The FCS’ tenth-ranked UC Davis Aggies (6-1, 3-1 Big Sky) travel to San Luis Obispo, California to take on their in-state rival, the Cal Poly Mustangs (1-5, 0-3 Big Sky), in the annual Battle for the Golden Horseshoe on Saturday.
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The game (8 p.m. ET start time) isn’t on TV anywhere, but anyone in the US can watch UC Davis vs Cal Poly live on ESPN+:
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Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch UC Davis vs Cal Poly live on the ESPN app on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4 or 5, Xbox One or Series X/S, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), Samsung Smart TV, Oculus Go, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch on your computer via ESPN.com.
UC Davis vs Cal Poly Preview
The UC Davis Aggies are back in the top ten and will look to build off last week’s win when they face the Cal Poly Mustangs on the road on Saturday.
The Aggies began the season 5-0 before losing to Idaho State but bounced back with a 32-3 win over Northern Colorado at home last Saturday. With the victory, the Aggies moved up to No. 10 in both the Stats Perform and AFCA FCS national polls.
UC Davis was led last week by running back Ulonzo Gilliam Jr.’s 104-yard performance, which was his 20th career 100-yard game. The junior is the leading rusher on the team this season, with 626 yards on the ground and four rushing touchdowns.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Trent Tompkins scored a pair of touchdowns and a two-point conversion in the win, while junior quarterback Hunter Rodrigues completed 16 of 26 passes for 187 yards with two interceptions. Rodrigues has thrown for 1,045 passing yards with seven TDs and has run for two scores. Gilliam Jr., Tompkins, Rodrigues and redshirt freshman Lan Larison have combined for 15 rushing TDs on the season and the Aggies’ run game has averaged 172.1 yards on the ground per contest.
UC Davis’ defensive unit takes the ball away with the best of them, ranking fifth in the FCS in turnovers gained with 16 (12 interceptions, four fumbles).
Cal Poly will be looking to snap a five-game losing streak on Saturday. The Mustangs won their season-opener against San Diego, but then have been held to 14 points or less in each of the five losses since that first game. UC Davis will be Cal Poly’s sixth consecutive opponent that is ranked in the top 25.
The Mustangs are coming off a bye week, which followed a 45-7 loss to No. 10/11 Montana State on the road on Oct. 9.
Head coach Beau Baldwin is in his second season at the helm for the Mustangs. Baldwin, who led Eastern Washington to a 2010 FCS national championship, was hired in late 2019 but didn’t get a chance to lead the Mustangs onto the field until this past spring when the FCS held a shortened season that was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Freshman Jaden Jones took over at quarterback the last time out during the second series, rushed for 58 yards on 14 carries, and completed 4 of 13 passes for 24 yards in his first collegiate action.
Cal Poly’s quarterback contingent has been struck by the injury bug this season, with starter Spencer Brasch going down with a fracture in his throwing hand and backup Conor Bruce leaving his debut with an injury on Sept. 25. Jones and redshirt freshman Jackson Pavitt are the top two on the QB depth chart going into this week for the Mustangs.
The lone bright spot in Cal Polys’ loss to Montana State was sophomore running back Shakobe Harper, who rushed for 97 yards on 14 carries and was responsible for the Mustangs’ only score.
Saturday’s game will be the 47th meeting between the in-state rivals, with UC Davis winning the last four games, including a 73-24 rout earlier this spring.