Cal Football: Freshman WR Jeremiah Hunter Convinced the Wait Will Be Worth It

Hunter Missed the 2020 Season Due to a Shoulder Injury But is Healthy Now

Jeremiah Hunter says it hurt to miss Cal’s 2020 mini-season. The freshman wide receiver was sidelined by a shoulder injury, unavailable for any of the Bears’ four games in the COVID-shortened season.

In the big picture, the time he spent watching from the sidelines may turn out to be a positive.

“I felt like it was a blessing in disguise because I got to sit and understand the offense more,” Hunter said last week, just before the conclusion of spring ball for the Bears. “I understand what I have to do on almost every play. So I feel like it reallly helped me out a lot as a player.

“I got to diagnose releases and things like that from all the older guys that were playing. I pretty much took that as a learning point.”

Wide receiver Jeremiah Hunter / Photo by Al Sermeno, KLC fotos

Hunter, a 6-foot-2, 190-pounder, was one of the jewels in Cal’s 2020 recruiting class. Wide receivers coach Burl Toler III says Hunter was good enough coming out of Central High in Fresno that he would have been in the receiver rotation as a true freshman.

The way Hunter responded to his injury has given Toler a greater appreciation for the total package.

“Most guys when they get hurt kind of shut it down. He turned up the intensity and he took advantage of not being able to be on the field,” Toler said in the video below. “From the sideline, he was able to read coverages and see himself in the play.

“So now that he’s back on the field he’s used all that knowledge that he gained last year and now he’s on a different level. He’s only going to get better, which is a scary thought.”

If its scary it’s because Hunter emerged from high school with statistics that suggest he was barely challenged: 209 career receptions, 50 touchdowns.

It all adds up, Toler said.

“There’s no mystery as to why he succeeds and why he had crazy numbers in high school,” he said.” If you just met him, you’d think he had one catch in high school. He works hard. His attitude is to always get better. He’s never satisfied.”

The Bears are hoping Hunter helps provide an element they badly need: a deep threat that can stretch the defense and open up the rest of the field for the Bears to attack.

“I would just like to create explosive plays for Cal, be another option they can go to,” he said.

Hunter may not be the only new down-field target the Bears have next season. Incoming freshmen J. Michael Sturdivant of Flower Mound, Texas, and Main Anderson of Mission Viejo, California, both bring speed to the position.

But they won’t arrive until the summer, and Hunter gave the Bears a taste of what he can do this spring.

“We knew we needed a player coming in with Jeremiah’s stature and his ability,” Toler said. “Jeremiah’s got great range. He’s a true X receiver and has big-play ability.”

He “will absolutely get some playing time and have a huge opportunity to contribute to this offense.”

*** Hunter talks in the video below about NFL receivers he admires: 

Hunter says time this spring working in offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave’s system has been instructive.

“For me, it’s different because it’s a pro-style offense. In high school we used four-wide, so I’m used to spread,” he said. "I really like it because it’s going to prepare me for the next level.”

Hunter’s emphasis in spring ball was improving his ability to read coverages. In high school, he said, “Most of the time I was just using my skill. But here in college you really have to look at the defense and see what they’re doing. Identifying coverages would be what I’ve most improved in.”

Hunter says he and senior quarterback Chase Garbers found common ground last season in their shared injury history. Garbers broke his collarbone during the 2019 season, and Hunter says “we have a cool connection.”

On the field, “I feel like he’s gaining a lot more trust in me on the deep ball. He feels like I can beat a DB any time and I feel the same way. He’s just ben throwing it and I’ve been catching it,” Hunter said. “Hopefully we can keep it going.”

The ultimate target, Hunter said, is a Pac-12 championship and the prize that comes with it: A long-awaited return trip to the Rose Bowl. “That’s the goal,” he said in the video above.

Hunter says the 2020 recruits have been talking about the Rose Bowl “forever,” which has a different context to someone who won’t even turn 19 years old until next month.

Asked if he understands what getting to Pasadena on Jan. 1 would mean to generations of Old Blues, Hunter said, “It’s going to be crazy. I’m trying to see that.”

So he knows how long it’s been?

“Not exactly.”

I informed him that it was 1959, and suggested his parents probably weren’t alive yet. “No,” he confirmed. “No they weren’t.”

The timetable changes nothing in Hunter’s mind. “That’s the plan,” he said, “and we’re not looking to do anything short of that.”

Cover photo of Jeremiah Hunter by Al Sermeno, KLC fotos

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo