DAVIS, Calif. – Hero Sports has named a pair of UC Davis football wide outs to its top 25 list of returning Football Championship Subdivision wide receivers with Samuel Gbatu, Jr., being named the third-best returning receiver and Stacy Dobbins being tagged as the nation's 18th-best returning wide receiver, giving the Aggies a pair of nationally ranked offensive threats heading into the 2026 season.
 
The Aggies are just one of three programs to have more than one member named to the list and they are one of four Big Sky teams to have at least one receiver named to the top 25.
 
Over four seasons Gbatu Jr., has totaled 2,312 receiving yards and 21 receiving touchdowns on 145 career receptions. Last season he earned a pair of second team All-American honors from FCS Football Central and the American Football Coaches Association, to go along with earning first team Big Sky honors. He finished 2025 third in the nation in receiving yards and sixth in receiving touchdowns and his 1,169 receiving yards he hauled in rates as the third-most by an Aggie in program history.
 
Dobbins spent his 2025 breaking out in the Aggie offense, hauling in a career high 701 yards on 58 catches, adding four touchdowns to the mix as he emerged as an outside deep threat defenses had to game plan for. His totals ranked him 10th in the Big Sky Conference and he saved his best performance for last in the previous campaign. In the season finale during the FCS Quarterfinals against Illinois State, Dobbins set career highs in nearly all categories finishing with 121 receiving yards on 10 balls while recording two receiving touchdowns for his first career multi-touchdown game.
 
UC Davis opens 2026 fall camp on July 29 and will kick off the 2026 season on August 29 in a Big Sky showdown at Portland State. The Aggies will open UC Davis Health Stadium on Sept. 19 when Stetson makes the cross-country trip to Davis.
 
BUY 2026 SEASON TICKETS: Season tickets start as low as $100 for new alumni (2017-26 UC Davis graduates) and $140 for the general public. And fans can expect a large collection of perks that include priority access to postseason tickets, select away games and parking. All season ticket holders get a dedicated Aggie Ticket Representative that oversees their account, flexible payment plan options and access to exclusive season ticket holder events. Get your season tickets today by heading here, emailing the Aggie ticket office at aggietickets@ucdavis.edu or by calling the ticket office at (530) 752-2471.
 
ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS: UC Davis, the No. 2 ranked public university by the Wall Street Journal, is home to 40,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 employees. Ranked No. 1 in Agriculture and Forestry as well as No. 1 in Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis is located in a true California college town nestled between world-class destinations such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe. Over 650 Aggie student-athletes compete in 25 Division I varsity sports, with 16 sports transitioning to the Mountain West Conference beginning in 2026–27.