Date: Saturday, October 1
Kickoff: 7:15 PM PT
Venue: Bobcat Stadium
TV: ESPNU
Radio: Sactown Sports 1140

DAVIS, Calif. - The UC Davis football team (1-3, 0-1) will continue its Big Sky Conference slate against Montana State (3-1, 1-0) on Saturday, Oct. 1 at Bobcat Stadium. The contest will kickoff at 7:15 p.m. PT. Clay Matvick and Jay Walker will call the action in front of a national audience on ESPNU, while Scott Marsh and Doug Kelly have the call on Sactown Sports 1140 am. The Aggies are coming off their first conference defeat, falling at home to No. 12 Weber State, 17-12.  The Bobcats enter the week ranked No. 4 in both polls and downed Eastern Washington, 38-35, in their Big Sky opener.
 
SERIES HISTORY
The two programs will be meeting for the eighth time as Montana State holds a 6-1 all-time advantage. UC Davis won the first game between the two schools, a 45-0 drubbing on the road in 2006. The Bobcats have claimed the last six meetings though, including the last contest in Bozeman, 27-13. Montana State downed UC Davis in their last matchup, 27-17 in Davis in 2019.
 
AGGIES OPEN EDWARDS FAMILY ATHLETICS CENTER
On Saturday, Sept. 24, a Grand Opening and Dedication Ceremony for the Edwards Family Athletics Center took place on the UC Davis campus, just outside the new facility. Chancellor Gary May, Athletics Director Rocko DeLuca and lead contributor Bruce Edwards made comments before opening the facility to the public for an open house. The Edwards Family Athletics Center is a comprehensive academic, strength and conditioning, sports medicine, and team facility. The more than 50,000-square-foot project, designed by Gensler and built by AECOM Hunt, will provide a new hub for Aggie student-athletes. As the exclusive provider of health care services to student-athletes, UC Davis Health will also serve students, faculty, staff and the Davis community from within the building's footprint with a new out-patient sports medicine clinic.


 
RECORD BREAKER
Senior running back Ulonzo Gilliam, Jr., broke G.P. Muhammad's 24-year-old career rushing record (3,589) when he bounced free on a 12-yard run on the second play of the first offensive drive for the Aggies against San Diego. Gilliam, Jr. finished the game with 106 yards on the ground to move his record total to 3,689. Gilliam, Jr. also broke the all-purpose yards (4,630) record at Cal, surpassing Muhammad's career mark of (4,629) by one yard in week one.
*A complete look at his record run can be found on pages 8-9*
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BUT WAIT, THERE IS MORE
Ulonzo Gilliam, Jr., already has two milestone records in his name and is on the verge of more. The 5-9 running back enters the Week 5 contest against Montana State with 40 career touchdowns. The 40 touchdowns are tied with Matt Brown and Preston Jackson for the most in a career by a non-quarterback in program history. Gilliam, Jr. also enters the game 31 points behind Brady Stuart's scoring record of 274.

THE KING OF SOLO TACKLES
Defensive back Devon King added four solo tackles against Weber State to move into a tie with Jason Hairston's school record of 136 solo stops. King has registered five or more total tackles in every contest this season and posted five or more solo tackles in three of the four games. Against San Diego in Week 3, King totaled 10 tackles that included seven unassisted stops.
 
AGGIES IN THE BIG SKY
UC Davis has continued its trend as one of the most disciplined teams in the Big Sky. After four games, the Aggies are the least penalized team in the conference with 16. On top of the penalties, UCD has been great at keeping Miles Hastings upright, leading the league in least sacks allowed with just three. Speaking of Hastings, UCD leads the Big Sky with 1,052 passing yards for a conference-leading 263 yards per game. The Aggies defense ranks tied for second in the Big Sky with eight forced turnovers and is second as well with five interceptions. UC Davis has forced two or more turnovers in two games thus far and has forced opponents to put the ball on the ground five times with three recoveries.
 
CONNORS BROS – AN AIR DEFENSE FAMILY
Redshirt freshman Rex Connors was named Big Sky Co-Defensive Player of the Week and the FedEx Ground FCS Freshman Player of the Week after his stellar performance in Week 2. Connors put together one of the finest defensive performances in recent memory for the Aggies. Against No. 2 ranked South Dakota State on the road, Connors registered 17 total tackles, including 10 solo stops in the defensive slugfest. On top of his 17 tackles, the Pleasant Grove, Utah native added two interceptions as the initial takeaway was the first of his Aggie career. The 17 total tackles are the most in a game in program history since at least 2007. In Week 3 against San Diego, his brother Porter recorded his first career interception when he picked off Judd Erickson deep in Aggie territory in the first quarter. The brothers have combined for 39 total tackles and three interceptions.
 
60-YARD STRIKES
In four games this season, the Aggies have showcased some explosive plays with three touchdowns over 60 yards. In the opener at Cal, senior running back Ulonzo Gilliam, Jr. ripped off a 60-yard rushing score. The scamper was his longest since a 75-yard touchdown in 2019 against Portland State and the longest by an Aggies since an 86-yard score from Trent Tompkins in 2020. Sophomore running back Lan Larison hauled in a 68-yard touchdown pass from Miles Hastings in Week 2 at South Dakota State. The touchdown reception was the longest by an Aggie since Khris Vaughn caught a 76-yard touchdown in the Causeway Classic in 2019. Larison has been electric in his career, boasting a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and a 40-yard rushing score on top of his 68-yarder against South Dakota State. Against San Diego in Week 3, Josh Gale recorded his first career touchdown, racing past the Torero defense for a 62-yard receiving score.

COMPLETE BACKS
All eyes have been on arguably the most prodigious rusher in UC Davis history and the rushing record. Diving in deeper on the all-time leader in rushing and all-purpose yards, Ulonzo Gilliam, Jr. has been an underrated receiver his whole career and is starting the 2022 season in impressive fashion. The Merced native enters Week 5 leading the Aggies with 23 receptions and is second on the squad with 197 receiving yards. His 23 catches rank second of all players in the Big Sky. Also out of the Aggie backfield, Lan Larison enters the Montana State game leading UC Davis with 207 receiving yards, including a 68-yard score. Larison is averaging a team-best 14.8 per reception on pass catchers with five or more receptions.
 
SPREAD THE WEALTH
In four games in 2022, the Aggies have started five different wide receivers. In the first game of the season at Cal, Justin Kraft returned from an injury-plagued career to earn the start while Chaz Davis caught his first career touchdown. In Week 2 at South Dakota State, Justin Poerio hauled in his second career touchdown reception on a nine-yard fourth quarter strike from Miles Hastings. In the big win against USD, three different receivers caught touchdowns, including career firsts from Matteo Perez and Josh Gale. C.J. Hutton caught 10 passes for 77 yards and a score against Weber State. Already, 12 different receivers have been credited with a catch, while six different pass catchers have recorded 10 or more receptions and eight different Aggies have caught touchdowns.
 
THE "MAGICAL" TRENT TOMPKINS
In his time in an Aggie uniform, Trent Tompkins has done a lot of everything for the Aggies. Listed as a wide receiver in 2022, the sophomore was all over the stat sheet in 2021. The All-Big Sky second team selection at the all-purpose spot tied for the team-lead with six rushing touchdowns and ranked second on the squad with 448 yards on the ground. The Fresno native caught 12 passes for 77 yards and threw 18 passes for 102 yards and one score. Tompkins also returned two punts for 86 yards, including an 85-yard touchdown. In 2022, Tompkins has returned five punts for 23 yards, three kickoffs for 80 yards, rushed for 37 yards on 13 carries and caught 15 passes for 81 yards. In Week 3 against USD, Tompkins tallied 114 total yards and scored twice on two direct snaps.

HASTINGS LAST THREE GAMES
Miles Hastings hasn't taken long to get comfortable as the Aggie's starting signal-caller. In his last three games, the sophomore has thrown for seven touchdowns and 799 yards with only one interception. Against USD, Hastings completed the first 10 passes of the game and finished 16-for-21. The San Marcos native leads the Big Sky with 1,041 yards passing and is second with eight touchdowns.
 
COACHING MATCHUP
Brent Vigen is in his second season at Montana State, leading the Bobcats to the FCS Championship game in his first season at the helm. In his first 19 games as the head coach in Bozeman, the former Wyoming offensive coordinator is 15-4 overall. UC Davis head coach Dan Hawkins has led the Aggies to their first two FCS Playoff appearances in school history and boasts a 32-25 mark in now his sixth season in Davis. This will be the first meeting between the two.