It’s been an unusual journey for Kadarius “C-way” Calloway, who enrolled at Alabama back in 2021 as a defensive back, and now, three college stops later, finds himself 2,000 miles away as a running back at Cal.
Now he’s a prime candidate to be the Bears’ No. 2 running back, behind Jaydn Ott, and Calloway has no qualms with that role.
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“Whatever I play, I do it 100 percent,” he said. “Whether it’s a backup, a starter, I do it 100 percent. It’s all about the team, special teams, anything, walk-though, whatever.”
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The 6-foot, 220-pound Calloway averaged 7.1 yards per carry last season at Old Dominion, and he seems to resemble the speed-and-power package that Isaiah Ifanse provided as the Bears’ No. 2 running back last season.
“Calloway brings a little edge to him,” Cal running backs coach Aristotle Thompson said. “Up here from Mississippi by way of Old Dominion, he’s got a little different edge to his game. He’s very good at dropping his pads and stepping on somebody’s face and keep going. But don’t let his running style fool you – he can fly.”
At this point it’s a matter of Calloway learning the system and his responsibilities.
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“Calloway’s a big, big, physical guy, explosive, and he’s just learning right now,” Cal offensive coordinator Mike Bloesch said. “You can tell whenever he knows what he’s doing, he’s got some juice to him.”
Calloway, who will be a senior next fall, joins a large group of Cal running backs who hope to get playing time. Justin Williams-Thomas and Jaivan Thomas showed potential last season and Byron Cardwell is returning after missing last season with an injury.
Running back depth is a priority for Cal after what took place last season. Injuries to Cal running backs that forced Ott to get more carries than he would otherwise. He finished with 1,315 rushing yards, but he carried the ball 36 times against Stanford, which is more than Bloesch would like.
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“I think 30 [carries] is a little high, because I’d like him to be explosive every time he touches it,” Bloesch said. “But with some of the depth issues we had at the end of last season, that was kind of where we were at.”
Bloesch expects that as many as four running backs could see playing time in a given game, and with the pounding running backs take, teams must be prepared for injuries at that position, as Cal experienced last season.
Bloesch has made it clear that he likes to run the ball, making depth at running back a priority.
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Into that crowded position steps Calloway. Coming out of Philadelphia, Mississippi (population 7,000), Calloway initially committed to Mississippi State, but changed his mind and signed with Alabama, the preeminent college football program. He enrolled at Alabama and took part in summer drills in Tuscaloosa as a defensive backs prospect, but about a week before fall camp began, he left Alabama and enrolled at East Mississippi Community College.
He is vague about the reason he left Alabama, but in the past he said it was a matter of not being ready for that level of college football.
Because he arrived so late at East Mississippi, Calloway only returned kicks in his first season there. But he was switched to running back in his second junior college season despite being primarily a wide receiver and defensive back in high school.
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Calloway made the transition without much difficulty,.
“I played everything in high school,” he said. “I even played quarterback at one point. I can play anything.”
Calloway was impressive enough at his new position to earn one scholarship offer from a FBS school, Old Dominion. He rushed for 623 yards in nine games at ODU in 2023, and that included a game against Marshall in which he ran for 236 yards on just 11 carries.
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That one game made him attractive to other FBS schools, and he opted to travel across the country to Berkeley.
— Inside linebacker Cade Uluave was present at Wednesday’s practice, but did not participate. Wednesday was Cal’s first practice since March 23.
— Bloesch reiterated that Fernando Mendoza is the Bears’ No. 1 quarterback at the moment, but Chandler Rogers is splitting time with Mendoza in practice. There is no timetable for naming a starting quarterback for the August 31 opener against UC Davis.
