Arizona lands commitment from former Cal linebacker Orin Patu

If you can’t beat ‘em, pick them up from the transfer portal.

Arizona has landed its second player from the NCAA transfer portal, as former Cal linebacker Orin Patu announced Saturday he was coming to Tucson for 2023 after four seasons with the Golden Bears.

The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Patu played 26 games for Cal, logging 13 tackles in limited action. In 2022 he appeared in 20 games, including the Bears’ 49-31 win over Arizona in which he had a strip sack of UA quarterback Jayden de Laura.

Patu, who will have two years of eligibility remaining, figures to be in the mix for a pass-rushing role. Arizona’s two starting edges, Jalen Harris and Hunter Echols, are out of eligibility, while a pair of linebackers (including Week 1 starter Kolbe Cage) have entered the portal.

From Seattle, Patu was a 3-star prospect in the 2018 recruiting class who ranked as the No. 556 player in the country, per 247Sports. Arizona showed interest in him out of high school but did not offer him a scholarship.

Patu is the second transfer Arizona has added, joining ex-UCLA defensive lineman Tyler Manoa.