PORTLAND, Ore. — Tim Plough has long been a proponent of the nine-game league schedule and with the Big Sky adopting the format this year, the No. 6 Aggies find themselves playing a conference game on the earliest date in school history Saturday when they trek North to face Portland State. 

The game will be more than three weeks earlier on the calendar than the Aggies' previous earliest Big Sky game, also against the Vikings in Davis on Sept. 21, 2013.

"I love the nine-game schedule," Plough said at the team's weekly press conference on Monday. "The best teams that we are going to play are going to be in our conference. I don't really care when we play them. You know every opponent is going to be tough, so the fact is that we get to start with a really difficult opponent on the road in conference. I'm really happy that [Commissioner] Tom [Wistrcill] and everybody in the Big Sky made that move. I think it's going to be great for the conference."

Plough feels like his team is ready for the early conference opener after a strong training camp.

"I really love the time we've spent in fall camp here building a team," Plough said. "These guys have a great love for one another and play hard for each other. It's an exciting time with the season getting kicked off."

Many of the questions in the offseason and during training camp were about who will start under center in 2026 and Plough answered those when he announced Treynor Cleeland as the opening-day starter during his weekly press conference on Monday.

"Treynor is very driven and he wants to be very good," Plough said. "He's a tireless worker, studies extremely hard and is bright. Plus, he can really throw the football. He is a great athlete and as talented of a thrower of the football that I have probably ever coached. But what it really comes down to with the quarterback position is who has the best understanding of the offense, who can make their teammates feel the most comfortable in the huddle and at the line of scrimmage, decision-making and accuracy. He had high marks in all of those areas throughout camp."

"It was a really good competition between Jackson [Kollock], Axel [Eason] and Treynor," Plough added. "We feel like we've got a bunch of guys in the room that can be really talented, but at the end of the day Treynor was just more consistent in those areas and we're excited for him to make 2026 his."

Plough was also impressed with Cleeland's love for his teammates, as well as his interest in the history of UC Davis football.

"Treynor has really immersed himself into the Davis environment, specifically the quarterback environment, which is obviously rich with history," said Plough, who noted that Cleeland recently had lunch with Davis quarterback legend Scott Barry.

WHERE TO FOLLOW
Live Stream (ESPN+), Rose City SportsNet, Channel 49.1, Cable Channel 13 of 713: Matt Richert (Play-By-Play), Scott Hermo (Analyst), Grace Peterson (Sideline)
Sactown Sports 1140 AM (Flagship), The Varsity Network: Scott Marsh (Play-By-Play), Scott Gordon (Analyst)
Live Stats

THE SERIES

• UC Davis and Portland State are meeting for the 20th time on Saturday and on the ninth occasion as Big Sky opponents. Portland State leads the all-time series, 11-8, while the teams have split their previous eight Big Sky contests with UC Davis winning each of the past four. The Aggies are 5-6 all-time in Hillsboro with victories in each of the last three meetings (2017, 2019, 2024).
• Portland State's last win in the series was a 51-29 victory in Davis in 2016, while their last win in Hillsboro was a 23-14 victory in 2014.

A LOOK AT THE 2026 AGGIES

• UC Davis' current No. 6 preseason national ranking is the highest the Aggies have been ranked since the 2019 preseason when they were No. 5.
• UC Davis returns six players who have earned preseason All-American honors in DB Drew Cofield, LB Porter Connors, DB Rex Connors, RB Jordan Fisher, WR Samuel Gbatu Jr. and TE Winston Williams.
• Each of the team's preseason All-Americans have also earned All-Big Sky recognition prior to the 2026 campaign, along with DL Trent Carrade, OL Zaier Collier, P Dylan Mauro and DL Rayne Mayo Jr. to give the Aggies a total of 10 preseason All-Big Sky picks.
• Gbatu Jr. (Water Payton Award) and Rex Connors (Buck Buchanan Award) are on preseason watch lists honoring the top offensive and defensive players in the FCS.
• The Aggies have a total of 13 starters (7 offense, 6 defense) and 20 players (12 offense, 8 defense), as well as four specialists from its two-deep of a year ago returning.
• The team returns both a 1,000-yard rusher (Jordan Fisher; 1,141 yards) and 1,000-yard receiver (Samuel Gbatu Jr.; 1,169 yards) from a year ago. The pair also combined to get into the end zone 22 times with each reaching pay dirt on 11 occasions (Gbatu Jr. - 11 TD receptions; Fisher - 8 rushing TD, 3 TD receptions).
• UC Davis will have a new starting QB in 2026 as Treynor Cleeland was named the starter during training camp. Cleeland got into two games in 2025 (2-4, 26 yards) as the Aggies' third quarterback. UC Davis' 2025 starter was Caden Pinnick, who transferred to Washington State and won the Cougars' starting job in training camp. Grant Harper, who was Pinnick's primary backup a year ago, completed his collegiate eligibility in 2025.
• The Aggies return four players who had more than 30 tackles in 2025 in LB Jackson Sieves (67), DB Rex Connors (45), DB Drew Cofield (36) and LB Sam Goligoski (33). Goligoski was a frequent visitor in opponents' backfields a year ago with 9.5 tackles for loss (-52 yards) and 6.5 sacks (-37 yards) that were both second on the team, while Sievers had 5.5 tackles for loss (-16 yards) and 2.5 sacks (-12 yards), and Cofield picked up 2.0 tackles for loss (-3 yards) and a team-high-tying two interceptions. Sievers also had two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
• P Dylan Mauro is back after posting a 44.4 yards per punt average in 2025 as are both of the Aggies' top two kick returners in Zach Jones (8-224, 28.0 ypr) and Samuel Gbatu Jr. (8-146, 18.3 ypr).

POSITION NOTES (OFFENSE)
QUARTERBACKS

• Redshirt freshman Treynor Cleeland won the starting job after spending last season as the team's third-stringer, beating out transfer quarterback Jackson Kollock from Minnesota.
• Cleeland becomes the third starting quarterback in as many years, replacing 2025 Big Sky Freshman of the Year Caden Pinnick, who replaced Miles Hastings.

RUNNING BACKS

• The Aggies lead back in 2025, Jordan Fisher, returns for another go around after surpassing 1,000 yards rushing a year ago.
• With the departure of Carter Vargas, the Aggies will turn to a number of backs to fill the backup role, including Matteo Perez, Kai Acia and Weber State transfer Chauncey Sylvester.

TIGHT ENDS

• Coming back from an injury that cut his 2025 season short, Winston Williams has felt the love from the nation after being named an FCS Central and Stats Perform preseason All-American along with an All-Big Sky preseason selection.
• Hero Sports has also named Williams the second-best returning tight end in the country.
• With the departure of Mitchell Dixon and Ian Simpson, Jake Houseworth from Cal looks to be one of the top candidates for the Aggies' backup spot. 

OFFENSIVE LINE

• Despite the graduation of Eli Simonsen, UC Davis returns a large number of its offensive linemen from last season. Leading the group is senior center Zaire Collier, who was named a nominee for the Allstate Good Works Team.
• Other returners include Davis native AJ Hasson, David Main, Roice Cleeland and Jayden Montanez.

WIDE RECEIVERS

• Following a 1,000-yard receiving season last year, fifth-year player Samuel Gbatu Jr. looks to continue to carve out his legacy in Davis after being named a Walter Payton Preseason Watch List candidate for the best receiver in the FCS.
• Wide receivers LaDanian Streets and Zach Jones also make their return after big seasons.
• Coach Plough and his staff will look to mold the next great Aggie receiver with five freshmen entering the program in 2026.

POSITION NOTES (DEFENSE)
DEFENSIVE LINE

• Losing Ivy League transfers Jacob Psyk and Derrell Smith-Porter to graduation, Davis will have plenty of help on the defensive line with 13-game starter Trent Carrade and preseason All-Big Sky player Rayne Mayo Jr. returning this season.

LINEBACKERS

• The Aggie linebacking core will be flanked by returning All-American Porter Connors, who was limited to just four games of action last season.
• Other high-level returners include Grant Garretson, Macray Madruga and Cory McEnroe.

DEFENSIVE BACKS

• Named an FCS Freshman All-American last season, Drew Cofield was one of only two true freshmen to start every game last season while collecting 36 tackles and a pair of interceptions.
• The biggest storyline for the DBs is the return of all-time leading tackler Rex Connors, who saw his season cut short due to injury last year. Connors has already seen the love from the nation after being named to a pair of preseason All-American teams while also being dubbed the third-best returner at his position by HERO Sports.
• Other returners include William Fowler, Trey Carr and Jordan Black-Glass.

POSITION NOTES (SPECIAL TEAMS)

• The graduation of Hunter Ridley has created an opening in the special teams room for a starting kicker. The candidates include last year's backup Tyler Hughes and Missouri transfer Robert Meyer.
• In the punting game, Dylan Mauro is back after averaging 44.4 yards per punt last year.
• Joseph Adema returns as the primary holder.

COACHING STAFF

• Head coach Tim Plough has posted a 20-7 record over his first two seasons and led the Aggies to FCS Playoffs quarterfinals each season.
• UC Davis has two new members of the 2026 coaching staff in special teams coordinator Cody von Appen and running backs coach Vavae Malepeai. vonAppean has been the defensive coordinator at Cal Poly for the last five seasons, while Malepeai has been a quality control analyst at Stanford for each of the past three campaigns.

A LOOK BACK AT 2025 AGGIES

• The 2025 Aggie squad finished with a 9-4 record and a No. 8 final FCS ranking. Ranked victories included wins over No. 9 Rhode Island in the first round of the FCS playoffs and No. 14 Northern Arizona during Big Sky action.
• UC Davis had the 10th-best offensive and 12th-best passing attack in the nation.
• The Aggies played on national television a school-record four times.

ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS 
UC Davis, ranked No. 2 among public universities by the Wall Street Journal in the value of a college degree, is home to 40,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 employees. Ranked top in the United States 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. 

For more information, visit ucdavisaggies.com/.