Sagapolutele flips commitment from Cal to Oregon in signing day decision

The No. 1 class of 2025 prospect from the state of Hawai’i is going to the current No. 1 team in the country.

Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, the state’s all-time career passing yards leader, put pen to paper Wednesday morning and signed to play for the Oregon Ducks at Campbell High School’s signing day event at its gymnasium.

Sagapolutele previously gave a verbal commitment to play for the Cal Golden Bears in the summer, but received attention from numerous schools in the midst of a stellar senior season for the Sabers as he passed for 3,404 yards and 46 touchdowns in the fall.

The 6-foot-4, 225-pound left-handed quarterback will follow in the footsteps of a pair of Hawai’i-born signal-callers in Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Marcus Mariota and current starter Dillon Gabriel.

“First and foremost I just want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus,” said Sagapolutele, who made his decision the night before. “I’m just so grateful that He put me in a place where I was able to decide where I want to go. It’s a great place. I’m just so thankful to my parents. It’s been in my heart for a while.”

Numerous factors contributed to Sagapolutele flipping his commitment.

Ties to Hawai’i was one of them.

In addition to Gabriel, six other players on the current Oregon roster list a Hawai’i city as their home town, including sophomore offensive linemen Iapani Laloulu, Kawika Rogers and junior running back Kilohana Haasenritter.

“The 808 pipeline is real,” Sagapolutele said, referencing the area code in Hawai’i. “They have something special over there and they’re continuing to build something special. I just can’t wait to go up there and compete. It was just in my heart that this was the right place to be. I felt it.”

In following in the footsteps of Mariota and Gabriel, Sagapolutele said: “it’s some big shoes to fill and to carry. I plan to make my own mark as well on the college level. Not to sound too boastful, but I’m ready to compete. I’m just ready to play. I’m just so grateful that I’m part of the 808 Ducks now.”

Sagapolutele added that he’s looking to be the starting QB from the get-go and is ready for the competition against sophomore Dante Moore and the rest of the QBs on the roster.

“You’re going to expect a guy that wants the position from day one,” Sagapolutele said. “I believe that with my skill talents and the things that the Lord has blessed me with… I’ll just continue to work hard. It’s just up from here. I’m excited.”

The future Duck took his official visit to the campus in Eugene in late October after the conclusion of the OIA regular season. Sagapolutele said “it was just cool vibes” from coach Dan Lanning, offensive coordinator Will Stein and the rest of the staff.

He added that Oregon did not stop their pursuit of him after his trip as multiple members of the coaching staff kept up with the communication.

“I was just feeling that I was really wanted over there. Coach Lanning and the staff, they really put time and effort into really recruiting me. Every day, it was just a lot of calls from them. Not every day was it calls from coach Lanning (but) coach Stein, just all of them. I’m just truly blessed and grateful that I was able to sign with them.”

The Georgia Bulldogs, who won national championships in 2021 and 2022, were also in the hunt for Sagapolutele and had an official visit scheduled with him on Nov. 16. State tournament games saw that date pushed back a week before Sagapolutele eventually canceled the planned trip with the Bulldogs.

Cal certainly did its part in trying to keep Sagapolutele committed to the Golden Bears when his recruiting stock increased.

Golden Bears coach Justin Wilcox and offensive coordinator Mike Bloesch flew to the islands to see Sagapolutele personally during the Sabers’ first playoff game before flying out the same night on Nov. 1.

Sagapolutele also took another unofficial visit to the campus in Berkeley before thanksgiving where he got to hangout with numerous Cal alumni that went on to play in the NFL.

But a change in the offensive staff at Cal may have been the last minute difference maker to get Sagapolutele to flip his commitment. According to reports on Tuesday, within 24 hours before the early signing day period, the Golden Bears were moving on from Bloesch as their OC.

“That was something that really affected my decision big time because I was really locked in with Cal, but then I was really unsure where they would be going now,” Sagapolutele confessed.

Sagapolutele’s older brother, John-Keawe, is also on the move. The former University of Hawai’i QB announced he would be entering the transfer portal recently on social media.

When asked if the two brothers could be playing in the same state, the younger Sagapolutele said: “you never know what will happen. Just prayers for my brother. He’s going to make a great decision. He’s going to go to a great place and I know he’s going to start right away and he’s going to ball.”