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Kyle Bonagura
Kyle Bonagura
ESPN Staff Writer
- Covers college football.
- Joined ESPN in 2014.
- Attended Washington State University.
Cal is targeting Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi to become its next football coach, with a process expected to lead to his hiring in the coming days, sources told ESPN.
Lupoi was widely expected to be the front-runner for the job after Justin Wilcox was fired last week. Lupoi played at Cal from 2000 to 2005 before starting his coaching career with the Bears in 2008 under former coach Jeff Tedford. It was during that time Lupoi first developed a reputation as an elite recruiter.
Lupoi has spent the past four seasons in Eugene, Oregon, as Dan Lanning’s defensive coordinator. Before that, he spent three years as a defensive line coach in the NFL, after a five-year stint on Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama (2014-18), with the final season as defensive coordinator.
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Over the past week, several high-profile former Cal players have advocated publicly — and privately to Cal general manager Ron Rivera — for Lupoi to be the hire.
Lupoi is also from the Bay Area, having attended high school football power De La Salle during its record 151-game winning streak.
Cal qualified for a bowl game for the third straight season but has not had a winning record in conference play since Tedford was the coach in 2009, a period that includes four seasons under Sonny Dykes before Wilcox for the past nine.
The Athletic first reported Cal was in negotiations with Lupoi.
