs 99 Malik McMorris - FR - Santa Ana, CA 86 Justin Norbeck - FB - Irvine, CA
Offensive line 76 Henry Bazakas - FR - Berkeley, CA 74 Ryan Gibson - FR - Bay St. Louis, MS 79 Patrick Mekari - FR - Westlake Village, CA 58 Semisi Uluave - FR - Honolulu, HI 50 Zach Artman - FR - San Jose, CA 72 Kamryn Bennett - FR - Peoria, AZ 54 Deion Oliver - FR - Warminster, PS 57 Addison Ooms - FR - Laguna Niguel, CA 56 Michael Trani - FR - La Mirada, CA 75 Aaron Cochran - SO - Atwater, CA 77 J.D. Hinnant - SO - Fountain Valley, CA 78 Vincent Johnson - SO - El Dorado Hills, CA 66 Chris Borrayo - JR - Paramount, CA 55 Dominic Granado - JR - Huntington Beach, CA 64 Steven Moore - JR - Elk Grove, CA 70 Benji Palu - JR - Burlingame, CA 59 Brian Farley - SR - San Diego, CA 73 Jordan Rigsbee - SR - Chico, CA
Defense
Defensive ends 94 Trevor Howard - FR - Thousand Oaks, CA 44 Zeandae Johnson - FR - Fresno, CA 51 Cameron Saffle - FR - Sammamish, WA 89 Nick Allard - FR - Carlsbad, CA 45 Kennedy Emesibe - FR - Hesperia, CA 33 Noah Westerfield - SO - Frisco, TX 98 Cody Bickham - JR - Half Moon Bay, CA 95 DeVante Wilson - JR - Corona, CA 41 Todd Barr - SR - Lakewood, CA 11 Jonathan Johnson - SR - Pittsburgh, PA 13 Kyle Kragen - SR - Danville, CA 75 Puka Lopa - SR - Sacramento, CA
Defensive tackles 50 Hunter Abel - FR - Piedmont, CA 93 Luc Bequette - FR - Little Rock, AR 53 Russell Ude - FR - Atlanta, GA 96 Chris Palmer - FR - Lawrenceville, GA 9 James Looney - SO - Lake Worth, FL 97 Tony Mekari - SO - Westlake Village, CA 92 Marcus Manley - JR - Los Angeles, CA 52 David Davis - SR - Palos Verdes, Est., CA 90 Mustafa Jalil - SR - San Diego, CA 91 Trevor Kelly - SR - South SF, CA
Linebackers 43 Harrison Mayo - FR - Amador Valley, CA 46 Drew Bryant - FR - Sparks, NV 56 Joe Castignani - FR - San Jose, CA 40 David Ortega Jr. - FR - Moraga, CA 25 Hamilton Anoa'i - SO - San Mateo, CA 10 Caleb Coleman - SO - Berkeley, CA 31 Raymond Davison - SO - Encino, CA 1 Devante Downs - SO - Mountlake Terrace, WA 55 Aisea Tongilava - SO - Garden Grove, CA 8 Michael Barton - JR - Richmond, CA 19 Maximo Espitia - JR - Salem, OR 30 Jake Kearney - JR - Livermore, CA 47 Hardy Nickerson Jr. - JR - Oakland, CA 22 Nathan Broussard - SR - Plano, TX 7 Jalen Jefferson - SR - Oxnard, CA
Safeties 24 Billy McCrary III - FR - Austin, TX 32 Evan Rambo - FR - Los Angeles, CA 19 Trey Turner - FR - Mobile, AL 36 Jonathan McDonald- FR - Orinda, CA 16 Chibuzo Nwokocha - FR - Elk Grove, CA 28 Quentin Tartabull - FR - Mission Hills, CA 4 Derron Brown - SO - Oakland, CA 42 David Garner - SO - Fort Lauderdale, FL 14 A.J. Greathouse - SO - Chandler, AZ 17 Luke Rubenzer - SO - Scottsdale, AZ 36 Kaodi Dike - JR - Mountain House, CA 27 Damariay Drew - JR - Livermore, CA 26 Griffin Piatt - JR - Moraga, CA 39 Khari Vanderbilt - JR - San Jose, CA 21 Stefan McClure - SR - Vista, CA G
Cornerbacks 27 Ashtyn Davis - FR - Santa Cruz, CA 20 Jaylinn Hawkins - FR Buena Park, CA 23 Malik Psalms - FR - Chino Hills, CA 2 Darius Allensworth - SO - Menifee, CA 34 Grace De'zhon - SO - Oakland, CA 15 Antoine Albert - JR - Oakland, CA 37 Cedric Dozier - JR - Roanoke, AL 6 Darius White - SR - Grenada, MS 18 Joel Willis - SR - Garden Grove, CA
Nicklebacks 48 Jacob Anderson - JR - Tustin, CA 23 Cameron Walker - JR - Los Angeles, CA
Special teams
Place Kickers 9 Matt Anderson - SO - Danville, CA 41 Robbie McInerny - SO - Laguna Beach, CA 13 Noah Beito - JR - Scotts Valley, CA 39 Franklyn Cervenka - JR - La Cañada Flintridge, CA
Punters 43 Dylan Klumph - SO - Malibu, CA 16 Cole Leininger - SR - Fruit Cove, FL
Both P and PK 37 Ethan Erickson - FR - Pacific Palisades, CA 38 Harry Adolphus - SO - Guilford, UK
Long snappers 45 Grant Gluhaich - FR - Morgan Hill, CA 48 Bradley E. Northnagel - JR - San Carlos, CASource: California Golden Bears Football 2015 Roster
Recruiting
Incoming class 2015 SCOUT RIVALS, ESPN, as well as the official roster are the primary sources. The incoming class was ranked #25 by Rivals, #36 by Scout, and #53 by ESPN.
Commitments for 2016 SCOUT RIVALS and ESPN are the primary sources. As of 10/9/2015 the 2016 class is ranked #25 by Rivals# and #38 by Scout.
Rankings
Game summaries
Grambling State
San Diego State
Texas
Washington
Washington State
Utah
UCLA
USC
Oregon
Oregon State
Stanford
Arizona State
Air Force
References