Illinois State must have played really good defense. I see not only did they hold NDSU to 179 total yards, but the Bison only got 6 first downs and were 2 of 13 on 3rd downs. If the Ags win today they might have their hands full next week.

Deleted, comments moved to a different thread.

Since it is no longer "early" with the Big West having started conference play, this will be the last post on this discussion thread. UCD is one of five schools with a winning record. The rest are all the usual suspects. The lower 6 are also who we thought they were going to be. UCI is not doing as well as one might expect having lost 4, but to very strong teams and they easily beat UCR.

Anyway, this is how things stand before the second league games tomorrow.

Hard to say why Coach Les seemed so agitated, but it's clear he doesn't like to play in Hawai`i for a few good reasons, including the fans. I just want to note that the official attendance last night was only 4219, well under half of capacity for Stan Sheriff Arena. On the other hand, they were quite loud. Who knows what they might have been yelling.

Was the broadcast the one from Hawai`i's local sports station? It would have had Artie Wilson and Kanoa Leahey. They're real professionals and Leahey has been doing Rainbow basketball for 7 years taking over for his father who used to team Wilson since the turn of the century.

What was totally unexpected was that the Ags would lose this game due to the difference in 3 point shooting. UCD: 4 for 15, Hawai`i: 7 for 16; 9 point difference. The guys kept it close, though, and I'm optimistic that we'll beat them in Davis.

Yes, Hawai`i in the second half has gone to their inside game which was something I noted in the preview post. I was surprised they didn't do that more in the first half.

Even the Hawaii`i broadcasters questioned a couple of those fouls on Rocak. The refs are calling it too close.

At least UC Davis has held Hawai`i's big men, Johnson and Rouhliadeff, in check. They've combined for only 2 points. Of course, Eran Ganot has taken them out for long stretches of time. Can't score from the bench.

Ags still turning the ball over and shooting poorly. Sevilla has only one attempt. At least the defense has gotten better.

There have been enough bricks in this game to build a chimney.

Hawai`i opens by uncharacteristically showing a red hot hand from 3. I'd predict that this won; keep up, but the Ags are not only shooting poorly but turning the ball over. This bodes very ill.

Watch out for #14 tonight, Harry Rouhliadeff. He's been on a roll lately on offense. I'll be pleasantly surprised if the Ags win (and have mixed feelings about not being there). The fans do not like UCD as many of you have seen. Since it is a weeknight, though, and in the middle of Christmas shopping season the crowd might not be as big as it has been. It strikes me that with both teams heading to the Mountain West, this could be the start of a long term rivarly. Hawaii has no natural rival, the extension of their Big West competition makes this a natural rivarly for the foreseeable future.

Here's one by OptaAnalysis:

No. 9 Seed Rhode Island (11-2) at No. 8 Seed UC Davis (8-3)
Kickoff – 10 p.m. (ESPN2) at UC Davis Health Stadium in Davis, California

Series – First meeting

Wins in 2025 FCS Playoffs – Rhode Island: Central Connecticut State (27-19); UC Davis: First game

Coaches – URI: Jim Fleming (59-72, 12th season; 80-73 overall); UC Davis: Tim Plough (19-6, second season)

3 Players to Watch – Rhode Island: QB Devin Farrell (3,452 pass yards, 22 TDs, 8 INTs), WR Marquis Buchanan (73 receptions, 1,224 yards, 7 TDs), LB A.J. Pena (67 tackles, 19.0 TFL, 10.0 sacks), UC Davis: QB Caden Pinnick (2,527 pass yards, 70.5 completion%, 24 TDs; 312 rush yards, 3 TDs), WR Sam Gbatu Jr. (60 receptions, 949 yards, 10 TDs), DE Jacob Psyk (46 tackles, 15.0 TFL, 9.0 sacks, 3 forced fumbles)

Notable – Just shy of 3,000 miles from one stadium to the other, CAA champion URI will be making the longest trip of the 2025 FCS playoffs. … Buchanan is five receiving yards shy of being URI’s third player with 3,000 in a career. He has 18 career TD catches, but with more than one in a game only once. … Transfer Garth White hadn’t appeared in a college game since 2021, but the URI senior is 7 of 9 on field goal attempts of at least 40 yards, making 54- and 52-yarders. … UCD RB Jordan Fisher is averaging 106.0 scrimmage yards on carries and catches, and he’s scored eight TDs. … The Aggies are converting a healthy 42.5% of third-down attempts, but also allowing a 44.0% rate. … The Big Sky squad’s top two returning tacklers were lost to injuries this season, but the UCD defense has balance, with DB Khalani Riddick first with 63 stops and LB Nate Rutchena and DB Jayden Stanley right behind with 62 each.

Up Next – The winner will play either Illinois State (9-4) or No. 1 seed North Dakota State (12-0) in a national quarterfinal on Dec. 12 or 13.

Prediction – UC Davis 27, Rhode Island 21

Here's Sports Illustrated take on the game:

No. 9 Rhode Island at No. 8 UC Davis

[Statistical comparisons removed]

This should be a fun offensive matchup between two of the better quarterbacks we have in the playoff field. Both Caden Pinnick and Devin Farrell are accurate passers who like to extend plays from the pocket and push the ball downfield. Both players have also occasionally struggled with turnovers in their careers.

There will also be plenty of wide receiver talent on display in this one. Rhode Island's Marquis Buchanan leads the way with 1,224 yards, averaging 17 yards per catch. The Rams get plenty of other contributions from Greg Gaines, Aboraa Kwarteng, and tight end Connor Finer. They should find success against this banged-up UC Davis secondary, which ranked 19th in the playoffs. Samuel Gbatu Jr., Stacey Dobbins, and tight end Ian Simpson make up an excellent receiving trio on the other side. I expect both offenses to find success.

This game may come down to which team's pass rush can make the biggest impact, generating negative plays, turnovers, and making the opposing quarterback uncomfortable. Rhode Island has the better overall pass rush, led by A.J. Pena, along with better talent at cornerback.

UC Davis needs a big game from defensive end Jacob Psyk, while the rushing attack with Jordan Fisher may be the x-factor. If they can run the ball, it'll help neutralize the pass rush and keep Pinnick out of dangerous situations.

The Pick: UC Davis

"I think the 7 pm start will hurt attendance." What about the students? Is finals week coming up. When I was there, rabid dogs wouldn't have kept me away, or even an organic chem final.

Looking at Rhode Islands schedule, I see that they only beat one team (New Hampshire, 8-5) that had an overall winning record. In conference they beat three teams that has a combined record of 2-22 in league play. Not very impressive.

I have gone to every one since the Aggies started playing here, but now I'm having problems getting there and I never enjoyed being the only one cheering for UC Davis, so this time I'll be content to watch it on local television. I assume that it will be same broadcast as on ESPN+ with Kanoa Leahey doing the play-by-play and Artie Wilson doing the color. Both are very good, biased, of course, but fair.

Anyone have a list of outstanding Aggie footballers who could have left and didn't? Lan Larison? the Conners twins? etc. (I moved this from a different thread because it's more appropriate here.)

Anyone have a list of outstanding Aggie footballers who could have left and didn't? Lan Larison? the Conners twins? etc.