Michael Saffell Talks Cal Offer and Recruitment
Cal put out a couple of offers Tuesday, one of them being to Edison High School (Huntington Beach) Center Michael Saffell. Cal's offer to Saffell is his first Power 5 offer, but he earned the attention of multiple Pac-12 coaches after winning the OL MVP at the Opening's Los Angeles regional earlier this year. That put Saffell on the radar of Cal offensive line coach Brandon Jones.
“We probably started talking in maybe April or March, and we’ve been in constant contact ever since then,” Saffell said about the initial contact between him and Jones, who extended the offer on Tuesday. “When we talked, he said he’d bring me in as an interior guy, meaning whether it’s guard or center. I think he’s probably thinking center. That’s what basically every school has told me, that I’m gonna come in and play center, so if I had to guess that’s what I would say.” Jones will have to replace three interior linemen who will receive playing time next year in Chris Borrayo, Jeremiah Stuckey, and Dominic Granado.
Saffell currently has offers from four Ivy League schools along with multiple Mountain West programs, and has received interest from Stanford. “For me, academics is the same as football, just putting in the time, work and effort into it. It’s definitely as, if not more important to me, than football, and I think I try to put the same amount of effort and time as I do studying back into the field,” Saffell said. He currently maintains a 4.2 GPA, had a 4.4 over the last year, and plans on taking AP Physics and Statistics next year.
Saffell has put that dedication in the classroom into his work on the field. When asked about his strengths, Saffell answered, "First off, technique. I’ve worked with Jesse Sapolu (former 49ers Pro Bowl OL) for about five years now, just refining my technique, especially from a young age. I think I play consistently nasty on the field. If you were to watch a full game of mine, I kinda look to bury someone, always trying to look to finish someone, not just for the highlight tape, all the time, just trying to wear somebody down. So yeah, I’d say technique and being consistently nasty are probably the best things I play with.”
Saffell was candid about what he wants to improve in his game, mentioning “What I’ve worked on this offseason along with getting bigger, faster and stronger, is my flexibility. I didn’t like the amount of bend I played with this past year, so I’ve worked on my flexibility to fix that in my stance. Hand placement, especially in pass blocking, is something I think I’ve worked to improve this offseason. With those techniques, you can never get perfect at in, but you can get better.”
Someone in contact with Saffell has been Cal commit Chase Garbers, who has been in recruiting mode for the Bears recently. “He just called me after I got the offer, so that was pretty cool," Saffell said. "With that Jesse Sapolu camp, I work with the offensive linemen who go to his school, so I’ve met him a couple times here and there and we’ve talked a little bit. It was definitely nice to get the call from him, I know how excited all of them are.”
Saffell still has another year left to make his decision on where to go. “I haven’t really narrowed it down,"Saffell noted. "Since I won (OL MVP at) the Opening, my goal was to break into the Power 5 (with an offer) and see what I can do with that. That’s what I’ve been trying to work on for a long time now, and it’s been a full family effort to get myself out there, to try to break in. So (the offer) definitely means a lot, especially from a great school like Cal, getting that offer is definitely big for me.” Saffell also mentioned not having a decision timetable, saying that “For me, I’m not afraid to commit late or early. When it feels right, I’ll do it.”
For now, Saffell just has his goals for senior year, including winning Edison head coach Dave White a state title in his final year before his retirement and making 1st team all-state. Lofty goals, but certainly achievable for Saffell, someone who should garner more attention throughout the fall.