BYU ILB Harrison Taggart, Houston Christian DT Zae Smith commit to Cal

Thursday turned into an eventful day for Cal as the Bears added three more transfers to the roster for the fall at some key positions. Justin Wilcox’s team has kicked things into overdrive over the last week when it comes to adding talent from the portal, and Thursday was the most fruitful one with commitments from linebacker Harrison Taggart (BYU), defensive tackle Zae Smith (Houston Christian) and kicker Chase Meyer (Penn State).

Taggart is the marquee name of the group following a standout season at BYU where he finished second on the team with 69 tackles in 2024. The Draper, Utah native started all 12 games that he played in for the Cougars last fall and also had 2.5 tackles for loss and 1 sack.

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound linebacker also proved himself in coverage as well with 4 passes defended, 3 pass breakups and an interception for BYU last season. He also had a forced fumble and 4 quarterback hurries.

In his career, which began at Oregon, Taggart has collected 97 tackles with 48 of them being of the solo variety. Taggart played in 12 games and started four in his first season at BYU in 2023. He had 28 tackles that year for the Cougars.

He will head to Cal with two seasons of remaining eligibility. NC State and Colorado both became a big part of the picture for Taggart as he looked at his transfer options this spring.

In the end, he decided to join a Cal linebacker unit that suddenly again looks like a strength of the team following Taggart’s decision Thursday. The Bears will return Cade Uluave, a fellow Utah native, at the inside linebacker spot in addition to bringing in Colorado State transfer Buom Jock back in the winter.

Jock collected 100 tackles last season with the Rams while Uluave was second on Cal’s defense with 71 tackles in 2024.

Taggart was rated as a high three-star recruit by Rivals in the 2022 class and had offers from across the country including from schools such as USC, Northwestern, Utah, Louisville and Virginia among others.

Hunter Barth recently left Cal for Stanford opening up a spot at inside linebacker for the Bears.

Smith will fill a need on the defense as well as the newest member of the defensive line group for Andrew Browning. Presumed starter Nate Burrell was injured late in the spring adding to the need for some more help up front to go along with players such as Aidan Keanaaina, Derek Wilkins and T.J. Bollers.

Though he is coming from the FCS level, Smith was as productive as you will see on the interior of the defensive line with the Huskies in 2024. The 6-foot-1, 270-pound defensive tackle accounted for an impressive 54 tackles, which was good enough for sixth on the team and was best among defensive tackles at Houston Christian, to go with 7.5 tackles for loss and a team-high 5 sacks last season.

He also had a fumble recovery and 2 pass breakups.

Smith had at least 5 tackles in seven of the 12 games he played in last year giving the Bears another option up front for a group that returns several contributors. He is the first interior defensive lineman to join the Bears this spring from the portal.

The rising senior from La Marque, Texas will have one season of eligibility left after he redshirted as a freshman in 2021.

Kicking woes have become a thorn in Cal’s side in recent years, and the Bears hope they have finally addressed those concerns with the first pickup of the day Thursday. Meyer quietly signaled his commitment to Cal on Thursday with a few emojis as he will make the return west to finish out his college journey with the Bears.

The junior from Los Angeles, who played at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, began his career at Penn before making the move to Tulsa and eventually Penn State. Meyer didn’t see the field with the Nittany Lions despite being a member of the Lou Groza preseason watch list and eventually opted to enter the transfer portal following spring ball.

His 2023 campaign at Tulsa should give Cal confidence that Meyer can make improvements in the kicking game for the Bears. He didn’t miss a field goal until the ninth game that season and eventually finished 17 for 20 on attempts. He only missed one extra point that year.

His career long is 47 yards, which he made in a game at East Carolina late in his sophomore season.

Meyer will have two years of eligibility remaining and joins a Cal kicking group that includes incoming freshman Erik Peters who committed to the Bears in late February.

The Bears added Charlotte transfer Kyle Cunanan during the winter, but he struggled in the spring before eventually opting to enter the transfer portal.

Cal has now made 12 spring transfer additions.

– OLB Chris Victor (Chattanooga | April 16)

– WR Quaron Adams (South Dakota | April 19)

– OLB TJ Bush Jr. (Liberty | April 20)

– LS Rino Monteforte (Notre Dame | April 22)

– RB Brandon High Jr. (UTSA | April 25)

– CB Quimari Shemwell (Utah | April 25)

– RB Kendrick Raphael (NC State | April 26)

– OL Daveion Harley (Jacksonville State | April 28)

– WR Mark Hamper (Wisconsin | April 30)

– K Chase Meyer (Penn State | May 1)

– ILB Harrison Taggart (BYU | May 1)

– DT Zae Smith (Houston Christian | May 1)