CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2025 California

7–⁠6 (4–⁠4 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Justin Wilcox (games 1–⁠11), then Nick Rolovich (Interim, remainder of season).

Schedule and results

California in 2025, game by game: won at Oregon State 34–15; won vs. Texas Southern 35–3; won vs. Minnesota 27–14; lost at San Diego State 0–34; won at Boston College 28–24; lost vs. Duke 21–45; won vs. North Carolina 21–18; lost at Virginia Tech 34–42; lost vs. No. 15 Virginia 21–31; won at No. 14 Louisville 29–26; lost at Stanford 10–31; won vs. No. 25 SMU 38–35; lost at Hawai’i 31–35+32−34Won 34–15 at Oregon State+19Oregon StateWon 35–3 vs. Texas Southern+32Texas SouthernWon 27–14 vs. Minnesota+13MinnesotaLost 0–34 at San Diego State-34San Diego StateWon 28–24 at Boston College+4Boston CollegeLost 21–45 vs. Duke-24DukeWon 21–18 vs. North Carolina+3North CarolinaLost 34–42 at Virginia Tech-8Virginia TechLost 21–31 vs. No. 15 Virginia-10No. 15 VirginiaWon 29–26 at No. 14 Louisville+3No. 14 LouisvilleLost 10–31 at Stanford-21StanfordWon 38–35 vs. No. 25 SMU+3No. 25 SMULost 31–35 at Hawai’i-4Hawai’i
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30atOregon StateW 34–⁠1548%
Sep 6vsTexas SouthernW 35–⁠388%
Sep 13vsMinnesotaW 27–⁠1451%
Sep 20atSan Diego StateL 0–⁠3467%
Sep 27atBoston CollegeW 28–⁠2449%
Oct 4vsDukeL 21–⁠4550%
Oct 17vsNorth CarolinaW 21–⁠1866%
Oct 24atVirginia TechL 34–⁠4256%
Nov 1vs15VirginiaL 21–⁠3148%
Nov 8at14LouisvilleW 29–⁠2618%
Nov 22atStanfordL 10–⁠3160%
Nov 29vs25SMUW 38–⁠3525%
Dec 24Bowls & playoffatHawai’iHawai’i BowlL 31–⁠3536%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Hawai’i 35–⁠31 in the Hawai’i Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 8th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 70th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 112 on file).

Record
7–⁠6
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 8th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
329–⁠353
Coach
Justin Wilcox (games 1–⁠11), then Nick Rolovich (Interim, remainder of season)
Elo
1473 −41 this season
SP+ rating
-3.2 No. 80 of 136; offense No. 77, defense No. 72, special teams No. 93
SRS
−4.1 No. 86 of 136 in FBS
Returning
6% of last season’s EPA, No. 133 of 134
Recruiting class
No. 69 roster talent No. 36 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Bryan Harsin
Defensive coordinators
Vic So’oto and Terrence Brown
Offense
Up-tempo spread
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense74th of 136
  • Defense91st of 136
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted71st of 136
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted95th of 136
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0840%1.2774th of 136
Defense0.1543%1.1791st of 136
Opponent-adjusted0.08 off
0.14 def		41% off
43% def		—71st off
95th def

Passing and running

Pass successDepth of targetDeep throwsLine yardsStuffed
Offense46%7.8 yds11%2.7016%
Defense40%8.4 yds15%3.3013%
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.7own 2716% allowed
Defense3.7own 3015% caused

CORE rating -6.2, 85th of 136 (offense -3.3, defense 3.0).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsJaron-Keawe Sagapolutele QB3,446 yds
Passing touchdownsJaron-Keawe Sagapolutele QB18 TD
Rushing yardsKendrick Raphael RB952 yds
Rushing touchdownsKendrick Raphael RB13 TD
Receiving yardsJacob De Jesus WR1,022 yds
Receiving touchdownsJacob De Jesus WR6 TD
TacklesCade Uluave LB97 tkl
SacksT.J. Bush DL4.5 sacks
InterceptionsHezekiah Masses DB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2025 class

Jae’on Young CB★★★★No. 433
Justin Hasenhuetl OL★★★★No. 453
Anthony League RB★★★No. 593
Meyer Swinney ATH★★★No. 744
Aiden Manutai S★★★No. 917

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2025 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.848
Running backs13.00.882
Receivers13.00.863
Offensive line33.30.870
Defensive line23.00.858
Linebackers13.00.851
Defensive backs43.30.869
Athletes and specialists23.00.864
Whole class153.10.865

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2026

The 2026 draft
Rd 5Hezekiah Masses CBLas Vegas Raiders

Roster 114

The 2025 roster

114 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2025 line; 64 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 36

The 2025 portal
Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele QB★★★★from Oregon
Mark Hamper WR★★★from Wisconsin
Hezekiah Masses CB★★★from Florida International
Kendrick Raphael RB★★★from NC State
T.J. Bush DE★★★from Liberty
Brent Austin CB★★★from South Florida
Buom Jock LB★★★from Colorado State
Chris Victor DE★★★from Chattanooga
Dazmin James WR★★★from Arkansas
Devin Brown QB★★★from Ohio State
Harrison Taggart LB★★★from BYU
Jayden Wayne DE★★★from Washington

And 24 more, lower-rated or unrated.

Transfers out 34

Fernando Mendoza QB★★★★to Indiana
Jadyn Ott RB★★★★to Oklahoma
Jack Endries TE★★★★to Texas
Nyziah Hunter WR★★★★to Nebraska
Jaivian Thomas RB★★★to UCLA
Mikey Matthews WR★★★to UCLA
Tobias Merriweather WR★★★to Utah
Hunter Barth LB★★★to Stanford
Josiah Martin WR★★★to Oklahoma
Matthew Wykoff OL★★★to Houston
David Reese DE★★★to Syracuse
J.T. Byrne TE★★★to Georgia Tech

And 22 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2025 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Virginia7–⁠211–⁠316
Miami6–⁠213–⁠32
SMU6–⁠29–⁠4
Georgia Tech6–⁠29–⁠4
Duke6–⁠29–⁠5
Pittsburgh6–⁠28–⁠5
NC State5–⁠48–⁠5
Louisville4–⁠49–⁠4
Wake Forest4–⁠49–⁠4
Clemson4–⁠47–⁠6
California4–⁠47–⁠6
Stanford3–⁠54–⁠8
Florida State2–⁠65–⁠7
North Carolina2–⁠64–⁠8
Virginia Tech2–⁠63–⁠9
Syracuse1–⁠73–⁠9
Boston College1–⁠72–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.