UC Davis secures big road win, edging No. 23 Weber State to keep FCS playoff hopes alive
UC Davis kept its FCS playoff hopes alive with an inspired defensive effort on the road in Utah on Saturday night.
Limiting No. 22 Weber State to just 10 first down and 90 yards passing, the Aggies grinded out a 17-16 Big Sky Conference victory in Ogden.
Cornerback Jehiel Budgett, a product of Monterey Trail High School in the Elk Grove Unified School District, broke up two passes on Weber State’s final drive, the second of which resulted in a turnover on downs with 1:36 to play. The Aggies ran out the clock to move to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the ever-deep Big Sky.
UCD coach Dan Hawkins earlier in the week said his club was in immediate playoff mode after two crushing, late home losses. One came against Eastern Washington with a blocked punt helping the Eagles secure a 27-24 victory. The other came with a strip sack inside the Montana 10 last week that sealed a 31-23 Grizzlies win. In between, UCD beat Cal Poly 31-13 on Sept. 23 in San Luis Obispo.
Miles Hastings completed 18 of 27 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Trent Tompkins rushed for 116 yards on 24 carries in another solid showing in place of Big Sky rushing leader Lan Larison ,who is week-to-week with a knee injury. Hunter Ridley’s 41-yard field goal capped the game’s scoring with 2:10 left in the third quarter in the 11th all-time meeting between the programs.
Weber State leads the series 7-4 with a good many of those coming in defensive games. Last season in Davis, Weber State clawed its way to a 17-12 victory. In the last meeting in Ogden, in 2021, Tompkins scored with 27 seconds remaining for a 17-14 UCD victory.
Hastings hooked up with Chaz Davis for a 6-yard touchdown for a 7-3 first-quarter lead, and he found Samuel Gbatu for a 10-yarder in the second quarter for a 14-3 advantage.
Kyle Thompson’s 51-yard field goal pulled Weber State to within 14-13 with 7:41 left in the third, but that was pretty much it for the Wildcats offense.
Budgett had five tackles for UCD, as did safety Rex Connors, the Big Sky’s second-leading tackler. Connors, a Freshman All-American in 2022, played in front of family in friends in a return to his home state.
UCD has a bye next week. The Aggies will play at Northern Arizona on Oct. 28. Their next home game is Nov. 4 against Portland State.
This story was originally published October 14, 2023 at 9:27 PM.