Offense has not been a problem for UC Davis, which ranks fifth in the Big Sky Conference with an average of 465 yards per game. Defense has been a different story for the Aggies, who rank last in the Big Sky by allowing 521.7 yards per game after yielding a total of 1,208 in the past two games.
Montana had 601 yards Sept. 26 in a 62-22 victory at UC Davis and ranks first in the Big Sky with an average of 496.8. The Aggies managed to beat Eastern Washington 49-38 on Oct. 3 despite allowing 607 yards. UC Davis countered that with a total of 651 yards, including 355 on the ground.
A bye week provided an opportunity for UC Davis head coach Tim Plough and his defensive staff to address the issue. And there was no better time to do so with the Aggies playing at Southern Utah on Saturday. The Thunderbirds are second in the conference with an average of 474 yards a game.
Southern Utah is first in the Big Sky with an average of 261.5 rushing yards per game. No other Big Sky team is averaging more than 191. On the flip side, no team has fewer pass attempts than the Thunderbirds at 149. Southern Utah’s offense is hardly a mystery that UC Davis will need to solve.
Plough’s forte is offense. The former Aggies quarterback calls all the plays and communicates with Treynor Cleeland through the headset in the redshirt freshman’s helmet. Making and taking the time to critique the defense comes with being the head coach and ultimately responsible for everything.
“It always starts with me and making sure my message is clear,” Plough said. “Our defensive staff needed to look really hard at the things we’re doing well and what we need to get better at. And then it’s the players having the accountability to make sure they’re improving those things as well.”
UC Davis (2-1 Big Sky, 4-2 overall) has won its past four games against Southern Utah (1-2, 2-4), which joined the Big Sky this season along with Utah Tech to give the conference 13 members for football. Each team plays nine Big Sky games and could avoid the conference’s perennial powers.
The six remaining games for UC Davis will be against teams picked to finish no higher than sixth in the Big Sky coaches preseason poll. Southern Utah was sixth. The Aggies will follow by playing Northern Colorado (10th), Weber State (ninth), Utah Tech (13th), Idaho (seventh) and Cal Poly (11th).
As easy as that might seem, Plough dismissed the notion of his team running the table to finish with a share of the Big Sky championship. The 14th-ranked Aggies have the advantage of avoiding three ranked Big Sky teams – No. 5 Montana State, No. 8 Northern Arizona and No. 21 Idaho State.
Northern Arizona climbed from 13th with a 49-44 win over Montana, which dropped from No. 2 to No. 7 after being the last team to lose a Big Sky game this season. Montana, Northern Arizona, Cal Poly and Weber State are 3-1. UC Davis shares fifth place with Montana State and Portland State at 2-1.
UC Davis shared the Big Sky title in 2018 with Eastern Washington and Weber State despite losing 59-20 to Eastern Washington and not playing Weber State. The Aggies faced Eastern Washington again in the FCS playoffs and lost 34-29 when the Eagles rallied to score with 26 seconds to play.
Idaho is 1-2 in the Big Sky and 1-5 overall, but the one victory is notable. The Vandals knocked off then-No. 1 and defending FCS champion Montana State 35-34 on Oct. 2 when Joshua Wood threw a touchdown pass on the game’s final play and then ran for the two-point conversion.
