Oct. 6, 2009

Complete Game Notes in PDF Format

OPENING KICKOFF
• News, notes and headline items to get things started... Many will be expanded later on in these notes.

• UC Davis opens Great West Conference play with its second-ever meeting against South Dakota and its first with the Coyotes since the 1986 NCAA Div. II Playoffs.

• The Aggies are entering their sixth season in the GWC and have a 11-10 overall record during the previous five... They’re coming off a second-place finish last year.

• The Aggies are 2-3 in previous GWC openers including an 0-2 mark on the road... UC Davis is 4-6 in road conference games since its charter membership in the Great West in 2004.

• South Dakota is the first of two GWC opponents for UC Davis reclassifying to NCAA Div. I... North Dakota is the other... Both USD and UND are in their second years of transition... The Aggies are in their third year of official Div. I status.

• UC Davis is looking to end an eight-game road losing streak that began at the start of the 2008 season... Its last win away from Aggie Stadium came against Sacramento State in 2007.

• The Aggies’ are also trying to avoid a 1-4 start for the second consecutive year... They did, however, manage to rattle off four straight wins after the tough start to ‘07.

• What’s in a poll? UC Davis received a vote for The Sports Network top 25 after not playing on Sept. 19, then lost that vote after beating Western Oregon on Sept. 26... Well, despite losing at No. 5 (FBS) Boise State last week, the Aggies gained five votes for the top 25.

• Why one thing leads to another... UC Davis is No. 7 among FCS teams for sacks allowed (0.75 pg.) which helps explain part of the reason why its No. 21 in passing offense (245.3 ypg).

• Those have combined to help WR Chris Carter rank second in catches (9.3 pg) and 10th in yards (93.3 pg)... He’s No. 28 among all-purpose runners at 140.8 ypg. 

• This week’s game marks the first indoors for UC Davis since losing 35-16 at North Dakota State in 2007... Its last win indoors came the previous time they ventured away from the elements, a 20-14 win on Oct. 22, 2005 at NDSU.

• FS Danny Hart (14 tackles) and LB Mike Morales (13 tackles) posted huge games against Boise State last weekend... Both were credited with stops during an early goal-line stand which turned the Broncos away four times inside the 5.

• The Aggies are playing their first game in the state of South Dakota since dropping a heart-breaking 22-21 game at SDSU in Brookings in 2006.

• Boise State had an announced crowd of 32,497 fans, marking the second-largest ever to watch UC Davis play... The largest crowd came earlier this season at Fresno State (37,267)... For the record, UC Davis’ win at Stanford in 2005 previously held the top spot at 31,250... The four-game average so far in 2009 is 19,165.

• UC Davis HEAD COACH Bob Biggs coached his 190th career game with last weekend’s contest at Boise State... It’s the second-highest total in school history behind JIM SOCHOR’s 202 games between 1970-88.

• UC Davis hasn’t played a game in less than three hours yet this season...  The shortest? Exactly three hours at Fresno State.

 

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. THE COYOTES
• South Dakota won the only previous matchup between the schools, a 26-23 victory in the first round of the NCAA Playoffs at Toomey Field.

• Current Boise State head coach and former UC Davis QB CHRIS PETERSEN had 340 passing yards in that game, his third-highest total as an Aggie.

• TE CHRIS MANDEVILLE had 11 catches for 162 yards... PK EDDIE LORETTO had a 49-yard field goal... The Coyotes overcame a 17-12 deficit entering the fourth quarter to post the playoff victory.

 

HEAD COACHES
• Bob Biggs (UC Davis ‘73) is in his 17th season at the helm of the Aggies and his 32nd with the program overall.

• He owns a 125-64-1 (.664) overall record and is 54-43-1 (.557) against NCAA Div. I teams... Biggs is also 50-17-1 (.746) in the month of October... He has not faced South Dakota as head coach.

• Biggs is the second-winningest coach in the history of the UC Davis program, trailing only Jim Sochor whose 156-41-5 record between 1970-88 led to his enshrinement into the College Football Hall of Fame.

• Four of Biggs’ QB’s have gone on to play professional football, including current Cincinnati QB J.T. O’SULLIVAN (1998-2001) and former San Jose SaberCats (AFL) starter MARK GRIEB (1994-96)... Others include KHARI JONES (1991-93) who had a standout career in the Canadian Football League and Kevin Daft (1995-98) who was a reserve on the Tennessee Titans when they went to the Super Bowl XXXIV.

• ED MEIERKORT (Dakota Wesleyan ‘82) is 42-20 and in his sixth year as the head coach of the Coyotes... He owns an 97-75 record overall in his 17th year at the collegiate level. 

•  Meierkort has led South Dakota to five straight winning seasons, national rankings when it was a member of Div. II and coached two finalists for the Harlon Hill Trophy as Div. II’s top player (Stefan Logan, 2006; Wesley Beschomer, 2005).

 

BRIEF SOUTH DAKOTA SCOUTING REPORT
• The Coyotes feature an offense that is averaging 33.2 ppg and 430.8 ypg of total offense, both which lead the Great West Conference.

• South Dakota also leads the conference in rushing defense (118.0 ypg) and total defense (358.6 ypg.).. The Coyotes also have 14 sacks, 10 more than any other team in the league.

• QB NOAH SHEPARD has helped propel the offense, completing nearly 64 percent of his passes for 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns over the first five games... He has also rushed for eight scores while gaining 200 yards and a 4.0 carry average.

• He was 14 of 27 for 173 yards and a score during the Coyotes’ 27-12 loss at North Dakota... Shepard was intercepted once.

• RB CHRIS GANIOUS is averaging 5.8 yards per attempt and 73.8 ypg with RB ISAAC NEWTON (64.2 ypg) close behind... Both have scored two touchdowns... Newton had 74 of the Coyotes’ 201 rushing yards last week.

• The receiving load has been spread among five players who each have at least 10 catches, including WR BEN OBERLE who has 19 grabs for 306 yards and a team-high three scores... TE LONDON LANDRY (14-122, 2 TD’s) is also in the mix.

• The Coyotes feature a balanced attack that is averaging 196.0 ypg on the ground and 234.8 in the air.

• South Dakota’s defense is paced by ILB SHEA WILLIAMS and FS SHANE POTTER who have each picked up 32 total tackles... ILB ADAM BRODERS has added 30.

• DE WAYNE CURRY has led a potent pass rush, compiling a team-best five sacks so far with a total of 10 players having at least a partial hand in a sack so far.

• JIM THOMPSON, who has 29 total stops, laeads the team with four pass breakups while LCB DION PRICE has three.

• South Dakota has picked off just two passes so far and ranks third in pass defense (240.6 ypg) and fifth in pass defense efficiency (150.7) in the Great West.

• While the defense has been tough against the rush, North Dakota was able to manage 184 yards on the ground, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt... They also scored twice.

• In the ‘red-zone’, the Coyotes are scoring 76 percent (19 of 25) of the time while opponents are converting 83 percent (15 for 18).

• P COLE ZWIEFELHOFER is second in the Great West in punting (42.7 avg.) while PK DUSTIN NOWOTNY is 3 for 3 on field goals including a long of 47 yards against Southeastern Lousiana.

• KR JEREMY BLOUNT is averaging 25.2 yards per return, ranking him second in the conference.

 

NEWS AND NOTES FROM THE BOISE STATE GAME
• UC Davis had season-low 23 penalty yards on six flags.

• The Aggies held high-powered Boise State without a point for the first quarter, just 13 points in the first half, and only 27 for the game before the Broncos tallied a touchdown in the final minute.

• UC Davis was held to a season-low 28 rushing yards with RB Joe Trombetta posting 18 of them on eight carries. 

• The Aggies didn’t commit a turnover for the first time since beating Southern Utah 49-26 on Oct. 11, 2008.

• They also held Boise State to 386 total yards including only 101 on the groud, both below their respective averages of 452.8 and 214.3 they had entering the game.

• Boise State was 5 of 6 in the red-zone with the notable exception coming on an early-game goal-line stand by UC Davis... Other trips deep into Aggie territory resulted in two field goals and a TD that took 10 plays from the 16-yard line.

• QB Greg Denham did not throw an interception for the first time since going 28 of 39 against Southern Utah last season... He also threw a pair of TD’s for the second time in 2009.

• PK Sean Kelley had a career-best 48-yard field goal in the third quarter, delivering UC Davis its first points... The FG eclipsted the 46-yarder he had against Western Oregon that was his previous best... Kelley missed an extra point for the second straight week after starting the first 14 games of his career perfect in that area.

• The Aggie defense held Boise State to a trio of ‘three-and-outs’ including two in the fourth quarter that resulted in 19 yards of losses... That helped UC Davis control the ball for more than nine minutes of the final quarter.

• WR Sean Creadick had a pair of touchdown receptions from 21 and four yards, giving him three for his career.

• UC Davis broke up six passes with six different players contributing... The defense also picked up a sack by DT Jacob Maxson for a nine-yard loss.

• WR Kenneth Brown had his second career interception - and second in as many weeks - with his third-quarter pick which he returned 38 yards to set up Kelley’s field goal.

 

AGGIES IN TOP 25 OF NCAA STATS
• QB Greg Denham: Completions (2nd, 28.5 pg), passing yds. (15th, 245.25 pg), total passing yds. (22nd, 981 yds), 

• WR Chris Carter: Receptions (2nd, 9.3 pg), rec. yds. (10th, 93.3 pg).

• K Sean Kelley: Field goals (T-19th, 1.25 pg).

• CB Kenneth Brown: Passes defended (T-7th, 1.75 pg).

• FS Danny Hart (2nd, 0.75 pg).

 

THREE HONORED BY GREAT WEST IN 2009
• UC Davis has enjoyed three Great West Conference Players of the Week so far in 2009, one each for offense, defense and special teams.

• WR Chris Carter was honored with offensive accolades after picking up 11 catches for 190 yards against then No. 5 Montana on Sept. 12.

• P Colton Schmidt earned special teams honors the same week after pinning the Grizzlies inside their own 12-yard line three times.

• CB Kenneth Brown picked up the defensive award after an interception, forced fumble  and two pass breakups on Sept. 26 against Western Oregon... He also blocked a PAT.

 

ALL-TIME RECORD
• UC Davis owns an all-time record of 473-354-33 (.569) as it plays its 91st season of football... The Aggies started playing in 1915 and have played continuously except for 1918, and 1943-45.

• A total of 15 head coaches, beginning with R.E. HARMON (1915-16) have directed the Aggies’ program.

 

CARTER, DENHAM VAULT TO TOP OF NCAA
• QB Greg Denham and WR Chris Carter vaulted to the top of the NCAA FCS single-charts after big games against Montana on Sept. 12.

• Denham’s 43 completions and 67 attempts are both tops for an FCS player this year... The completions also tied a school-record held by Kevin Daft (1997 vs. New Haven) while the attempts broke Daft’s mark of 64 from that same game.

• Carter’s 18 receptions against the Grizzlies are the most by an FCS receiver in 2009 and are tied for the most in all of Div. I... And, yes, they are also a school record, breaking the previous mark of 15 established by WR Tony Kays in 2005.

 

CARTER RACING UP RECEIVING CHARTS
• WR Chris Carter, despite missing most of his sophomore season with a knee injury, has entrenched himself as one of the most accomplished receivers in school history.

• He set a school record with 18 catches against Montana on Sept. 12 and had a career-best 190 receiving yards... He followed that with 11 more catches against Western Oregon... He is also on pace for a school-record 101 receptions. (current record: WR Tony Kays, 93, 2005).

• He has four double-digit receiving games in his career, after  also gaining 13 at Central Arkansas last year and 10 at Sacramento State in 2006... Carter also had his fourth 100-yard receiving day three weeks ago, also reaching the plateau with 189 at Central Arkansas last season, 104 against Sacramento State (2008), and 127 vs. Central Arkansas (2006).

• Besides his catches against Montana setting a school standard, his yards were the seventh-most in an Aggie game and made him just the third Aggie to ever have at least 175 yards twice... WR Michael Oliva (twice in 2001) and WR Tony Kays (twice in 2005) are the others.

• Carter’s career catches total 165, making him sixth all-time at UC Davis and just 42 away from tying Kays for the all-time lead... Next up is RANDY WILLIAMS (1982-85) who is fifth with 169... Carter has 1,918 career yards and is ninth on the all-time list.

 

GOAL-LINE STAND REMINISCENT OF 2006
• UC Davis stopped Boise State in the first quarter with an improbable goal-line stand that evoked memories of a similar stand at Portland State in 2007.

• At PSU, the Aggies stopped the Vikings five times inside the 2-yard line while Saturday’s game featured four from inside the 5 including the final two stops from the Aggies’ 1. 

 

HART, MORALES BIG ON DEFENSE AT BOISE
• FS Danny Hart had a career-high 14 tackles against Boise State, picking up 11 more than his previous best.

• LB Mike Morales added 13 tackles in the tough loss, just two away from his career-high, while posting his seventh double-digit effort.

• Both were credited tackles during the Aggies’ amazing goal-line stand in the first quarter... Morales had stops on third and fourth down while Hart assisted Morales on the third down stop. 

 

DENHAM 300-YARD LIST GROWS TO SEVEN
• QB Greg Denham threw for 362 yards against Montana, marking his seventh career 300-yard game and sixth over his past eight outings... It was his second-highest yardage total, trailing only his 434-yard effort in last season’s finale at San Diego.

• He ranks fourth all-time in 300-yard games at UC Davis, trailing J.T. O’SULLIVAN (17; 1998-2001), Kevin Daft (11; 1995-98) and Jon Grant (8; 2003-06).

• Here are Denham’s 300-yard games (in order):

 - 26-41-2, 361 yds, 1 TD vs. Portland State (9/13/08)

 - 20-30-1, 326 yds, 5 TD’s vs. Iona (10/18/08)

 - 31-41-1, 320 yds, 2 TD’s vs. North Dakota (10/25/08)

 - 27-48-2, 307 yds, 1 TD vs. Sacramento State (11/8/08)

 - 22-42-2, 332 yds, 4 TD’s at Cal Poly (11/15/08)

 - 26-41-1, 434 yds, 2 TD’s at San Diego (11/22/08)

 - 43-67-2, 362 yds, 1 TD vs. Montana (9/12/09)

 

DEFENSE HOLDS ANOTHER BELOW 100
• UC Davis has allowed less than 100 rushing yards in two of its four games so far, including just 86 vs. Montana and 48 against Western Oregon.

• The Western Oregon game marked the eighth time since the beginning of the 2008 season that the Aggies have held an opponent below 93 yards.

• Efforts during that span (in order):

 - 42 yds (24 att.) at San Jose State (8/30/08)

 - 19 yds (8 att.) vs. Portland State (9/13/08)

 - 66 yds (26 att.) at Montana (9/20/08)

 - 13 yds (14 att.) vs. Southern Utah (10/11/08)

 - 34 yds (22 att.) vs. Iona (10/18/08)

 - 68 yds (27 att.) vs. North Dakota (10/25/08)

 - 86 yds (20 att.) vs. Montana (9/12/09)

 - 48 yds (24 att.) vs. Western Oregon (9/26/09)

• For good measure, Boise State was nearly held below the century mark, gaining just 101 on 33 carries... The Broncos entered the game averaging 214.3 ypg.

 

ELEVEN FROM ALL-GREAT WEST SQUAD RETURN
• UC Davis welcomes back nearly a dozen players who earned recognition from the Great West Conference last year.

• The total is broken down by three All-GWC first team offensive honorees in WR Chris Carter, TE Dean Rogers and Tommy Hernandez; second-team offensive winners WR Bakari Grant, QB Greg Denham, OL Mark Tos, and RB Joe Trombetta; and second-team defensive honorees DE Patrick Michelier, LB Mike Morales and CB Jeremy Scott... The remaining awardee was PK Sean Kelley, who was selected to the second-team.

 

AGGIE PRESEASON HONORS 
• UC Davis received significant mention in Phil Steele’s College Football Preview Magazine, landing team and individual honors.

• On the team side, the Aggies are the publication’s pick to win the Great West title with Cal Poly, South Dakota, Southern Utah and North Dakota following.

• UC Davis is also No. 3 on the magazine’s “Top 16 Most Improved FCS Teams” for programs that had losing records last year but are expected to have winning ledgers in 2009... For the record, Hofstra (4-8) and Gardner-Webb (5-6) are Nos. 1 and 2.

• C Tommy Hernandez was selected a preseason second-team All-America and one of 13 Aggies picked for preseason All-GWC honors.

• First team (7): QB Greg Denham, W Chris Carter, OL Mark Tos, TE Dean Rogers, DE Patrick Michelier, LB Mike Morales, PK Sean Kelley and Hernandez.

• Second team (6): RB Joe Trombetta, WR Bakari Grant, DE Steven Wulff, LB Michael Healey, CB Jeremy Scott. 

 

NOTABLE STREAKS ON THE LINE
• C Tommy Hernandez and OT Mark Tos have each strung together impressive streaks on the offensive line during their careers.

• Both have been in the trenches at the start of the last 27 Aggie games.

• Longevity on the line is not a stranger at UC Davis... OG Jonathan Compas, currently with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, started all 40 of his career games before graduating last season, while OG Mario Gonzalez ended his career last year with 34 straight starts.

 

COACHES PICK UC DAVIS 2ND IN PRESEASON 
• Great West coaches selected the Aggies to finish second to defending champion Cal Poly during a preseason poll conducted in August.

• Cal Poly (24 pts) received four first-place votes, and UC Davis (20) picked up the other... They were followed by South Dakota (12), North Dakota (10) and Southern Utah (9).

 

MAKING MENTION ON A NATIONAL BASIS 
• Despite a 5-7 record last season, UC Davis received votes in both of the major FCS preseason polls.

• The Aggies picked up 63 points in the Sports Network’s (media/SID) poll for an overall ranking of No. 40.

• The FCS Coaches poll awarded UC Davis 19 points to rank it No. 42.

• The Sports Network votes were the first since Nov. 10 (T-46th) of last year and provided the Aggies’ their highest ranking since peaking at No. 28 after nearly beating San Jose State in last year’s season-opener.

• The FCS Coaches poll mentioned UC Davis for the first time since its Nov. 3. 2009 poll (T-39th)... It has its highest position since a 2008 season-best No. 29, also after the opener last year.

• UC Davis’ last Top-25 appearance in either poll came Oct. 23, 2006 when it was No. 16 by the Sports Network and No. 17 by the FCS Coaches... It was 4-3 at the time. 

 

HOME-GROWN ROSTER IN 2009
• UC Davis has always been dominated by players from the Golden State and 2009 is no different.

• The only out-of-state Aggie is QB Sean Maraz who hails from Phoenix, Ariz.

 

UC DAVIS GRABS LOCAL TALENT
• Eight players on this year’s roster are a short drive for some home cooking, coming from within 45 miles of UC Davis.

• Players close to home: QB Greg Denham (Auburn), FS Kevyn Lewis (Sacramento), LB Hunter Pahl (Loomis), LB Marshall Congdon (Elk Grove), DT Andrew Benjamin (Orangevale); WR Dwight Smith (Davis), RB Josh Reese (Davis), DE Patrick Michelier (Davis).

 

COACHING STAFF ROSTER RECEIVES UPDATE
• Defensive coordinator Mark Johnson is in his fourth stint with UC Davis and first since 2004... He was most recently at Utah State.

• Jeff Copp, who coached the safeties at Utah State while on staff with Johnson, joined the Aggies at the start of camp in August to coach the safeties... He replaced former ASSISTANT COACH Keith Buckley who was named the head coach at Pacific (Ore.) in July... Pacific (Div. III) is bringing back football in 2010.

• Tim Plough, former quarterback at UC Davis, moved from an administrative role into a coaching position directing the quarterbacks... He replaced Rich Scangarello who is now on staff with the Oakland Raiders. 

 

OTHER STREAKS OF NOTE
• UC Davis saw its streak of 212 games in which it had scored a point come to an end at Fresno State (L,51-0)... The last shutout prior to that was a 19-0 defeat to Cal Poly in 1990... The streak nearly ended in 2001 when the Aggies faced North Dakota in the postseaso but UND took a safety late in the game, helping the Aggies’ preserve the streak... North Dakota won 14-2.

• They have, however, not been shut out in 105 home games.

• The Aggies are believed to have not had less than 200 yards in total offense since a 30-12 loss to Nevada in 1969, a span that now stands at 436 games... UC Davis had 130 in that game.

 

TEAM CAPTAINS
• UC Davis has two team captains this season in C Tommy Hernandez and LB Mike Morales.

 

AGGIES IN THE PROS
• QB J.T. O’SULLIVAN (1998-2001), the all-time passing leader at UC Davis, is a backup signal-caller for the Cincinnati Bengals... He has played with several NFL teams as well as in the former NFL Europe after being drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round in 2002... O’Sullivan is the last NFL draftee for UC Davis.

• Former MARK GRIEB (1994-96) was a two-time Arena Bowl MVP for the San Jose Sabercats before the league ended operations this year.

• OL Jonathan Compas signed a free-agent contract with the Oakland Raiders this year, was waived earlier this season but signed last recently with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

• OT Cory Lekkerkerker (2003-04) was on the roster of the Tennessee Titans before being released earlier this season.

• TE Daniel Fells (2002-05) is currently on roster with the St. Louis Rams... Fells had two touchdowns last weekend against Green Bay.

 

AGGIE COACHING TREE INCLUDES BIG NAMES
• Besides becoming the all-time winningest coach at UC Davis, former mentor JIM SOCHOR has several former players and assistants who have gone to notable college or pro coaching careers, including:

• MIKE BELLOTTI (Oregon, former head coach), who played for Sochor in 1969-72 and was a subsequent assistant coach... He is currently the athletics director at Oregon.

• DAN HAWKINS (Colorado, head coach) played for UC Davis in 1981-82, was later an assistant with the Aggies and subsequently was head coach at Boise State .

• CHRIS PETERSEN (Boise State, head coach), who played for UC Davis in 1985-86 and was also an assistant... He led Boise State to an unbeaten season and a 2007 Fiesta Bowl.

• PAUL HACKETT (Oakland Raiders, asst. coach), who played from 1966-68, was an assistant at UC Davis as well a head coach at USC, Pittsburgh and an assistant with the New York Jets and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

 

UC DAVIS HAS ITS OWN QUARTERBACK “U”
• The Aggies’ coaching tree (see above) is just one trademark of the football program... The other is its ability to turn out prolific quarterbacks.

• Despite being a Div. II program until 2007, UC Davis had six signal-callers chosen in the NFL Draft since 1979: Mike Moroski (Falcons, ‘79), KEN O’BRIEN (Jets, ‘83), SCOTT BARRY (49ers, ‘85), JEFF BRIDEWELL (Cardinals, ‘91), Kevin Daft (Titans, ‘99) and J.T. O’SULLIVAN (Saints, ‘02).

• O’Sullivan has played with several teams and is currently a backup with Cincinnati, Moroski is in his 22nd year on the Aggies’ coaching staff and Daft is an assistant coach at Cal.

• O’Brien was a member of the famed NFL QB class of ‘83 that also included Dan Marino, John Elway, Todd Blackledge, Jim Kelly and Tony Eason being drafted in the first round.

• In addition to the draftees, QB KHARI JONES (1991-93) enjoyed a prolific career in the Canadian Football League and was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player in ‘01.

• QB MARK GRIEB (1994-96) was an ArenaBowl MVP and champion with the San Jose Sabercats and holds several league passing records.

• QB Jon Grant (2003-06) is a member of the Berlin Adler whose team is playing in the 21st German Bowl on Saturday.

• Even current coach Bob Biggs played some professional football spending some time in the CFL and the World Football League.