BERKELEY >> Cal closed a chapter on its busiest football offseason in years Saturday with a two-hour scrimmage in its Spring Showcase in front of perhaps 500 fans at sunny Memorial Stadium.

With college football in the throes of dramatic change, ninth-year coach Justin Wilcox is under some pressure to take the Bears to another level heading into their second season in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

“I think we came together really well,” Wilcox said of progress made over 16 spring practices. “I feel really good about where the team can be. We’ve got a lot of areas where we’ve got to continue to improve. I’m very confident.”

Cal played in a bowl game last fall for the second straight season but hasn’t completed a winning season since 2019 or had a winning conference record since 2009.

The offseason featured an overhaul of Wilcox’s coaching staff, with six new assistant coaches, including offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin, the former head coach at Boise State and Auburn. Defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon left for the New Orleans Saints, so outside linebackers coach Vic So’oto and defensive backs assistant Terrence Brown were elevated this week to co-coordinators.

One-time Washington State coach Nick Rolovich was hired as a senior offensive assistant and Bob Gregory, who served as DC for eight seasons under Jeff Tedford, is on board as a senior defensive assistant.

Overseeing the entire operation is former NFL head coach and legendary Cal linebacker Ron Rivera, who was brought on as general manager and will report directly to Chancellor Rich Lyons. Expectations have ratcheted up.

“Another six-win regular season will be disappointing given how much we are investing,” Lyons said in a February interview.

All three quarterbacks competing for the No. 1 job got significant reps during the scrimmage. Junior Devin Brown, a transfer from national champion Ohio State, boasts the most experience. Freshman Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele is a left-hander with a big arm. And redshirt freshman EJ Caminong, the only returnee, has kept himself in the mix with consistent play.

Wilcox, who isn’t expected to name a starter until sometime in the weeks prior to the Aug. 30 season opener at Oregon State, has been encouraged by all three.

“They’ve all shown some impressive things on the football field and in the meeting room,” he said.

Senior running back Jaydn Ott, who rushed for more than 1,300 yards in 2023 but was injured most of last season, looks like his old self, quick and decisive. He scored a pair of touchdowns during Saturday’s action.