Newcomer Aidan Keanaaina Finds His Place on Cal's Defense

The Notre Dame transfer has given the Bears a strong presence on their defensive front

Aidan Keanaaina tackles UC Davis running back Lan Larison. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Cal defensive lineman Aidan Keanaaina spent four seasons at Notre Dame, where he earned a business undergraduate degree, tore his ACL in the spring entering his junior, and saw such sporadic playing time he totaled just 11 tackles.

In three games with the Bears, the 6-foot-3, 320-pound redshirt junior already has 12 tackles at a position where players often go unnoticed..

“Those guys don’t get a ton of exposure and sometimes they don’t show up as much statistically, even if they’re playing well,” Cal coach Justin Wilcox says in the video above. “Aidan’s doing a heck of a job.”

Wilcox praises the Brighton, Colorado native for being “incredible” as a person, a worker and a teammate. "And he’s producing.”

Keanaaina (pronounced Key-ahn-uh-eye-nuh) delivered a level of production in Saturday’s 31-10 win over San Diego State unlike anything he’s done in his five college seasons.

His six tackles exceeded his previous best of four from the Bears’ season-opening game against UC Davis.

Keanaaina has nothing bad to say about his experience at Notre Dame. Loved the place, he said. But he also loves where he landed out of the transfer portal.

A four-star recruit out of high school, Keanaaina believes he finally is getting the chance to explore his potential.

“They’ve put a lot of confidence in me. . .  to play fast and just work on myself every day and build up my tool belt or my craft and go out there and be the best I can be,” he said. 

Cal’s defensive line was one of the big question marks entering this season. The Bears were thin at those positions a year ago and allowed more than 133 rushing yards per game. Through three games this fall, opponents have managed an average of less than 105 yards on the ground.

In Cal’s scheme, the interior of the defensive front typically works to neutralize blockers, allowing the Bears’ linebackers to accrue big tackling numbers. The beneficiaries of that in recent years include linebackers Jackson Sirmon, Evan Weaver and Jordan Kunaszyk, all of whom had seasons boasting 100-plus tackles.

Keanaaina will not pile up those kinds of numbers but he’s third on the team in tackles right now, and for a reason, Wilcox said.

“He’s big. He’s got a big, thick lower half. He is tough to move and he’s been productive,” Wilcox said. “Sometimes those guys that have that body type can just take up a block but it’s hard for them to be productive getting off a block. 

“You want to see that production when the double-team comes off and they get back in their gap and actually make a tackle, as opposed to just holding the double-team. He’s been able to do that. 

Keanaaina talks in the video above about how he believes playing a range of sports as a youngster added to his athletic skillset.

The Bears make their debut in the Atlantic Coast Conference, a 4 p.m. PT Saturday kickoff on the road against defending conference champion Florida State.

The Seminoles are one of the nation’s most perplexing teams, winless in three games a year after going 13-1. But their offensive line is rich in experience, with a combined 377 college games and 225 starts on their resume.

“This week it’s going to be against some elite-level talent,’ Wilcox said. “It will be a great challenge for him.”

Newcomers via the transfer portal are making significant contributions to the defense, with TJ Bollers (Wisconsin) rotating on the line, linebacker Teddye Buchanan (UC Davis) leading the team with 31 tackles, and cornerback Marcus Harris (Idaho) having made two interceptions.

But Keanaaina has done his part.

Asked if Keanaaina has exceeded expectations, Cal defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon says in the video above, “He’s been exactly what we thought.”