UC Davis Athletics

DAVIS, Calif. – No. 16/15 UC Davis (4-2, 2-1 Big Sky) bounced back in a big way on Saturday night as the Aggies used 629 yards of total offense to take down Eastern Washington (1-5, 0-3 Big Sky), 49-38, at UC Davis Health Stadium.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Eastern Washington (EWU) gained positive yardage on its first few plays to open the contest, but the UC Davis defense stopped the Eagles after six plays and forced a 50-yard field goal. Soren McKee converted, and EWU took an early 3-0 lead at 13:00 in the first quarter.
• The Aggies quickly responded on offense, with Jordan Fisher ripping off a 25-yard rush down the sideline before Treynor Cleeland connected with Samuel Gbatu, Jr. on a 50-yard connection for the first UC Davis touchdown of the night. The score put the Aggies on top 7-3 at 12:27.
• EWU stalled on its next offensive drive, and the Aggies started fast once again when Zach Jones took a jet sweep 67 yards to the house to put UC Davis up 14-3 at the 10:20 mark in the first.
• Just over four minutes later, the Eagles responded with another field goal, this time converting from 33 yards out to trim their deficit to 14-6.
• Near the end of the opening quarter, Kameron Totton came up clutch for the Aggie defense, securing his first career interception by picking off Nate Bell with 45 seconds left in the period.
• The Eagles answered as the game moved into the second quarter, scoring their first touchdown of the game on a 34-yard rush by Jaxon Bell at 10:11. UC Davis blocked the PAT on the next play, keeping the Aggies in front 14-12.
• Riding the momentum of their running back, UC Davis continued to hand it off to Fisher as the senior impressed with gains of 34 and 20 yards before he danced through the defense for an 87-yard touchdown with 2:33 remaining in the first half. Following a PAT from Robert Meyer, the Aggies grew their advantage to 21-12.
• EWU made the most of their final moments before halftime, driving down into UC Davis territory and ending the period with a 23-yard field goal. Entering the locker room, the Aggies held a 21-15 lead.
• Coming out of the break, the offense kept rolling for UC Davis as Cleeland found Jones for his second touchdown of the night on a 53-yard pass at 13:25 in the third quarter. The points put the Aggies up 27-15.
• Less than four minutes later, EWU remained close on a six-yard rushing touchdown from Bell at 10:45, cutting the gap to 27-21.
• Fisher continued his dominant night shortly thereafter, reeling off a 37-yard touchdown at 8:31 to expand the UC Davis lead to 33-21. Another field goal from McKee brought the Eagles back within single digits, 33-24, at the 4:15 mark in the third.
• Cleeland and Jones proved their chemistry as the period wound down, connecting on a seven-yard touchdown with 4:07 left in the period. The quarterback had one more score in him before the end of the quarter, this time finding Xzavior Guess for a 56-yard touchdown with 1:35 in the third to push the score to 46-24 in favor of the Aggies.
• Putting the final UC Davis points on the board, Robert Meyer was successful from 27 yards out with 10:03 remaining in regulation to make it 49-24.
• Eastern Washington would not go down without a fight in the fourth quarter, with Bell finding the endzone twice more at 8:36 and 3:48. These scores would be too little too late, as UC Davis held off the Eagles to secure the 49-38 victory.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Fisher enjoyed a career night on the ground, finishing with a career-high 255 rushing yards and two touchdowns on a season-high 20 carries. The performance ties the fourth-highest single-game rushing total by an Aggie, and the 19^th time an Aggie has rushed for 200 yards or more. It also was his fourth career game with two or more rushing touchdowns.
• Fisher's 87-yard touchdown run at 2:33 in the second quarter was the longest rush of his career. It also tied for the seventh-longest rush in school history, and the longest since Manusamoa Luuga's 90-yard rush against Southern Oregon on Sept. 10, 2016, which also went for a touchdown. Nationally, the run tied for the fifth-longest single rush by an FCS player this season.
• Jones scored three touchdowns (two rushing, one receiving) while finishing with 163 all-purpose yards on just four touches (1 rush, 67 yards; 2 receptions, 60 yards; 1 kick return, 36 yards). He had a 67-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter and receiving touchdowns of 53 and 7 yards in the third. Jones now has five touchdowns in 2026 (two punt returns, two rushing, one receiving) and is the first Aggie with at least one rushing, one receiving, and one return touchdown in the same season since Lan Larison in 2021 (three rushing, one receiving, one kick return) and the first with at least one rushing, one receiving, and one punt return touchdown since Namane Modise in 2018 (2 rushing, 1 receiving, 1 punt return).
• Jones' 67-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter was his first rushing touchdown of the season and his fourth of his career. The rush also marked the longest of his career. Overall, three of Jones' four touchdowns this season have gone for over 50 yards. Jones also recorded his third game this season with 100-plus all-purpose yards, and the fifth game of his career achieving this feat.
• Finishing with 92 total yards on six catches, Gbatu Jr. is now fifth all-time in receiving yards (2,925) in school history, passing Randy Williams (2,921). He is only 75 yards short of 3,000 career yards with six games to go this season.
• Gbatu Jr.'s 50-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter marked his longest play of the season, and his fifth receiving touchdown of 50 or more yards in his career. With the score, he is now fourth all-time in receiving touchdowns (26) in school history.
• Cleeland's 53-yard touchdown pass to Jones in the third quarter marked the longest completion of his career. He finished 15-of-27 for 278 yards with four passing touchdowns and one interception. His four touchdowns on the night also mark his second career game with four or more passing touchdowns. Cleeland also accumulated a career-high 34 rushing yards in the victory.
• Guess' 56-yard score was his second career touchdown and his second straight game with a receiving touchdown.
• Porter Connors was all over the field defensively, finishing with 11 tackles (tying his career-high with eight solo tackles) and a career-high 2.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss. It also marked his fourth game this season and his eighth career game with double-digit tackles.
• Ty Richardson made his impact from the secondary, recording career highs in total tackles (13), solo tackles (9), and tackles for loss (1.5).
• Drew Cofield also saw success in his return, totaling career highs in total tackles (12) and solo tackles (8).
• Brayden Rosa finished with 11 tackles against the Eagles, his third game this season with double-digit tackles. His eight solo tackles marked his second-most in a single game.
• Kameron Totton secured his first career interception in the win, picking off Bell towards the end of the second period.
• Grant Garretson recorded his first career full sack and tackle for loss, bringing down Bell for a loss of 11 yards near the end of the third quarter.
• As a team, UC Davis finished with 600-plus yards of total offense (629 yards) for the first time since the Aggies had 622 yards against Northern Colorado on Nov. 2, 2024.
• UC Davis rushed 31 times for 351 yards (11.3 yards per carry). The performance marked the first time the team has rushed for 300-plus yards since the Aggies finished with 357 yards against Southern Utah on Sept. 20, 2025. It was also 45 yards short of the 74-year-old school record of 396 rushing yards against Southern Oregon in 1952.
• The 49 points scored also tied a season-high for UC Davis, which also scored the same amount in the win at San Diego (49-17) on Sept. 5.

STATS SPOTLIGHT:

• Treynor Cleeland (QB #5) - 15-27, 278 YDS, 4 TD, 1 INT, 56.0% CMP, 183.5 RTG/7 CAR, 35 YDS, 9 LNG, 5.0 AVG
• Samuel Gbatu, Jr. (WR #8) - 6 REC, 92 YDS, 1 TD, 15.3 AVG, 50 LNG, 31 YAC
• Zach Jones (WR #3) - 2 REC, 60 YDS, 2 TD, 30.0 AVG, 53 LNG, 51 YAC/1 CAR, 67 YDS, 1 TD, 67 LNG, 67 AVG
• Xzavior Guess (WR #1) - 1 REC, 56 YDS, 1 TD, 56.0 AVG, 56 LNG, 26 YAC
• Jordan Fisher (RB #20) - 20 CAR, 255 YDS, 2 TD, 87 LNG, 12.8 AVG
• Ty Richardson (DB #3) - 13 TKL (9 SOLO), 1.5 TFL
• Drew Cofield (DB #11) - 12 TKL (8 SOLO)
• Porter Connors (LB #39) - 11 TKL (8 SOLO), 2.5 SACK, 2.5 TFL
• Brayden Rosa (DB #23) - 11 TKL (8 SOLO)

POSTGAME WITH THE AGGIES:

• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Tim Plough, Jordan Fisher, and Porter Connors, please click here.

UP NEXT:
UC Davis will rest and regroup during its bye week next week as the Aggies will return to the field on Saturday, Oct. 17 at Southern Utah. Kickoff from Eccles Coliseum is scheduled for 5:00 pm PT/6:00 pm MT. Live streaming, radio, and live statistics links are available via the team's schedule page.

FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on UC Davis football, follow the Aggies on X @UCDFootball, on Instagram @ucdavisfootball, and on Facebook @ucdavisfootball.

ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS:
UC Davis Athletics represents one of the nation's premier public universities on the NCAA Division I stage, with more than 650 student-athletes competing across 25 sports, including 16 programs in the Mountain West Conference. Located in California's quintessential college town, UC Davis combines championship-level athletics with the academic excellence of the nation's #8 public research university and is home to the nation's No. 1 programs in agriculture, veterinary medicine, and sustainability. With a growing national media presence, bold investments in facilities and the student-athlete experience, and a tradition of developing champions in competition, in the classroom, and beyond, the Aggies are elevating UC Davis on a national stage.