California football has announced the signing of 17 high school student-athletes to its 2026 recruiting class on the first day of the early signing period, which runs through Friday. All members will be eligible to play in their first collegiate season in 2026.
The group features ten offensive players: quarterback Nainoa Lopes (Honolulu, Hawai’i/Saint Louis HS), running back Victor Santino (Los Angeles/Miami Edison Senior HS), tight end Taimane Purcell (Aiea, Hawai’i/Kamehameha Kapalama HS), wide receivers Kai Meza (Herriman, Utah/Corner Canyon HS), EJ Morgan (Fresno/Central East HS), Tyree Sams (Fresno/Clovis North HS), and offensive linemen Elisha Faamatuainu (Murrieta/Murrieta Valley, CA), Kamo’i Huihui-White (Honolulu, Hawai’i/Saint Louis HS), Daniel McMorris (Norman, Oklahoma/Norman North HS) and Esaiah Wong (Waimanalo, Hawai’i/Kailua HS).
Six recruits join on defense: defensive back Ernest Nunley (Carson/Western HS); inside linebackers JD McKinley (Corona/Centennial HS) and Jaxon Pyatt (Wheat Ridge, Colorado/Arvada West HS); and defensive linemen Frank Fanua Jr. (San Diego/Mount Miguel HS), Lucky Schirmer (Pomona/Centennial HS) and Nemyah Telona (Antioch/De La Salle HS). Niles Davis (Los Angeles/Westlake HS) was recruited as an athlete.
Two four-star recruits stand out in this class. Daniel McMorris is ranked as the No. 11 offensive tackle nationally and is the top overall player from Oklahoma. Taimane Purcell is ranked No. 16 among tight ends nationally and is the third-ranked overall player from Hawai’i. Other notable rankings include Santino at No. 25 running back by 247 Sports, Lopes at No. 34 quarterback by 247Sports, McKinley at No. 46 inside linebacker by ESPN, and Huihui-White at No. 49 interior offensive lineman by both ESPN and 247Sports.
Kamo’i Huihui-White also earned a selection to the 2026 Polynesian Bowl.
The receiving corps—Meza, Morgan, Sams—and Davis together recorded a combined total of 353 receptions for 5,500 yards and 69 touchdowns during their high school careers. Individually, Meza had 110 catches for 2,018 yards with 25 touchdowns; Morgan posted 115 receptions for 1,721 yards with 21 touchdowns and helped his team reach the state championship game as a junior; Sams made 83 catches for 1,143 yards with 13 touchdowns; while Davis collected all his senior-year stats with 41 receptions for 618 yards and ten touchdowns.
Defensively, Pyatt posted career numbers of 250 tackles with nearly thirty tackles for loss along with eight sacks and two interceptions during his prep career. McKinley recorded over twenty-six tackles for loss while Telona contributed seventeen tackles for loss and seven sacks.
Ten signees are from California: Davis, Faamatuainu, Fanua Jr., McKinley, Morgan, Nunley, Sams, Santino, Schirmer and Telona; four come from Hawai’i: Huihui-White, Lopes, Purcell and Wong; one each hail from Colorado: Pyatt; Oklahoma: McMorris; and Utah: Meza.
Eleven members are expected to enroll at Berkeley in January while six others will join in June.
California will continue to add to its recruiting class through transfers and National Signing Day on February 3.
