CAL FOOTBALL Starting spots still up for grabs as attention turns to North Carolina

With Cal football players starting classes Wednesday, the team shifted its focus from training camp development to game-specific preparation for the season opener Sept. 2 at North Carolina.

The Bears will have consecutive physically light days as a way to introduce their first opponent and to recover from a demanding camp under first-year head coach Justin Wilcox.

“Overall, I was really pleased with camp. We made a lot of progress across the board,” he said. “In each position group, I think we identified the guys who we’re going to count on . ... I really liked the energy and effort throughout camp.

“We weren’t perfect, but I really thought they were into it at practice, in the meeting rooms and in the walkthroughs.”

Wilcox said the team will travel with about 70 players to Chapel Hill, and the coaching staff is close to identifying which freshmen will redshirt and which players will be included on the team’s first formal twodeep depth chart.

Though the buzzy story has been who will emerge as the starter from among

“Overall,pleased withI was camp. really We made a lot of progress across the board.” Justin Wilcox, Cal head coach

the four-man quarterback competition of junior Chase Forrest, sophomore Ross Bowers, freshman Chase Garbers and transfer Brandon McIlwain, Cal also has players competing for starting spots on the offensive and defensive lines and throughout the secondary.

One of the biggest concentration points during training camp was trying to improve a defense that allowed 42.6 points per game (127th out of 128 FBS teams), an average 518.3 yards of total offense (125th) and 6.2 yards per carry (128th) and was bad at tackling.

Cal’s new coaching staff introduced tackling meetings that included watching video of rugby tackles and had at least one team-wide tackling period per session in both the spring drills and training camp practices.

“In the two scrimmages, (the tackling) has definitely gotten better,” Wilcox said. “They’re understanding what we’re teaching them and how it applies to the game when it goes live.”

It’s still a little unclear whom the Bears will be trying to tackle in their opener as North Carolina has yet to name a starter to replace quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, the second overall pick in the NFL draft. But the Tar Heels generally run an up-tempo, spread offense under head coach Larry Fedora.

North Carolina has made four consecutive bowl appearances and went a combined 19-8 the past two seasons.

“It’s a really well-coached team,” Wilcox said. “They’ve done great things there. They’re explosive on offense and athletic on defense and very sound and physical. They’ll be a good test for us. …

“Even though you’re looking at another opponent, as opposed to your practice tape all of the time, it’s still really all about you and what you do. We’re looking at the schemes, the things our opponent is running and the personnel, but at the end of it, it’s still all about what we do and the execution on our side.” Rusty Simmons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rsimmons@ sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Rusty_SFChron