UC Davis will return with more than it will be taking to SMU for Saturday’s game. Sacks of cash will be loaded along with the helmets, shoulder pads and grass-stained uniforms for the flight from Dallas to Sacramento. SMU replaced the synthetic turf in Gerald J. Ford Stadium with grass in 2025.
In a side note, Gerald J. Ford is not the former president. That was the late Gerald R. Ford. Gerald J. Ford is an 82-year-old billionaire banker who donated $20 million to build the new stadium at SMU in 2000. The installation of Bermuda grass in the stadium was funded by a donation of $2.5 million.
Speaking of money, the Aggies will reportedly receive $460,000 for being mauled by the Mustangs. UC Davis tried its luck against Washington in 2025 and earned more than $500,000 for losing 70-10. The Aggies were to play USC in 2021, but the Trojans pulled out and had to pay UC Davis $725,000.
USC remains the only FBS team to have never played an FCS program. Thirteen of 138 FBS teams will not face an FCS team this season. Most of the 125 FBS teams playing an FCS team have little to fear. SMU is 23-2 against FCS teams. The most recent loss was in 2015 against James Madison.
James Madison is now an FBS team in the Sun Belt Conference. The Dukes are 4-0 against FCS teams since gaining FBS status in 2022 and will play a fifth on Saturday when Wagner pays a visit to Harrisonburg, Va. The Seahawks will earn $260,000 for making the 368-mile trip from Staten Island.
UC Davis, Eastern Washington, Montana and Northern Arizona accounted for a third of the 12 FCS victories against FBS teams five years ago. Sacramento State and Weber State added victories in 2022. The Hornets got another in 2023 at Stanford by beating Troy Taylor, their former head coach.
Sacramento State and North Dakota State, which won it 10th FCS national championship in 2025, are now playing in FBS conferences. The Big Sky added Southern Utah and Utah Tech after losing Sacramento State, so the conference now has 13 members and each will have nine Big Sky games.
Big Sky Conference teams such as UC Davis have pulled off their fair share of surprises in FBS-FCS games. Idaho State put another notch on the Big Sky’s belt last Saturday by beating Utah State. Big Sky teams have beaten FBS teams in seven of the past 10 seasons, including four victories in 2021.
UC Davis has scheduled games against FCS teams in each of the next three seasons. The Aggies will battle UCLA in 2027 and 2029 and Washington State in 2028. Former UC Davis quarterback Caden Pinnick is now the starter at Washington State and could face his former team in two years.
Washington State lured Pinnick away from UC Davis by offering him $600,000 to transfer. That may turn out to be more than the Aggies make when they travel to Pullman to go against the Cougars on Sept. 2, 2028. But as long as FBS teams are willing to pay, the Aggies will accept the money to play.
“I want to play teams that we can get enough financially to help support other (UC Davis) teams. That means a lot to me,” Plough said. “The second thing is this game’s about our guys having the opportunity to go out and test themselves against elite competition. We’ll see what we’re made of.”
SMU climbed two spots to 17th in the Associated Press poll after beating Florida State 27-24 on Monday. The Mustangs are favored by 25.5 points against the Aggies, but Plough does not care. “This game has no bearing on our future,” he said, “so it’s great opportunity to go have fun and rip it.”
