UC Davis Athletics

OGDEN, Utah – No. 20/21 UC Davis (5-4, 3-3 Big Sky) showed some fight on Saturday afternoon, but could not complete its second-half comeback, falling to No. 22/RV Weber State (6-4, 5-2), 38-14, at Stewart Stadium.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Aggies reached near midfield on their opening drive but were forced to punt following a fourth-and-10. Weber State found some success on its opening drive, marching down to a first-and-goal on the two-yard line. The UC Davis defense delivered a key stop early, holding the Wildcats out of the end zone to force a field goal. David Dellenbach followed by putting the first three points of the afternoon on the board from 21 yards out, giving Weber State a 3-0 lead at 6:42.
• Both sides traded possessions in the minutes to follow, before the Wildcats added to their lead on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Nate Dahle to La'akea Kalama. With 3:03 left in the opening quarter, Weber State held a 10-0 advantage.
• UC Davis answered shortly thereafter, as Treynor Cleeland found Laviel Picket for a gain of 30 yards to advance the ball into Wildcat territory. Two plays later, Cleeland delivered the football to a streaking Zach Jones, who came down with a highlight-reel catch as he crossed the goal line for a touchdown at the 1:04 mark. Following a made PAT from Robert Meyer, the Aggies had trimmed their deficit to 10-7.
• Moving into the second quarter, the Aggie defense would stand strong once again, forcing a Weber State field goal at 13:22. David Dellenbach converted from 31 yards out, increasing the Wildcat lead to 13-7.
• The UC Davis offense was unable to respond on its next drive as Weber State took the ball back and drove into the red zone. With the Wildcats on the brink of another score, Ty Richardson picked off Dahle in the end zone, giving the ball back to the Aggies.
• After a three-and-out from UC Davis near the midway mark of the second quarter, Weber State kept its foot on the gas offensively. Dahle decided to take things into his own hands in the red zone, punching it in with his legs from 12 yards out at 4:32. Mapa Vaenuku then rushed up the middle for a successful two-point conversion, stretching the advantage to 21-7 in favor of Weber State.
• Cleeland and the offense had one final possession before halftime, driving down to the Weber State 10-yard line with under 20 seconds to go. Looking towards the corner of the end zone, Cleeland attempted one last pass into the end zone, but the Wildcat defense held steady as they maintained their 21-7 lead heading into the locker room.
• Coming out of the break, Weber State kept rolling as Dahle found Seth Rigtrup down the sideline for a 52-yard touchdown just 94 seconds into the second half, growing the gap to 28-7 in favor of the Wildcats.
• UC Davis was able to find its groove on the next offensive drive, driving 70 yards before Cleeland connected with Scott Nixon in the back of the end zone to cut the score to 28-14 at 7:38.
• Both teams exchanged possessions through the remainder of the third quarter, but Weber State maintained its two-score lead heading into the final frame.
• As the quarter began, UC Davis was unable to convert in the red zone, handing the ball back to Weber. The Wildcats continued to have their way on offense, using eight plays to drive 82 yards as Dahle found Noah Kjar for a six-yard touchdown at the 10:15 mark. The touchdown put Weber State up by three scores, 35-14.
• With just under five minutes remaining, Dallenbach made his third field goal of the afternoon, pushing the Wildcat advantage to 38-14.
• Set to attempt one last comeback, UC Davis got the ball back and drove to the Weber State 31-yard line, but a late interception and a fourth-down stop helped the Wildcats hold off the Aggies and secure the 24-point victory.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• On the fifth play of the game, and his second rush attempt, Jordan Fisher passed Shola Adeyemo for sixth all-time in career rushing yards. Overall, Fisher finished with 128 yards on 27 carries, good for an average of 4.7 yards per carry. The senior totaled 100-plus rushing yards for the fourth time this season, and the 10^th time in his career. He now has 2,393 career rushing yards.
• Jones' touchdown in the first quarter was his fourth receiving touchdown of the season, and his seventh touchdown overall (four receiving, two punt return, one rushing). The 38-yard score was his second-longest reception of the season and his third-longest of his career. Overall, the Daly City native finished with 76 yards on four receptions (tied career-high), setting a new season-high in receiving yards. It was also his second-highest receiving yardage total of his career (had 83 yards vs. Illinois State on Dec. 13, 2025).
• Cleeland threw for 250-plus yards and two touchdowns for the sixth time in nine games this season, as he finished 23-of-38 (60.5 completion percentage).
• Ty Richardson's interception in the second quarter was his first interception of the season and his third career interception.
• Nixon's touchdown in the third quarter was his first of the season and his second career receiving touchdown.
• Hayden John was all over the field on defense as the Idaho transfer tied his career-high with 11 total tackles, including a new career-high with ten solo tackles.

STATS SPOTLIGHT:

• Treynor Cleeland (QB #5) – 25-33, 265 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT, 60.5% CMP, 131.2 RTG
• Jordan Fisher (RB #20) – 27 CAR, 148 YDS, 47 LNG, 4.7 AVG/3 REC, 31 YDS, 15 LNG, 11.0 AVG
• Zach Jones (WR #3) – 4 REC, 76 YDS, 1 TD, LNG 38, 19.0 AVG/1 CAR, 4 YDS, 4 LNG, 4.0 AVG
• Laviel Pickett (WR #22) – 5 REC, 73 YDS, 30 LNG, 14.6 AVG
• Edward Khutsishvili (TE #0) – 3 REC, 33 YDS, 26 LNG, 11 AVG
• Samuel Gbatu, Jr. (WR #8) – 3 REC, 23 YDS, 14 LNG, 7.7 AVG
• Scott Nixon (WR #9) – 1 REC, 2 YDS, 1 TD, 2 LNG, AVG. 2.0
• Hayden John (DB #1) – 11 TKL (10 SOLO, 1 AST)
• Jackson Sievers (LB #15) – 7 TKL (3 SOLO, 4 AST)
• Brayden Rosa (DB #23) – 7 TKL (6 SOLO, 1 AST)

POSTGAME WITH THE AGGIES:

• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Tim Plough, please click here.

UP NEXT:
UC Davis will return home next weekend as the Aggies are set to host Utah Tech on Saturday, Nov. 7. Kickoff from UC Davis Health Stadium is scheduled for 4:00 pm PT. Live streaming, radio, live statistics, and ticket 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.