UC Davis has trailed by at least 21 points in three of its first four games. A 21-0 halftime deficit at Portland State on Aug. 29 was not insurmountable because the Aggies usually have their way with the Vikings. A 49-0 deficit at SMU on Sept. 12 was not a surprise against a ranked FBS opponent.
Montana’s 31-0 lead on its way to a 62-22 win last Saturday was a harsh reminder that UC Davis is a second-class team in the Big Sky Conference. The Aggies are 2-10 against Montana and 1-9 against Montana State, which will likely play for the Big Sky championship on Nov. 21 in Bozeman.
Eastern Washington has the best record of any Big Sky team against UC Davis at 11-1. That surely will be mentioned this week as the Aggies prepare to host the Eagles at 7 p.m. Saturday. UC Davis put its futility against Eastern Washington to rest two years ago with a 48-38 win in Cheney, Wash.
UC Davis shared the Big Sky title in 2018 with Eastern Washington and Weber State even though the Aggies lost to the Eagles. UC Davis did not have to play Weber State and stayed in championship contention by overcoming a 21-3 deficit at Montana for a 49-21 victory.
Just as in 2018, UC Davis will not play one contender this season because top-ranked Montana State is not on the schedule. The Aggies will also avoid two other ranked Big Sky teams – No. 14 Idaho State and No. 18 Northern Arizona. Montana is ranked fourth in one poll and fifth in the other.
Beating Montana last Saturday would have put UC Davis in position to win or share the title barring an upset. The Aggies could not do that last year, losing 38-36 to unranked Idaho State two weeks before flying to Montana State for what they had hoped would be a showdown for the Big Sky title.
The one showdown for UC Davis this season has come and gone. Montana was the one hurdle for UC Davis to clear to have any shot at a championship. The Aggies’ goal has now been reduced to reaching the FCS playoffs for the third time in as many seasons under Tim Plough as head coach.
Plough is quick to accept the blame for any loss and the beating administered by Montana was “definitely the worst that I’ve experienced here in the last couple of years. They outcoached us and outplayed us in every facet of the game. I have to do a better job preparing the team and the staff.”
Restoring the team’s confidence will take time. “I don’t think there’s a rah-rah speech or anything that they need,” Plough said. “I’m looking forward to getting back to the guys and get to practice and fix the problems. Hopefully we can fix enough that we can find a way to win a football game.”
One way would be for the defense to not allow 300 rushing yards. Eli Gillman would have likely reached 300 on his own if Montana did not pull him early in the fourth quarter. He had a career-high 275 yards and scored four times to become the Big Sky’s career leader in rushing touchdowns (60).
Gillman shared the touchdown record with Sacramento State’s Charles Roberts before shredding the UC Davis defense. The senior was honored accordingly by being named the Big Sky and Stats Perform FCS offensive player of the week. He has run for 685 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2026.
UC Davis led all FCS teams in fewest yards allowed per rushing attempt at 3.3 before yielding 8.1 to Montana, which ran for 366 yards on 45 attempts. Montana joined Washington (2025) and Eastern Washington (2018) as the only teams in 10 years to score six rushing touchdowns against UC Davis.
