Update Jan. 14, 2017 (3:53 p.m.): Cal has officially announced Justin Wilcox as the school's next head football coach.
***
The University of California, Berkeley has reached an agreement with Wisconsin's defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox to be the team's next head football coach, according to a national report.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Wilcox, 40, was a linebackers coach at Cal from 2003 to 2005. He has been a defensive coordinator for the past 11 seasons while serving at Wisconsin (2016), USC (2014-15), Washington (2012-13), Tennessee(2010-11) and Boise State (2006-09).
During Cal's 5-7 2016 season, the defense was a clear low-point on the team. Cal allowed the second-most points per game (42.6) in the nation for the FBS and tied for the third-most yards allowed per game (518).
In comparison, Wisconsin, who finished 11-3 and won the Big Ten-West, was the opposite of Cal on the defensive side of the ball last season. Wisconsin's 15.5 points per game were the fourth-fewest in the FBS and the Badgers finished with the seventh-fewest yards allowed per game, at 303.
This would be Wilcox's first job as a head coach. He would replace Sonny Dykes, who served as the team's head coach the last four seasons.
Wilcox is reportedly signing a five-year deal with Cal.
Brett McMurphy of ESPN was first to report the news of Wilcox agreeing to a deal with Cal.
With the hiring of Wilcox, interim head coach Jake Spavital will not stay in Berkeley. Spavital, who spent the 2016-17 season as Cal's quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, is reportedly headed to West Virginia as the Mountaineers' new offensive coordinator, according to Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports. The 31-year-old was West Virginia's quarterbacks coach for the 2011 and 2012 seasons.