UC Davis Athletics

DAVIS, Calif, - No. 10/9 UC Davis (3-2, 1-1 Big Sky) couldn't find its rhythm on Saturday night, falling to No. 5/4 Montana (4-1, 2-0 Big Sky), 62-22, at UC Davis Health Stadium.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Both teams forced three-and-outs to start the evening, but Montana opened the scoring on their second drive of the game, capping off a 7-play, 45-yard drive with a five-yard rushing touchdown from Eli Gillman at 8:53.
• The Grizzlies took advantage of a muffed punt by UC Davis in the middle of the first quarter, getting the ball back on the visiting 31-yard line to begin another drive. Three plays later, Gillman found the end zone for his second five-yard score of the opening period, putting Montana up 14-0 at 5:11.
• Closing out the first quarter, the Grizzlies extended their lead to 17-0 following a 39-yard field goal from Jo Silver with 20 seconds remaining.
• UC Davis continued to stall on offense moving into the second quarter, and Montana kept their momentum rolling. With 4:18 left before halftime, Keali'i Ah Yat scrambled to his right before finding Landon Ransom-Goelz for a 2-yard strike, pushing the score to 24-0 in favor of the Grizzlies.
• Montana poured it on once more, this time adding points on a 7-yard rushing touchdown from Ah Yat with 57 seconds remaining in the first half.
• The Aggies made the most of the final moments of the second quarter, driving down the field to the Montana 27-yard line. With seven seconds remaining, Treynor Cleeland connected with Zach Jones in the corner of the end zone, putting UC Davis on the scoreboard for the first time as time expired. Cleeland followed with a dart to Pickett for a two-point conversion, and Montana went into the locker room holding a 31-8 lead.
• Coming out of the half, the Grizzlies saw similar success, shutting down the UC Davis offense before Gillman punched it in for his third touchdown of the night at 10:09 in the third quarter. Montana grew its advantage to 38-8 with the score.
• Both sides traded scores in the moments to follow, with the Grizzlies adding to their lead on a 3-yard touchdown from Ah Yat to Brooks Davis at 6:43 in the third quarter. Less than one minute later, Cleeland connected with Samuel Gbatu, Jr. for a gain of 41 yards before Jordan Fisher broke through for a 27-yard rushing touchdown to make it 45-15.
• With 1:46 in the third quarter, Ah Yat pushed through for his second rushing touchdown of the night, this time scoring from 12 yards out to extend the gap to 52-15.
• Enjoying a career night, Gillman began the fourth quarter with a bang by ripping off a 58-yard touchdown for his fourth score of the night, putting the Grizzlies up 59-15. At the 5:31 mark, Silver converted on a 50-yard field goal for the final Montana points of the night.
• Jackson Kollock kept pushing on offense for UC Davis, finding Xzavior Guess from six yards out with 2:45 remaining in regulation to net the second touchdown of the night for the Aggies. The score would hold for the remainder of the game as Montana grabbed the 62-22 victory.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Jones' touchdown to close out the first half marked his first receiving touchdown of 2026, and his sixth career receiving touchdown. It was also the third-longest touchdown of his career (longest was 36 yards vs. Cal Poly on Oct. 4, 2025).
• Gbatu, Jr., who finished with 103 yards, continues to exploit the defense no matter the matchup, as he has now reached 100+ receiving yards in four of the first five games this season. The performance also marked his 13^th career game with 100+ receiving yards. Additionally, Gbatu, Jr. has logged at least five receptions in all five games this season.
• Fisher finished with his first 100+ yard rushing performance of 2026, totaling 102 yards on 19 carries. It also marked his seventh career game with 100+ yards rushing.
• Jordan Rogers finished with new career-highs in both receptions (2) and yards (15).

STATS SPOTLIGHT:

• Treynor Cleeland (QB #5) - 18-33, 194 YDS, 1 TD, 55.0% CMP, 113.9 RTG
• Samuel Gbatu, Jr. (WR #8) - 6 REC, 103 YDS, 17.2 AVG, 17 YAC
• Zach Jones (WR #3) - 3 REC, 35 YDS, 1 TD, 11.7 AVG, 27 LNG
• Jordan Fisher (RB #20) - 19 CAR, 102 YDS, 1 TD, 27 LNG, 5.4 AVG
• Brayden Rosa (DB #23) - 13 TKL (10 SOLO), 1 TFL
• Porter Connors (LB #39) - 11 TKL (8 SOLO), 1 TFL
• Ty Richardson (DB #3) - 8 TKL (7 SOLO)

POSTGAME WITH THE AGGIES:

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

UP NEXT:
UC Davis will wrap up its three-game homestand next Saturday, Oct. 3, as the Aggies welcome Eastern Washington. Kickoff from UC Davis Health Stadium is scheduled for 7:00 pm. For the first time in the regular season, and the second time in program history, the Aggies are set to appear on an ESPN linear network, with the game airing live on ESPN2. Tickets begin at $14 and are available here. 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, 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.