Here we go again, again.

All signs point to the Bears holding yet another open quarterback competition leading up to yet another do-or-die season, this time between freshman Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, redshirt junior Devin Brown and perhaps even redshirt freshman EJ Caminong.

It has been six months since Sagapolutele, a 2025 four-star high school recruit, transferred to Cal after some introspective weeks with Oregon. Brown followed suit after reaching the sport’s apex with Ohio State, where he was a reserve for three seasons. Cal hasn’t said a peep about who will be under center when the Bears first take the field against Oregon State at Reser Stadium on Aug. 30.

That should be concerning to anyone who has followed the blue and gold in recent years.

The Bears have been down this road — without a certified starter entering August — several times throughout head coach Justin Wilcox’s eight-season tenure. Most recently, it was Fernando Mendoza vs. Chandler Rogers in 2024. The year prior, it was Sam Jackson V vs. Ben Finley, with Mendoza surprisingly surpassing both mid-season.

From damaging morale to spoiling chemistry, nothing good has come from the Bears’ writing “or” on their quarterback depth charts in recent years. Slice it how you want: Cal has won 12 of its 26 games since now-NFL quarterback Jack Plummer last provided stability at the position in 2022. In that stretch, the Bears have consistently embraced question marks under center, and it’s made their lives harder.

What does this mean? Wilcox, first-year offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Bryan Harsin and the rest of the offensive staff must carefully approach the 2025 season. The Bears have to soon commit to one of Brown, Sagapolutele or Caminong, so their wide receivers can perfect their timing and their linemen can master a rhythmic cadence.

Here’s the case for each:

Devin Brown

Brown is the safe choice.

Despite having thrown just 48 career passes over three collegiate seasons, Brown has studied and practiced under current NFL quarterbacks C.J. Stroud, Kyle McCord and Will Howard. He has also mentioned his excitement for Harsin’s pro-style offense and its emphasis on the dropback. Plus, Brown is fairly mobile and boasts a 6’3”, 215-pound frame, with plenty of collegiate lifting under his belt to look the part.

Brown committed to Cal quickly and decisively — he flew to Berkeley the day after earning his ring, as he told The Daily Californian — for a chance to showcase what made him a five-star high school recruit in the 2022 class.

The 2025 season is as good a time as any to see what Brown can do with control of a team.

Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele

The true freshman is the enthralling choice.

Sagapolutele enters as the Bears’ top quarterback recruit since Jared Goff and as one of Hawaii’s greatest high school prospects of all time after throwing for a state-record 10,653 yards over four prep seasons.

He doesn’t have the same experience as his fellow signal-callers, but he has a left arm that reaches 50 yards downfield with ease. He doesn’t pose much of a running threat yet, but he can still get physical behind his 6’3”, 225-pound frame.

Sagapolutele has shown a tendency to make risky passes thus far, but that’s expected with any early-career quarterback. Giving him — a true freshman — the reins, which Cal has only done once in its history with Goff, would shake the Hayward Fault.

But maybe a rumble is what the Bears need to awaken from hibernation.

EJ Caminong

Caminong is the dark horse choice.

He is the only rostered quarterback who has played in a live game for Cal; he threw 6-for-19 for 57 yards and rushed for 18 yards in a loss to UNLV in the LA Bowl. Caminong also had arguably the best spring out of the trio.

At 6’2” and 210 pounds, Caminong has been waiting for an extended opportunity since joining the Bears as a three-star 2024 high school recruit.

Most of the noise surrounding Cal’s quarterback competition has been focused on Sagapolutele and Brown. But Mendoza endured a similar situation in 2023. He was considered a third choice before becoming the long-term starter six weeks into the season and for the following campaign.

If anyone stands to benefit from the Bears’ constant indecision under center, it might just be Caminong.

The clock is ticking in Berkeley.

So far, the future and identity of Cal’s offense are unknown, and the game’s most important position is up for grabs. The Bears aren’t hustling to provide answers, either.

Cal announced Thursday that Sagapolutele and Brown will join Wilcox, star inside linebacker Cade Uluave and key defensive lineman Aidan Keanaaina at the 2025 ACC Kickoff — essentially the conference’s “media day” — in Charlotte, North Carolina, from July 22-24.

That news can mean nothing, or everything.

But the Bears were represented at last year’s media frenzy by Mendoza and Rogers amid their competition, and now both quarterbacks are elsewhere after a frustrating season of awkwardness and odd shift changes, as are the competitors who preceded them.

In the era of realignment, where every win, loss and dollar spent weighs more, Cal has to get its quarterback right — and sooner rather than later.