UC Davis Football’s Season Opener Declared No Contest Due To Weather

Due to weather, No. 8 UC Davis football's season opener against No. 11 Mercer at the 2025 FCS Kickoff Classic has been declared a no contest.

BY UC DAVIS ATHLETICS

Aug 25, 2025, 6:39 AM

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Due to weather, No. 8 UC Davis football’s season opener against No. 11 Mercer at the 2025 FCS Kickoff Classic has been declared a no contest.

The Aggies were leading 23-17 with 7:46 remaining in the fourth quarter before the first lightning strike hit. And while the stats will not count for the game, senior defensive back Rex Connors had been on a tear collecting 12 total tackles (seven solo), while redshirt freshman quarterback Caden Pinnick had gone 13-for-24 with 141 passing yards and one passing touchdown.

9:11 (3RD QUARTER)

Fisher streaks through untouched and blocks the punt, giving the Aggies a safety and two points!!

No. 8 UC Davis – 23
No. 11 Mercer – 3#GoAgs | #Shredville pic.twitter.com/dqKrboQiQR

— UC Davis Football (@UCDfootball) August 24, 2025

Pinnick added 62 yards on the ground and another rushing touchdown to end the shortened game with a combined 203 yards and two touchdowns.

During the game, Jordan Fisher, who had racked up 84 rushing yards and was on his way to 100 yards, blocked a punt which resulted in a safety late in the third quarter and he broke off a career-long 42-yard run in the first half. Graduate transfer Jacob Psyk also recorded a sack, which would have been his first as an Aggie had the game’s statistics counted and things finished as they should have.

UC Davis football returns to action next Saturday, Aug. 30 when they visit Utah Tech for a 7 p.m. PT kickoff on Sactown Sports 1140 AM and ESPN+.

More on UC Davis football

Returning weapons across all parts of the unit, the UC Davis football offense under the guidance of offensive coordinator Paul Shelton and head coach Tim Plough is set to head into a new season as an attacking force.

QUARTERBACK: It’s hard to replace a legend, and after throwing for over 4,000 yards in 2024 Miles Hastings entered that realm in UC Davis history. But entering camp the Aggies had in place a pair of quarterbacks ready to compete for the job of continuing the great legacy of UC Davis quarterbacks.

“The biggest thing that we always want to see in every single one of our quarterbacks is toughness, leadership and accuracy,” said Shelton. “If we can get all seven guys to really buy into to those three components, we have an ability to be, to be special.”

Both Grant Harper and Caden Pinnick battled across both the spring season and 15 camp practices, making each other better during the process.

Although Pinnick won the job, Harper is poised to step in where needed. The Aggie fifth year has made appearances in nine games from 2022-24 and brings with him a deep understanding of the UC Davis offense. Treynor Cleeland, Axel Eason, Damon Wrighster and Xzavior Guess round out a deep and strong room of Aggie quarterbacks.

RUNNING BACKS: Lan Larison was special and placed himself among the greatest to ever wear the Aggie Blue and Gold. This year’s batch of experienced Aggie running backs don’t look to replace Larison, rather the 2025 unit has a goal of continuing the legacy of greats in the UC Davis backfield.