Golden Bears rush safety into 2009 class

June 25, 7:09 PMCal Bears ExaminerRob Calonge

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Looks like  I missed one of the new recruits.  The Golden Bears added another recruit to their 2009 class.  Chris Moncrease, safety, from Laney College and El Cerrito High, signed a letter of intent with Cal on June 16.

Most likely, the Golden Bears coaching staff decided to use the scholarship that was freed up by the removal of Tracy Slocum from the team.  They decided to use it on a position that has arguably the least depth on the team.

A wide receiver in high school, Moncrease is what you would call a late-bloomer.  Until he had graduated from high school and joined the team at Laney College, he admits that he wasn't very knowledgeable about how to play the game.  He told Jim McGill of BearInsider:

Coming out of high school, I'd never lifted and never had run a forty and I really didn't know what I was doing when I went out to a Nike camp.  I'd just signed up the day before and had no idea what to expect out there.

Moncrease was converted to free safety at Laney College, but broke his leg in a pickup game and took a redshirt season.  He has three years to play three and will come in as a sophomore.  That break in his leg hasn't slowed him any.  He's reported to run a forty in 4.43s.

At Cal, there is no free safety or strong safety, just left or right.  At 6'1" and 215 pounds, he's big and fast enough to play on either side.

Originally, Cal was talking to Moncrease about becoming a Bear in 2010, but a scholarship opened up, and they told him they wanted him now.  He'll be joining the team on July 5.

Other schools that offered Moncrease were Washington State and Tennessee.  The offers were quite a shock for the player who had been snubbed by Fordham coming out of high school.  He told Mario Gomez of Scout.com:

I was in class when [Washington State] offered (his first as part of their 2009 class).  I was pretty shocked.  In high school, I had a [verbal] offer from Fordham but they took it away and gave it to somebody else. So, it caught me off guard hearing those words 'we have an offer for you.' I was just excited.

Apparently not as excited as he is about becoming a Golden Bear, or so you'd think.  Bear Backers are going to have to welcome the sophomore with open arms - he hasn't been a Cal fan until now.

Being in the Bay Area, it was a nice gravitational pull.  My mom, she loves Cal. I have a lot of friends and family that love Cal. I don’t really consider myself a Cal fan, but I am now. Just being in the Pac-10 is a blessing. I’m thrilled. The best thing I can do is love Cal.

In his first season as a safety, he recorded 60 tackles, three interceptions, and two forced fumbles.  There isn't too much in the way of scouting, but you can scout him yourself by watching his highlight video.