CALIFORNIA (Sept. 1) – The California (PA) football program recently announced that senior offensive lineman
Jacob King and senior linebacker
Wilfredo Diaz will serve as captains for the 2026 campaign with King earning the distinction of being the Michael Perry Team Captain.
The captains were selected in a vote among the players and the individual with the most votes earned the honor of being the Michael Perry Team Captain.
Perry '63 was a longstanding supporter of the Cal football program before passing away in 2021. He played receiver for the Vulcans while earning his degree in secondary education. Perry immediately enlisted in the Navy after his time at California State College and became a Naval aviator with more than 200 carrier landings. Following his retirement from United Airlines in 2001, he co-founded and became managing partner of Opus Private Client, LLC, and Opus Advisory Group, LLC, in Westchester County, New York. Additionally, Perry served on the board of directors and committees of numerous charities, including the Foundation for Cal U, National Football Foundation (NFF) and the College Football Hall of Fame. In 2025, he was among those "Made in the PSAC" as part of the league's 75th anniversary season with the group recognizing former student-athletes who have gone on to influential careers after graduation.
A native of nearby Charleroi, King was selected to the All-PSAC West Second-Team in 2025 in his second year as a starter. He started 24-consecutive games before missing the NCAA Playoffs last season due to injury. Last year, King helped the Vulcans finish among the top five in the PSAC in red zone offense, total first downs and fewest sacks allowed.
Diaz joined the program in the spring after previously playing at Edinboro and Minot State (ND), a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (NSIC). He was a D2CCA Second-Team All-American with the Fighting Scots in 2024 after leading NCAA Division II with 150 total tackles (64 solo) and 13.6 tackles per game. A native of Miami, Diaz played in 25 games at Edinboro from 2022-24 before spending last year at Minot State.
The Vulcans open the season on Thursday, Sept. 3, when they host Charleston (WV) with kickoff at 6 p.m. The Golden Eagles started the year with a home loss in Week Zero to preseason No. 9 Grand Valley State (MI).
