Cal transfer LB Luke Ferrelli commits to Clemson

4 days ago 2

Cal redshirt freshman transfer linebacker Luke Ferrelli has committed to Clemson via the NCAA Transfer Portal, On3’s Hayes Fawcett reports. Ferrelli, who was named the ACC Defensive Freshman of the Year, was also an All-ACC honorable mention.

After redshirting in 2024, Ferrelli exploded onto the scene in 2025. The San Diego native played in all 13 games, recording 91 tackles, five TFL, one sack, one interception, two pass deflections.

Prior to enrolling at Cal, Ferrelli was ranked as a three-star prospect and the No. 1,413 overall player in the 2024 class, according to the On3 Consensus. He was the No. 134-ranked LB in his class and the No. 103 overall player from the state of California, hailing from Carlsbad.

Clemson looks to bounce back from down season in 2026

Clemson entered the 2025 season with lofty expectations, as it was tabbed as the No. 4 ranked team in the Preseason AP Poll. The Tigers mightily failed to live up to these expectations, however, as they finished with a 7-6 record and a loss to Penn State in the Pinstripe Bowl. It marked the first sub eight-win season for Clemson since 2010, which was head coach Dabo Swinney‘s second in charge.

Following the loss to the Nittany Lions, Swinney promised to take what he learned from the disappointing season and channel it into a strong 2026 campaign.

“Again, I know we’ve got seven wins, but we’re a lot closer than people think,” Swinney said. “That’s one of them things, boy, if you say that you get torn up on social media, people rip you I’m sure. But that’s the reality. I know what it is, and I know how close we are. It’s one more catch or one more good throw. It’s a better call or one stop. Next thing you know, you win a couple of those games that we lost early, and now you’ve got confidence and momentum and all those things matter. We just never got that.”

“Again, it’s never as good as you think, it’s never as bad as you think. I’ve done this a long time, and this is the second worst season we’ve had in 17 years. There will be something good come from it just like the last one we had in 2010. We had a lot of great things come from it. We’ll have a lot of great come from this one, as well.”

Swinney has more than earned another season to turn things around, as he has led Clemson to a 187-53 record, nine ACC Championships, and two National Championships across 17 seasons.