The UC Davis Aggies football team represents the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

Football Championship Subdivision The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athleti ...

(FCS). The football program's first season took place in 1915, and has fielded a team each year since with the exception of 1918 during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and from 1943 to 1945 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, when the campus, then known as the University Farm, was shut down. The team was known as the Cal Aggies or California Aggies from 1922 to 1958 when UC Davis was called the Northern Branch of the College of Agriculture. UC Davis competed as a member of the NCAA College Division through 1972; from 1973 to 2003, the Aggies competed as an

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

program. In 2004, UC Davis promoted its football program to the Division I FCS (then I-AA) level and joined the

Great West Conference The Great West Conference (GWC) was an NCAA college athletic conference in the continental United States. Originally a football-only league, it became an all-sports entity during the 2008–09 season. The GWC stopped sponsoring football followin ...

(then known as the Great West Football Conference) after one season as an independent team with exploratory status. After their provisional seasons and the construction of a new stadium, UC Davis became a full member of Division I in 2007 and eligible for the postseason. Throughout its history, the football program won 31 conference championships. Between 1929 and 1992, the Aggies captured 27 outright or shared

Northern California Athletic Conference The Northern California Athletic Conference (NCAC) was an NCAA Division II college athletic association that sponsored American football that was founded in 1925. It disbanded in 1998 after the majority of its member schools were forced to drop fo ...

championships, including 20 in a row from 1971 to 1990, an

American West Conference The American West Conference (AWC) was a college athletic conference in the United States from 1993 to 1996. It consisted of schools in California and Utah. The charter members of the conference were California Polytechnic State University; ...

title in 1993 (co-champion), and GWFC/GWC championships in 2005 (co-champ) and 2009. The Aggies won their first conference title as a Division I program in 2018 as one of the

Big Sky Conference The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eigh ...

's three regular-season champions.

Conference affiliations

UC Davis has been both independent and affiliated with multiple conferences. * NCAA Independent (1915–1924) *

(1925–1992) **

Far Western Conference The Northern California Athletic Conference (NCAC) was an NCAA Division II college athletic association that sponsored American football that was founded in 1925. It disbanded in 1998 after the majority of its member schools were forced to drop fo ...

(1925–1981) ** Northern California Athletic Conference (1982–1992) *

(1993) * NCAA Division II Independent (1994–2002) * NCAA Division I-AA Independent (2003) *

Great West Football Conference The Great West Conference (GWC) was an NCAA college athletic conference in the continental United States. Originally a football-only league, it became an all-sports entity during the 2008–09 season. The GWC stopped sponsoring football following ...

(2004–2011) *

(2012–present)

Conference championships

UC Davis Aggies The UC Davis Aggies (also referred to as the Ags or Aggies) are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Davis. Seventeen of the school's 25 intercollegiate sports - baseball, men's basketball, men's cross country, men's ...

football program has won or shared a total of 31 conference championships since 1915, including 27 from the

where they won 20 straight conference champions from 1971 to 1990. † Co-champion

Playoff records

NCAA Division I-AA/FCS

The Aggies have appeared twice in the Division I FCS playoffs. Their combined playoff record is 1–2.

NCAA Division II

The Aggies appeared in eighteen times in the NCAA Division II playoffs from 1977 through 2002. Their playoff record was 15–18.

Bowl games

Rivalries

The

Sacramento State Hornets The Sacramento State Hornets (also Sac State) represent California State University, Sacramento in Sacramento, the capital city of the U.S. state of California, in intercollegiate athletics. The school fields 21 teams including men and women's ba ...

are the natural cross-town rival who battle UC Davis annually for the Causeway Trophy. This rivalry is known as the

Causeway Classic The Causeway Classic is the annual college football game between the Sacramento State Hornets and the UC Davis Aggies in the United States. The teams exchange a Causeway Classic Trophy made from cement taken from the Yolo Causeway. History of ...

. UC Davis leads the all-time series 46–21 with no ties. The

Cal Poly Mustangs The Cal Poly Mustangs are the athletic teams representing California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California. The university fields twenty-one teams and compete in NCAA Division I; they are primarily members of the Big West ...

are another rival; these teams compete in the

Battle for the Golden Horseshoe The Battle for the Golden Horseshoe is an annual rivalry college football game played between the UC Davis Aggies and the Cal Poly Mustangs. Although the two teams have met on the gridiron since 1939, the rivalry officially began in name with ...

each year with the winner receiving a trophy of a large golden horseshoe. Both Sacramento State and Cal Poly are designated rivals for Big Sky Conference scheduling purposes, which means UC Davis plays both teams each year as part of its conference schedule. UC Davis also has a smaller rivalry with

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

following UC Davis' 20–17 upset of the Cardinal in 2005 while still a provisional Division I team.

Notable games

On November 14, 1971, UC Davis defeated

Cal State Hayward California State University, East Bay (Cal State East Bay, CSU East Bay, or CSUEB) is a public university in Hayward, California. The university is part of the 23-campus California State University system and offers 136 undergraduate and 60 post ...

30–29, where UC Davis scored 16 points in the final 44 seconds and was dubbed the "Miracle Game". After scoring on a five-play drive that included a

two-point conversion In gridiron football, a two-point conversion or two-point convert is a play a team attempts instead of kicking a one-point conversion immediately after it scores a touchdown. In a two-point conversion attempt, the team that just scored must run ...

with 20 seconds remaining, UC Davis recovered an onside kick. On the final play of the game, quarterback and future UC Davis head coach

Bob Biggs George Robert Biggs (born February 20, 1951) is a former American football player and coach. He played college football for UC Davis and was selected by the Associated Press as the first-team quarterback on the 1972 Little All-America college foo ...

found

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

Mike Bellotti Robert Michael Bellotti (born December 21, 1950) is an American college football analyst for ESPN and ABC Sports, ABC. He was with the Oregon Ducks football, University of Oregon's football program for over 20 years serving as offensive coordin ...

for a 29-yard touchdown on the final play of the game with four seconds remaining. Instead of tying the score with the

extra point The conversion, try (American football, also known as a point(s) after touchdown, PAT, or (depending on the number of points) extra point/2-point conversion), or convert (Canadian football) occurs immediately after a touchdown during which the sc ...

, head coach

Jim Sochor Jim Sochor (February 11, 1938 – November 23, 2015) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of California, Davis from 1970 to 1988 during which time comp ...

went for the win and another two-point conversion. After two false starts, Biggs completed a pass to Mike Everly to complete the comeback. The Aggies' defeated the

Stanford Cardinal The Stanford Cardinal are the athletic teams that represent Stanford University. As of June, 2022, Stanford's program has won 131 NCAA team championships. Stanford has won at least one NCAA team championship each academic year for 46 consecutive ...

20–17 on September 18, 2005, after trailing 17–0 midway through the second quarter. Stanford quarterback

Trent Edwards Trent Addison Edwards (born October 30, 1983) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Stanford and was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. As a rookie, Edwards took over the sta ...

then left the game with an injury. The Aggies scored 20 unanswered and became the first non-Division I-A/FBS team to defeat the Cardinal. The win was the Aggies' first over a Division I-A team since 1986 against the

Pacific Tigers The Pacific Tigers represent the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, in intercollegiate athletics. The Tigers compete in NCAA Division I, and are currently in their second stint as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC). C ...

and was the first against a

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

team in 65 years. It was also the second win over Stanford with the first taking place in 1932. On October 4, 2008,

Bakari Grant Bakari Grant (born June 24, 1987) is a former Canadian football wide receiver. He was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent in 2010 NFL season, 2010. Grant played college football at UC Davis Aggies football, UC Davis. He ha ...

caught a 38-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass from Greg Denham against the

Northern Colorado Bears The Northern Colorado Bears are the athletic teams representing the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colorado in intercollegiate athletics. The university sponsors seventeen teams including men and women's basketball, cross country, gol ...

to win 34–30. The game was dubbed the "Hail Bakari" at the time.

Notable players

* Nick Aliotti, college coach * Jeff Allen, NFL defensive back *

Scott Barry Scott Adam Barry (August 3, 1976) is currently an American umpire in Major League Baseball (MLB). Scott made his debut as an MLB reserve umpire in 2006, and 2011 was his first full-time season as an MLB umpire. He lives in Quincy, Michigan. Ear ...

, NFL quarterback *

Rolf Benirschke Rolf Joachim Benirschke (born February 7, 1955) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the San Diego Chargers from 1977 until 1986. He is probably most known ...

, NFL placekicker and TV host *

, CFL quarterback and college coach *

, college coach and analyst * Chris Carter, NFL wide receiver * Kevin Daft, NFL quarterback and college coach * Keelan Doss, NFL wide receiver *

Bo Eason Bo Eason (born March 10, 1961) is an American actor, playwright, author, motivational speaker, and retired football player who played safety for four seasons for the Houston Oilers. Early life Eason was born and raised in Walnut Grove, Califor ...

, NFL defensive back (second-round draft pick) and actor *

Daniel Fells Daniel Fells (born September 23, 1983) is a former American football tight end. He played college football at UC Davis and was signed by the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent in 2006. Fells was also a member of the St. Louis Rams, D ...

, NFL tight end * Bob Foster, college coach *

, CFL wide receiver *

Mark Grieb Mark Richard Grieb (born May 23, 1974) is a former Arena football quarterback who spent the majority of his career with the San Jose SaberCats of the Arena Football League (AFL). Grieb currently serves as the head coach of the Sacred Heart Prep G ...

, AFL quarterback and college coach *

Nathaniel Hackett Nathaniel Hackett (born December 19, 1979) is an American football coach. A former long-time assistant to Doug Marrone, Hackett previously served as the offensive coordinator for the NFL's Green Bay Packers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Buffalo Bills, ...

, college and NFL coach * Paul Hackett, college and NFL coach *

Dan Hawkins Danny Clarence Hawkins (born November 10, 1960) is an American football coach at UC Davis. A former player and sportscaster, he served as the head football coach at Willamette University (1993–1997), Boise State University (2001–2005), and ...

, college coach, current UC Davis head coach *

Khari Jones Khari Okang Jones ( ; born May 16, 1971) is a former professional Canadian football player and the offensive coordinator and assistant head coach for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was formerly the head coach for ...

, CFL quarterback and coach *

Joshua Kelley Joshua Tyler Kelley (born November 20, 1997) is an American football running back for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He began his college football career with the UC Davis Aggies before transferring to the UCLA ...

, NFL running back (later transferred to UCLA) *

Tim Lajcik Timothy Matthew Lajcik ( cs, Lajčík; born June 21, 1965) is a retired American mixed martial artist, stuntman, actor and writer. Lajcik competed in the heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the Pancrase. He lost his l ...

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

* Bryan Lee-Lauduski, Arena Football League player * Chris Mandeville, NFL defensive back * Rich Martini, NFL wide receiver *

Casey Merrill Richard Casey Merrill (born July 16, 1957) is a former professional American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Green Bay Packers (1979–1982), New York Giants (1983–1986) and the New Orleans Saints in the 19 ...

, NFL defensive end *

Mike Moroski Michael Henry Moroski (born September 4, 1957) is an American football coach and former player. He is the football head coach at College of Idaho. Moroski played eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Atlanta Falcons, the ...

, first NFL player from UC Davis, playing as quarterback. Also a college coach *

Ken O'Brien Kenneth John O'Brien Jr. (born November 27, 1960) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League for the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles. When he retired he was the only Jets quarterback to have ever ...

, NFL quarterback (first-round draft pick) *

J. T. O'Sullivan John Thomas O'Sullivan (born August 25, 1979) is an American former professional gridiron football quarterback who played nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL), two seasons in NFL Europe and one season in the Canadian Football Leagu ...

, NFL quarterback * Michael Oliva, NFL wide receiver *

Chris Petersen Christopher Scott Petersen (born October 13, 1964) is a former American football coach who was most recently the head coach at the University of Washington. Previously the head coach for eight seasons at Boise State University, Petersen guided ...

, college coach * Colton Schmidt, NFL/AAF/XFL punter *

John Shoemaker John Shoemaker (born August 18, 1956) is a former minor league baseball player who is currently manager of the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. Shoemaker attended Waverly High School and the University of Miami before he was drafted in the 35th round of ...

, NFL wide receiver *

Elliot Vallejo Elliot Louis Vallejo uh-LAY-ho(born May 17, 1984) is a former American football offensive tackle. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at UC Davis. He retired from the National ...

, NFL offensive tackle * Forest Vance, NFL offensive tackle and personal trainer *

Colby Wadman Colby Wadman (born April 19, 1995) is an American football punter for the Birmingham Stallions of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at University of California, Davis. Early years Wadman attended and played high sch ...

, NFL punter * Tom Williams, NFL defensive end * Mike Wise, NFL defensive end

References

External links

* {{Big Sky Conference football navbox American football teams established in 1915 1915 establishments in California