College football doesn’t hand out sympathy points to first-year head coaches. You either deliver results or start answering uncomfortable questions. Building a staff, establishing a culture, and adjusting to a new program might take time, but patience wears thin when losses pile up. And when there’s no visible progress, even a coach’s first season can turn into a fight for survival.
That is the situation surrounding the California Golden Bears as they head into the final weeks of the 2026 season. Cal is 3-6 overall and 2-4 in the ACC, and three straight losses have left the team with little room for error. With the season not going as expected, attention has now turned to the future of first-year head coach Tosh Lupoi after a senior figure in the program spoke openly about his decisions and the need for improvement.
“Ron Rivera with some astonishingly candid feedback this morning for the first-year Cal head coach around hiring, decision-making, accepting feedback. Critical month ahead for Tosh Lupoi,” analyst Avinash Kunnath wrote on X on November 6.
The post came after Cal general manager and athletic director Ron Rivera discussed the team’s season during his appearance on KNBR’s Murph & Markus morning show on Thursday. Rivera, who previously coached in the NFL, addressed the challenges Lupoi has faced in his first year in charge, including the decision to bring in inexperienced coordinators and the problems Cal has had on offense.
“Tosh came in as a first-time head coach. He did bring a couple of inexperienced coordinators with him. Things didn’t work out the way we needed them to work out on offense,” Rivera said.
Rivera also spoke about the conversations he has had with Lupoi throughout the season. According to him, the program has tried to guide the first-year coach and help him work through some of the challenges. However, Rivera suggested that Lupoi has been more open to certain suggestions than others.
“He has bumped his head a lot. We have talked a lot, tried to give him a lot of advice, point him in the right direction. Some of it, he’s been very receptive, and other portions of it, he hasn’t. And it’s those things that sometimes you’ve gotta learn for yourself before you think, ‘Oh wow, this is it,’” Rivera said.
Despite the criticism, Rivera did not overlook the fact that Lupoi is still adjusting to the demands of being a head coach. He made it clear that he believes the coach is learning and growing through the experience.
“But I’d like to continue to stress that this is a guy that’s learning, growing,” Rivera added.
However, Rivera’s next comments made it clear that the program cannot wait much longer to see progress. With only a few regular-season games remaining, he expects the team to show improvement in how it plays, how its players develop, and how the overall culture is coming together.
“But now it’s time… These last three games, hopefully four, the trajectory has to be going north. We have to show that we are growing, there has been some growth and development of our players, our team, and the culture is getting stronger. Those are all things that you have to have going forward,” Rivera said.
Rivera did not directly say that Lupoi’s job was in danger or announce any plans to make a coaching change. Still, his comments have added pressure to an already difficult season. The message is straightforward: Cal needs to show that the work being done behind the scenes is starting to produce results.
Cal enters its Week 10 bye after losing to Wake Forest and SMU before suffering a 31-10 defeat against NC State. The Golden Bears now have Virginia, Stanford, and Pittsburgh left on their regular-season schedule. They need to win all three games to reach the six victories required for bowl eligibility.
The disappointing record comes after Cal made a coaching change following the 2025 season. The Golden Bears finished 7-6 that year, but Justin Wilcox was dismissed with one game left in the regular season. During his nine years at the program, Wilcox recorded three winning seasons and went 1-4 in bowl games.
Lupoi arrived with expectations of bringing a fresh start. However, his first season has been challenging, especially as Cal continues to adjust to playing in the ACC. Rivera also brought up UCLA when discussing the comparisons being made between the two programs.
UCLA is 8-0 under first-year coach Bob Chesney, who arrived after leading James Madison to the College Football Playoff in 2025. Chesney also brought experience as a head coach and several players familiar with his system, while Lupoi was stepping into the role for the first time.
Offensive changes have added to the pressure
Cal has also had to make adjustments on offense during the season. In early October, pass game coordinator Pat McCann took over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Jordan Somerville. The quarterback position became another talking point after Lupoi briefly moved away from Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele.
Jackson Brousseau started against Wake Forest, and an ESPN report during the game indicated that a quarterback competition could follow. Sagapolutele has since started Cal’s last two games. These changes have come as the Golden Bears have struggled to put together consistent performances.
Lupoi, 45, has a long connection with Cal. He played defensive line for the Golden Bears from 2000 to 2005 and later returned as a defensive line coach from 2008 to 2011. His coaching career also includes stops at Washington, Alabama, the Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons, and Jacksonville Jaguars. Before returning to Berkeley, he spent four seasons as Oregon’s defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.
Rivera, 64, joined Cal as its football general manager in March 2025. He previously played linebacker at the university before moving into coaching, where he led the Carolina Panthers from 2011 to 2019 and the Washington Commanders from 2020 to 2023. He finished his NFL head coaching career with a 102-103-2 record.
Rivera also explained what he wants to see from the program as it looks ahead to recruiting and building a stronger team.
“We’ve got to get this foundation put down, we’ve got to show that we have solid roots in the ground, we are ready to go forward… We’re doing the things that we need to do. We’re putting the players in position, so let’s roll. And that’s what we have to do,” Rivera said.
For Lupoi, the focus now shifts to the games still left on the schedule. Rivera has acknowledged that the first-year coach is learning, but he also wants to see the Golden Bears take a clear step forward. With Cal sitting at 3-6, the team’s response after the bye will be closely watched, and its finish could have a major say in how the program approaches the offseason.