Need to get back to scheduling a Nevada, SJSU maybe Cal every year. While I love the road trip to Dallas next season, UCLA the season after, it's a better trip for the local fanbase to just go play Nevada.

Regarding the schedule, the Go-Gos are facing an identity crisis, and I'm not talking about which cowboy hat to wear or what check is the president going to write that the football program will have to cash. Nor are they the victim of atrocious Big Sky officiating any longer. I'm talking about who are they? Here's what we know:
*FBS Independent beginning in 2026
*They have two games schedule for next year. From an athletic administration standpoint, that is a nightmare on November 19. The Go-Gos allegedly play @ Fresno State and host Youngstown State according to the web. Also, some sites have them playing Southern Utah and Lamar. I'm not sure how much I trust random websites that aren't official, but this points to them not closing the door on FCS opponents. Their plan may be a slow rise with a hybrid schedule, I haven't followed it close enough.
*Ironically, the date UC Davis is slated to host the Hatters of Stetson, is also listed as the date that the Go-Gos are hosting the Penguins of Youngstown. This tells me that IF one of the parties wanted to keep the Causeway alive, that was the open date to do it and it didn't get done for whatever reason. My guess is that the Ags needed a home game on that date and the Go-Gos wouldn't oblige for obvious reasons. Davis isn't the one needing games so they got a home cupcake before the Griz come to town. Winning the Big Sky > keeping the Causeway alive.

So who is CSU Sacramento? From all appearances, they're a self-declared FBS program that will need to fund an additional 35+ scholarships and play their games at a renovated horse track while begging for games. Can someone say Cal State Northridge... add a bunch of scholarships, play at Devonshire Downs, travel the world, ooops, not sustainable, drop football. Stay in your lane. I hope they don't ever come to this for the good of the game.

Do you think Nevada or SJSU wants to play UC Davis at this juncture? Nothing to gain, everything to lose from a recruiting standpoint. If I were Choate or Kenny I would want no part of that game. Their FCS games need to be against schools they don't recruit against. Cal and UCLA are different stories. UC schools helping each other out, big Aggie alumni/recruiting/fan bases in both regions, I'd try to play both those games as often as possible.

Won't make much difference here pretty soon - when we're in the same conference.

Great Preview fellas, Flush is a great guy

Get Yourself a Last Causeway Classic T-Shirt!
https://aggiepridepodcast.com/product/the-last-causeway-shirt/

Haha! Exactly

Good to hear Flush talking about 'making this a Davis crowd' for Causeway.

I've said it before but playing Cal is mutually beneficial for both schools.

Cal: Don't need to pay too much for a local FCS school, slight attendance boost, it's a way to keep money in the UC system.

Davis: saves travel money with a 1 hr bus trip, connections with alumni in the Bay, and networking with UC Berkeley and UC Office of the President in nearby Oakland.

SJSU just fired their Defensive and Special Teams Coordinators as they wrap up a miserable 3-7 season. Nevada, aka. the other Tahoe team, sits at 2-8 with victories against the Go-Gos and, you guessed it, San Jose State. WHY WOULD WE LEAVE THE BIG SKY/FCS TO BE A PART OF THIS?!!! Group of 5 football sucks, the stadiums are mostly empty, and they play for The Snoop Dawg, Famous Idaho Potato, LA, Hawai'i, and New Mexico Bowls, possibly the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. Is it worth the additional TV revenue? I would rather aspire to win the Big Sky and FCS titles than go play a bunch of crap programs (half the current MWC is sub-.500 and they'll be left behind by the "new" PAC 12 schools) and money games.

Idaho was so insightful in bailing on the FBS pipedream, kudos to them and the Big Sky is better with them. Boise will never come back, but Nevada should. The Go-Gos should come back with their cowboy hats in hand. The Ags can stay put for another decade+. Even with the facility upgrades that dropped today, it's still not the best stadium or atmosphere in the Conference. Keep building the foundation, develop players and coaches, raise money, and we'll know when the time to jump is right.

Just one man's humble opinion...

The Stetson game was scheduled before Sac left the Big Sky. I think they would have to pay Stetson to get out of that game.
Sac may identify as an FBS independent but that is aspirational. I guess the NCAA can revisit, but nothing has changed.

From what I heard, Sac offered to pay off Stetson for us to back out and play in Davis. But, our financial payout to the Hatters was a pretty sweet deal so we are saying ‘thanks, but no thanks’..we’ll take a lesser opponent at home before SMU.

Can you elaborate on the "pretty sweet deal?"

I believe what was meant bid they got them to come out here at a much cheaper price than they would’ve normally paid for a one-of. With SUU and Utah Tech part of the BSC, finding FCS schools to come here is going to be a challenge.

True, I feel like SUU and Utah Tech were common OOC opponents.

We might be seeing more U. of San Diego? (I'd like to limit our Pioneer exposure to just USD after Stetson is out of the way)
Maybe more MVFC lower-tier teams? NEC for the lighter competition games as well.

I've enjoyed going through this in the past (D1 era only)
https://ucdavisaggies.com/sports/football/opponent-history


Utah Tech / Dixie (as OOC)
2021
2024
2025

SUU (as OOC)
2023
2024
2025

Internsive purposes?

Must have received an English Degree from Sac State. But for all intents and purposes, I guess he made his point.

We used to have BSC teams in OoC on the years we didn't play them and I feel like that could make a comeback.

Imagine, if we had Portland State at home at OoC this year instead of the game that never happened, we'd be a lock already for playoffs and playing for a seed on Sat. (Not saying it was the wrong decision to take the Mercer game when offered, just that the committee's priorities are wrong)

at the same time, some scheduling cross pollination helps establish where the conferences are in relation to each other before the playoffs and may help make the case for a bubble team in a strong conference.

cross pollination helps establish where the conferences are in relation to each other before the playoffs — fugawe09

This. I'd never heard of Mercer, and I'm guessing most of the South has never heard of Davis. To have that game be nationally televised, then to also have those two teams ranked in the top ten with a possible rematch makes things exciting. Good/bad, right/wrong, people spent this season talking about Davis and Mercer and the game that never happened.

High stakes closure on Week 0!

BEAT SAC STATE

The Mercer game was a learning experience, and the lesson should be don’t take night games in the South in August. They had only a five hour window to get the game in, and apparently that wasn’t considered prior to the rain delay.

well, I live in Orlando (lightning capital of the world) and outdoor football games, concerts, and theme park parades still happen. Usually thunderstorms pass through violently but quickly. This was just an unusual set of circumstances. The storm ran out of wind and parked. The City of Montgomery had no vested interest in the outcome so no incentive to keep the power meter spinning for the lights, and the Davis travel arranger had the pilots scheduled too tight.

Folks! Campus is abuzz with ads for the football game. Silo, Memorial Union and Dining Commons all full of rotating ads on the screens.

thanks y’all! Going to be a relic.

Well, also don't take day games in the South in August. It is hot in Davis but I don't think we have a great track record dealing with southern heat and humidity.

At least you finish the game. Davis did fine against Tulsa

Most of those events you cite don’t involve a hard stop from the facility or pilots.
Davis Mercer was an hour and a half rain delay.
In 2023 Mercer played in the same stadium and had a 76 minute delay. Not an unforeseeable act of god.

I was thinking of the SFA game in 2005:

Despite losing their starting quarterback in the first quarter, the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks rallied Saturday night to defeat No. 21 UC Davis, 27-17, at Homer Bryce Stadium. The `Jacks scored 20 unanswered points in the second half to improve to 5-4 on the season.

Mercer scored their points in the second half vs. UCD back in August as well (see above post about 2005 Stephen F. Austin game). Playing down there is just different. Hard coming out of those steamy locker rooms and getting up for the second half. That time of year, it rains daily at 3:30 no matter what. Throw in the chance of thunderstorms and other weather systems, coupled with lightning (which is what shuts games down when it strikes within a certain distance) and you have some major challenges to playing a complete game. And if you do avoid the rains and lightning, you're blessed with a blazing "90/90 day"; 90+ degrees with 90+ humidity. Miserable.

No idea why I went on a Southern weather rant. Here's a scheduling suggestion: start playing the Ivy schools OoC. Cal Poly and San Diego have hosted Ivy League opponents, and we're a much easier sell as far as like-institutions to the Ivy admin that pays for the trip. Plus we'd offer a better guarantee and it will better prepare the Ivy teams for their new playoff autobid.

I agree with the comment about avoiding the Pioneer. There is occasional recruiting value to show face down in San Diego, but no benefit to playing ANY of the other Pioneer schools. They are Top 10 D3 programs most of them as far as level of play.