Tosh Lupoi’s return to Berkeley as Cal’s 35th head coach feels more like a homecoming than a fresh chapter. The 44-year-old played at Cal for five years, coached there until 2011, and never really let go of that familiarity. Even after his coaching tenure concluded, Lupoi contributed to the program as a recruiter. Jared Goff was one of the recruits.

Now back in the same building as head coach, Lupoi recently welcomed Goff, not just as a Cal legend, but as the player he once helped land. And as for Goff, he came to see the first person who ever texted him about becoming a Golden Bear. And the rest is history.

“I think you recruited me at some point,” Goff said to Lupoi. “And I looked back through my Facebook. Sure enough, the first message I ever received on Facebook was from Tosh Lupoi. ‘Jared, what’s going on, big guy, great game last night,’ all that, ‘go bears.’ You were here at Cal, that was the first message I ever received.

And about a few months later, Coach [Jeff] Tredford offered me. Big time. Yeah. So basically crediting the entire success of your career. It was, it was the first reach out from Cal, from you. So very cool.”

Cal was actually the first to offer Jared Goff a scholarship, which makes this a full-circle moment. But there’s a bittersweet ending to it. Tosh Lupoi, the very guy who initially gave Goff the attention, left for Washington a year before Goff ever played a down for Cal. Back in the early 2010s, Lupoi was one of Cal’s leading recruiters and the primary staffer on Goff’s recruitment when he was a four-star candidate at Marin Catholic.

He did the hard part early, getting Goff’s interest and guiding him to commit during the 2013 class cycle. From there, the baton was passed. Jeff Tedford formally extended the offer and finalized the recruitment, with Goff officially committing in March 2012. Goff later credited Tedford’s track record with quarterbacks as a huge factor in his decision.

Quarterbacks coach Marcus Arroyo also played a major role. Goff called his relationship with Tedford and Arroyo the “perfect marriage” for his skill set. When Tedford was let go, and Sonny Dykes was hired late in 2012, the situation could have been something else. Jake Spavital was tasked with re-recruiting Goff. At first, he had his doubts. That went away after watching Goff take over a high school state championship game.

“This kid is really special,” he raved to Dykes. From that moment, the staff fully backed Goff. By the time Goff started in January 2013, Lupoi was already the Huskies’ D-line coach. Ironically, many top recruits, including five-star Shaq Thompson, followed Lupoi to Seattle. Goff stayed put. And Cal benefited massively from it. At Berkeley, Goff set 26 school records and became the sole quarterback in program history to play a season opener as a true freshman.

He fired up the 2015 Armed Forces Bowl with 467 passing yards and six touchdowns. He completed his career second all-time at Cal in passing efficiency (143.95), following only Aaron Rodgers. That’s what Lupoi gave Cal when he first texted the current Lions’ QB.

Now that the prodigal son is back in Berkeley, Lupoi has quickly leaned into a familiar role of recruiting. Just like he once did with Jared Goff, Lupoi was aggressive from the start and zeroed in on in-state four-star safety Malakai Taufoou. But it won’t be an easy win. Lupoi’s former stop is pushing just as hard.

Berkeley’s recruiting expert faces a major challenge

Poaching has become a day-to-day thing in college football these days. And that’s why Oregon wants to be part of that race. And if that means going against their former defensive expert, so be it. On Friday, four-star safety Malakai Taufoou received an offer from Dan Lanning and the Ducks. Taufoou’s reaction is enough to make Tosh Lupoi lose sleep.

“Oregon has been a dream school of mine since I was younger,” said Taufoou. “I have had a relationship with this staff since I went to a camp last year, and I’m looking forward to building this relationship with the staff to be even stronger.”

That connection is giving Oregon a sharp edge. Taufoou grew up watching Oregon, so fandom is playing a massive role here. Add in their on-field momentum, and the attraction becomes stronger. Oregon went 13–2 in 2025 and reached the CFP semifinals for the first time in a long time. But let’s not forget, Tosh Lupoi helped prepare the Ducks’ secondary during that run. That’s why Cal isn’t backing down.

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Being a defensive-minded coach, Lupoi and his staff need to push hard for this in-state talent. Right now, familiarity is already working in Cal’s favor. Just last weekend, Taufoou returned to campus for the Bears’ stacked Premier Day.

“They want to bring the old Cal back, and it starts with a kid from down the street,” said Taufoou, while Lupoi’s arrival amplified the tone. “It is extremely big that Tosh is there. We’ve been in communication since he was at Oregon, and he’s from The Bay, which is special.”