UC Davis Aggies football coach Tim Plough watches the action against Southern Utah Thunderbirds in September.
jvillegas@sacbee.com
Adversity is part of football. Injuries, illness, bad breaks and bounces can jam up a season, but the best teams often navigate their way through the minefields.
The UC Davis Aggies can relate.
They have maintained a championship level of momentum despite a rash of injuries, including suffering season-ending setbacks to twin brothers Rex Connors, an All-American safety, and Porter Connors, an All-Big Sky Conference linebacker. Last week, UCD was without its poised star redshirt freshman quarterback.
Sidelined and hospitalized from illness, Caden Pinnick did not travel with the Aggies to Greeley to face Northern Colorado last weekend. Pinnick had tonsillitis.
Yet, the Aggies prevailed, and here they come again this week — unbeaten against the FCS and ranked No. 6 in the FCS coaches poll.
UCD is 6-1 overall and 4-0 in the Big Sky, and the Aggies on Saturday afternoon host Idaho State (2-6, 1-3). The only other unbeatens in the Big Sky are FCS No. 3 Montana (8-0 overall) and No. 4 Montana State (6-2).
UCD’s loss was against the Washington Huskies in Seattle, and the Aggies have won five straight since, including 27-16 over Northern Colorado as fifth-year senior Grant Harper stepped in for Pinnick and passed for 216 yards and three touchdowns.
“If any team can overcome (so much adversity), it seems to be this UC Davis team,” coach Tim Plough said during his weekly media session. “They have been faced with so much, players in and out of the lineup. They show up and play and find ways to win.”
Plough said Pinnick wasn’t able to “eat for about four, five days” but is healthy again. Whether it’s Pinnick or Harper, Plough has maintained that the Aggies can win with either quarterback. Pinnick beat out Harper, a veteran of the program, for the starting job. Plough said Harper has handled his role “with so much class” and praised the Aggies for rallying behind him.
UC Davis Aggies quarterback Caden Pinnick (12) throws a pass in the second half against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds in September. JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS jvillegas@sacbee.com
UCD’s challenge this week includes Cody Hawkins. Idaho State’s second-year coach knows Plough and the UCD culture, having worked as an assistant with the Aggies from 2017-22.
His father, Dan Hawkins, was the UCD head coach during that stretch, and he stepped down following the 2023 season to live near his son and grandchildren in Pocatello, Idaho, and to keep his hands in football without having to be consumed by it.
Dan Hawkins is on the Idaho State staff as the Bengals’ Director of Player and Staff Development. The UCD graduate and former bullish fullback led the Aggies to five winning seasons, two FCS playoff berths and a share of the 2018 Big Sky championship.
Idaho State (2-6) at No. 6 UC Davis (6-1)
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
On air: Sactown Sports 1140 AM Radio, ESPN+
Of note: UC Davis is 4-0 all-time against Idaho State at home. UCD leads the series 7-1 since it began in 2012. Idaho State opened the season with losses to UNLV (38-31), Southern Utah (46-24) and New Mexico (32-22) before blasting small-college, NAIA-level Lincoln University of the Bay Area, 90-0. Lincoln is 0-7 and has been shutout in its last four contests. Idaho State has a four-game losing streak, including a tough 42-38 setback to powerhouse Montana on Oct. 4.
This story was originally published October 30, 2025 at 1:39 PM.
Related Stories from Sacramento Bee
Joe Davidson
The Sacramento Bee
Joe Davidson has covered sports for The Sacramento Bee since 1989: preps, colleges, Kings and features. He was in early 2024 named the National Sports Media Association Sports Writer of the Year for California and he was in the fall of 2024 inducted into the California High School Football Hall of Fame. He is a 14-time award winner from the California Prep Sports Writer Association. In 2021, he was honored with the CIF Distinguished Service award. He is a member of the California Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Davidson participated in football and track in Oregon.
