Cal offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin is reportedly responsible for a mass exodus to the transfer portal in recent days. It sounds like the former head coach at Auburn, who was fired after less than two full seasons on the Plains, is not particularly well liked.
Players are getting out as soon as possible.
Harsin, 48, was hired by Golden Bears head coach Justin Wilcox at the beginning of December. He had not coached college football since Halloween in 2022.
The University of California-Berkeley does not necessarily align with Harsin’s views on politics or the world, but that has nothing to do with what happens on the field or in the locker room. That is a completely different story. There was a lot of drama at Auburn during the majority of his tenure (including a fake witch hunt) and his family was often involved with the shenanigans. His former players referred to him as a “dictator” who “did not care about what they thought.” They said that he was not necessarily a bad guy, but he treated them like “dogs.”
Believe it or not, Richard Johnson of CBS Sports is reporting that Bryan Harsin has not won over the locker room at Cal and has not been a “culture fit”. His sources say the new offensive coordinator is causing the team to unravel rather than unite.
To be fair, the ongoing standoff between top boosters and the administration does not help.
A team that went 6-7 last season will look completely different next season. Especially on offense.
22 players entered the transfer portal, with 18 of them on offense. 10 players hit the portal this week, including all five running backs. All five of the Golden Bears’ leading rushers from last season are gone.
The staff was prepared for four of five. The fifth caught them by surprise.
While NIL money undoubtedly played a role in the mass exodus, it does not sound like Bryan Harsin gave the players a reason to be excited about the program and its future. Why would they stay at Cal when they could get paid more money to play somewhere that excites them? This unraveling could be disastrous. A program that was on the rise (relatively speaking) is crashing and burning.