Overview
- NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported on X that Cal plans to bring Michael Hutchings from the Minnesota Vikings to run the defense, with formal confirmation still pending.
- Hutchings is in his third season on Minnesota’s staff, serving as safeties coach after a 2023 stint as assistant defensive backs coach.
- Before the NFL, Hutchings coached at Western Kentucky as outside linebackers coach and previously held assistant roles at Oregon and USC following his playing career at USC.
- Lupoi, recently hired to lead Cal, returns from Oregon where his defenses consistently ranked in the top 25, including third nationally in yards allowed this season.
- Cal moved on from Justin Wilcox after a 7-5 campaign, and the reported DC hire signals Lupoi’s quick push to establish a defensive identity while potentially leaving a vacancy on the Vikings’ staff.