Cal Athletics 2022: Stories of the Year, Part 2

Throwers, swimmers, a golfer and a familiar voice land among Nos. 6 through 10.

Our countdown of the top Cal sports stories of 2022 continues with Nos. 6 through 10. And this group is not dominated by football and basketball, as was the case with our first installment.

Today we highlight the two greatest throwers in Cal track and field history, a feel-good golf story, another national championship in the pool, and a voice many Old Blues have listened to for nearly half a century.

But Part 2 of our series begins with an ongoing trend, the ever-growing impact of player movement through the transfer portal.

*** Part 1 of our year-end series: Stories 11 through 15

Jack Plummer, standing, has transferred into and out of Cal's football program / Photo by Darren Yamashita, USA Today

6. The growing impact of the transfer portal

Cal continues to feel the impact of the swelling popularity of the transfer portal — at both ends of the equation. Two of the Bears’ best football players in 2022 arrived as transfers, quarterback Jack Plummer from Purdue and linebacker Jackson Sirmon from Washington. Plummer passed for more than 3,000 yards with 21 touchdowns, then entered the portal again, moving on to Louisville as a graduate transfer. Sirmon led the Bears in tackles and earned All-Pac-12 honors before announcing he will return for a final season. 

The Bears added four newcomers through the portal this month, including former Oregon running back Byron Cardwell, but only after seeing at least a dozen depart, including offensive lineman Ben Coleman.

The men’s basketball team lost top frontcourt player Andre Kelly to UC Santa Barbara after last season, although the leading scorer on their current team, guard Devin Askew, arrived as a transfer from Texas.

Joe Starkey takes a moment to reflect before his final Cal broadcast

7. Joe Starkey calls it a career

After his 48th season as the radio voice of Cal football, Joe Starkey retired following their final game at Memorial Stadium this fall. Starkey, 81, who also called 49ers games for more than two decades, worked 550 Cal football games dating back to the 1975 season that featured Joe Roth and Chuck Muncie. 

Along the way he became famous for his frenzied call of “The Play” in the 1982 Big Game, and for his “What a bonanza!” exclamation following big moments by the Bears. Starkey fought off emotions in the broadcast booth at the finish of the Bears’ 35-28 loss to UCLA, acknowledging, “It’s tough to say goodbye. It’s been a remarkable gift to have this seat in this city.”

Camryn Rogers at the World Championships / Photo by Kirby Lee, USA Today

8. Cal throwers excel at World Championships

One year after finishing fifth in the women’s hammer throw at the Tokyo Olympics, Camryn Rogers broke her own collegiate record in the event, capped her Cal career with a third consecutive NCAA championship and was among three finalists for the women’s Bowerman award, given to collegiate track and field’s best performer. The Canadian recordholder then got the chance to compete at the first World Championships held on U.S. soil, finishing second at Eugene, Ore. 

Rogers had company at Hayward Field with teammate Mykolas Alekna matching her with a runner-up finish in the men’s discus. Alekna becomes the second freshman to make our top stories list, joining running back Jaydn Ott. The 19-year-old Lithuanian, who broke the collegiate record in the event last spring, became the youngest athlete to medal in the discus at the Worlds and later was named Europe’s Rising Star among male track and field athletes.

Max Homa celebrates one of his two PGA tour titles in 2022 / Photo by Scott Taetsch, USA Today

9. Max Homa blossoms

Six years ago, Max Homa’s professional golf career appeared to be in trouble. He never posted a top-25 finish throughout the 2016-17 season and earned a total of just $18,000. Now 32, the former NCAA champion while at Cal enjoyed his finest season on the PGA tour. He won twice, including at the Fortinet in Napa, where he shot back-to-back 65s on the weekend and chipped in on the 18th hole Sunday to defend his title. He also went 4-0 to help the U.S. win the Presidents Cup, one of his bucket-list goals. 

Homa and his wife became parents for the first time this fall and he finished the season with five top-10 finishes and 15 in the top-25 while earning more than $5 million. In the space of one year, Homa climbed from No. 35 in the Official World Golf Rankings to No. 17 on the current list.

NCAA 400 medley relay champs Destin Lasco, Bjorn Seeliger, Trenton Julian and Reece Whitley / Photo by Justin Casterline, KLC fotos

10. Cal men swim to national title

Ahead by just 7.5 points headed into the final day, the Cal men’s swim team roared to its seventh title at the NCAA Championships. The Bears wound up dousing defending champion Texas by 51.5 points. Destin Lasco won the 200-yard backstroke and was second in the 200 IM, Hugo Gonzalez set US Open and NCAA records while capturing the 400 IM, and Bjorn Seelinger was second in both the 50 and 100 freestyle events. Coach Dave Durden won his fifth national title in 12 seasons.

Cover photo of discus thrower Mykolas Alekna by Ben Lonergan, Register-Guard

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