Twitter: @maxgilliam11 | @calfootball
Instagram: max_gilliam | cal_football
Pronunciation
GILL-um
Gilliam, a mid-year enrollee who began at Cal in January of 2016, is in his first season as a true freshman at Cal in 2016. He is listed as one of two players in the No. 4 spot at the quarterback on the 2016 preseason depth chart. Gilliam participated in the team's spring practices including completing 7-of-10 passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns in the spring game while adding three rushes for 36 yards. Gilliam was a four-star recruit according to 247Sports and ranked as high as the nation’s No. 6 dual-threat quarterback in the 2016 recruiting class according to Rivals. Gilliam put up big high school numbers with 7,624 total yards of offense and 91 touchdowns that he was responsible for during two campaigns as the starter during his 2014 junior and 2015 senior seasons. He threw for 6,333 yards and 69 touchdowns while adding 1,291 yards rushing and 22 scores over 25 games. Gilliam was a first-team All-State Medium Schools selection by Cal-Hi Sports and All-Southern Section Northern Division pick as a 2015 senior among many honors.
Freshman (2016)
• Redshirted
• Did not play
• Completed 7-of-10 passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns for the losing Gold team in the spring game while adding 36 yards rushing on three carries
• His second touchdown pass in the spring game came on a nine-yard completion to Vic Wharton on the second to last series of the contest giving the Gold team a short-lived 37-32 lead that the Blue team erased on the final play of the contest for a 38-37 win, while his first scoring throw was a 20-yarder to Justin Dunn
• Had one successful two-point conversion in the spring game when he connected with Jordan Veasy but also had two that failed including one that was intercepted by Luke Rubenzer and one on the Gold team's final series that would have increased a five-point lead to seven
Thousand Oaks HS (Class of 2016)
• Compiled 7,624 total yards of offense and was responsible for 91 touchdowns during two campaigns as the varsity starter as a 2014 junior and 2015 senior, throwing for 6,333 yards and 69 touchdowns on 428-of-599 passing (71.8%) while adding 1,291 yards rushing and 22 scores over 25 games for teams that combined for an 18-7 overall record while reaching the Southern Section North Division playoffs both seasons including a runner-up showing as a senior
• A first-team All-State Medium Schools selection by Cal-Hi Sports and All-Southern Section Northern Division pick as a senior among many honors that also included sharing an All-Ventura County MVP selection in addition to being named first-team All-Los Angeles Daily News, All-Ventura County Northern Division and All-Camino League after registering 4,079 yards of total offense and being responsible for 50 touchdowns as he completed 217-of-294 passes (73.8%) for 3,413 yards with 40 touchdowns and five interceptions for a 144.5 quarterback rating, while adding a career-high 666 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns on 146 carries for a team that posted an 11-3 overall record while reaching the finals of the Southern Section Northern Division playoffs for the first time since 1987 and ranking atop the final Daily News All-Area football rankings, with all numbers career highs other than passing attempts, interceptions, rushing attempts and rushing touchdowns
• Also an All-Southern Section (FOX Sports West/Prime Ticket) selection as a punter during his senior season with career highs of 34 punts for 1,381 yards and an average of 40.6 yards per punt with a long of 64 and nine punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line among career totals of 40 punts for 1,504 yards and an average of 37.6 yards per punt with 10 inside the opponents’ 20-yard line
• Also had his lone career stats on defense as a senior with two tackles, one interception that he returned three yards and one pass deflection
• Named a third-team All-State Junior by Cal-Hi Sports when he combined for 3,545 yards of total offense and was responsible for 41 touchdowns as a junior as he completed 211-of-305 passes (69.2%) for 2,920 yards with 29 touchdowns and eight interceptions for a 120.4 quarterback rating, while adding 625 yards rushing and a career-high 12 touchdowns on the ground on 158 carries and also running in a two-point conversion for a total of 248 points responsible for on a team that posted a 7-4 overall record and reached the first round of the Southern Section Northern Division playoffs
• Registered single-game career highs of 437 yards passing and 477 total yards while also running in his lone career two-point conversion against Simi Valley, 30 completions against Canyon and 30 rushes vs. Atascadero as a junior, while his seven touchdown passes against Canyon, 177.1 quarterback rating vs. Highland and 138 yards rushing vs. Camarillo as a senior were all career bests
• Had at least two scoring passes in each of his 25 career games and two or more 22 times, while he rushed for at least one score 17 times and had a career-high-tying two touchdowns runs on five occasions
• Wore No. 11
Recruiting Rankings and Notes (Class of 2016)
Stars: 247Sports (4), Rivals (4), Tom Lemming (4), 247Sports Composite (3), ESPN (3), Scout (3)
National Overall Player Ratings: Rivals (170), 247Sports (281), 247Sports Composite (361)
National Dual-Threat Quarterback Ratings: Rivals (6), ESPN (28)
National Pro-Style Quarterback Ratings: 247Sports (11), 247Sports Composite (14)
National Quarterback Ratings: Scout (28)
Regional Overall Player Ratings: ESPN (102)
West Quarterback Ratings: Scout (6)
California Overall Player Ratings: Rivals (31), 247Sports (37), 247Sports Composite (48), ESPN (72)
California Quarterback Ratings: Scout (5)
Ratings/Scout Grades: 247Sports (91), 247Sports Composite (0.8861), ESPN (77), Rivals (5.8)
• Finished second in the first-ever Rivals Quarterback Challenge presented by Under Armour in the spring of 2015
• First member of the 2016 Cal recruiting class, signing a financial aid agreement on Sept. 10, 2015
• Has a time of 4.62 in the 40-yard dash according to Scout
What They Are Saying
• Sonny Dykes
“Max is one of those really productive quarterbacks that won a bunch of football games for his high school team and led them deep into the playoffs. He’s kind of the modern quarterback who is very athletic and has great ability to both throw and run the football effectively. He also does a great job taking care of the football and is an excellent leader.”
• Max Gilliam
“I chose Cal for a couple of reasons, the most important being the academics. Obviously, football can be taken away at any time. Once I get this degree I know no one can take that away from me so that was a very important aspect of my decision. Another was just playing in the Pac-12, which is one of the best, if not the best, conference in college football. That was another reason why I picked Cal. Also, I just loved the environment – the coaches, the players and just everything about Berkeley.”
• ESPN
“Very poised and in control. Has a calm presence and quickly gets the ball out. Shows good focus of downfield progressions – doesn’t allow rush to alter view of field. Has the feet and instincts to keep plays alive and buy second chances.”
Other
• Full name is Max Jeffrey Gilliam
• Born November 18, 1997
• Son of Jeff and Heather Gilliam
• Intended major is business administration
Last Updated
November 29, 2016
