Running back Jaydn Ott returning to Cal next season

Cal running back Jaydn Ott, a first-team All-Pac-12 selection who ranks No. 7 nationally in rushing average, announced he will return to the Bears for his junior season.

In a video posted on X, Ott initially said he planned to enter the transfer portal before reversing course. Ott would have been one of the more coveted non-quarterback transfers if he had entered the portal.

He has 2,157 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns on 399 carries through two college seasons. Ott, who made several freshman All-America teams in 2022, has started 21 games for the Bears, who face Texas Tech on Saturday night in the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl.

The 6-foot, 200-pound Ott, a native of Chino, California, led the Pac-12 in both rushing average and all-purpose yards average, while recording six games of 150 rushing yards or more and adding 141 receiving yards and two scores.