After four years of disappointing play under Sonny Dykes, Cal opted for a coach familiar with the program in hiring Wilcox, who was the Bears’ linebackers coach under Jeff Tedford from 2003–2005. The hire was popular, and for good reason. Wilcox is a widely respected defensive coordinator, understands the demands of working for a school where football isn’t a priority, and will revitalize local recruiting pipelines that dried under Dykes. Dykes refused to change his recruiting tendencies while in Berkeley, returning to familiar territories in Texas and on the junior college circuit instead of fostering relationships with local Northern California high school coaches.
First-year head coaches facing big challenges
