UC Davis Earns Highest Seed In Program History; Seeded No. 5 In FCS Playoffs

Nov 25, 2024, 7:17 AM

(UC Davis Athletics)

Sactown Sports

This story was initially published by UC Davis Athletics

Following a historic season which saw UC Davis football win 10 games for only the second time in the Division I era, the Aggies have come in as No. 5 in the NCAA Division I Football Championships, earning a first-round bye and at least one home playoff game on the road to Frisco, Texas.

UC Davis will await the winner of No. 12 Illinois State and Southeast Missouri State, with that game set to go on Nov. 30 at 9 a.m. PT on ESPN+. The Aggies will host the winner of that game on Dec. 7 with kick set for 1 p.m.

The No. 5 seeding is the highest the Aggies have had in program history, in only their third Division I playoff appearance, and first since 2021. Their previous high seeding was in 2018 when they came in at No. 6, and the second-round game at home will be only the second home playoff game in program history, having hosted and beaten Northern Iowa in 2018.

NO. 5️⃣

UC Davis comes in as the No. 5️⃣ seed in the NCAA FCS Playoffs!!

First Round ➡️ BYE
Second Round ➡️ WELCOME TO SHREDVILLE#GoAgs | #Shredville pic.twitter.com/koz6JYfITb

— UC Davis Football (@UCDfootball) November 24, 2024

The Aggies have never faced either Illinois State or Southeast Missouri State in program history, making any match-up a first-time meeting between the programs.

A win in the second round puts the Aggies in the quarterfinals, and one step closer to Frisco. A potential quarterfinal match up would be against either No. 4 South Dakota or the winner of No. 13 Tarleton State and Drake. For the Aggies to host a quarterfinal match up, South Dakota would have to drop its second-round match up.

The Aggies are one of five Big Sky schools to have made the 24-team tournament, with No. 1 Montana State, No. 8 Idaho, No. 14 Montana and Northern Arizona joining UC Davis in the dance.

WHAT HEAD COACH TIM PLOUGH HAD TO SAY
“Today I’m just thankful and grateful, especially for these tremendous players. They have put in hard work all season and I’m glad to see it pay off for them. They produced what I think is the best regular season we have had in the Division I era here at UC Davis and the players deserve all the credit for that. I’m also thankful for the support of Chancellor [Gary] May and from [Director of Athletics] Rocko [DeLuca] and everyone in the administration. I’m excited for the playoffs.”

“I think any team that made the 24-team bracket is going to be a great football team. I was pleased that we got a seed and a bye, because I thought we deserved that. I’m also happy that we aren’t playing a Big Sky opponent, because I do think it’s fun when you get to play new opponents and against teams you don’t see every year. That’s a cool part of the playoffs in my opinion. Both teams that are in our bracket are great teams, but we are going to focus on us, get healthy and prepare to hopefully play our best football. Also we hope to fill up UC Davis Health Stadium and create a great atmosphere for the game.”

“For us to make a run, it starts with us focusing on us. We have made it a goal to get better each week, and it starts with being grateful that we have another game to play. And if we have another game to play then we should prepare for that game and prepare to play our best football. We also talked about playing winning football, and for me winning football means you are the most physical team and the smartest team. The physical team always wins and the smartest teams never lose. I think we have been resilient and tough team, that has been making the smart decisions in game. If we continue to do that, I think we will have a chance to be in every game. And if we are in every game, I feel confident that we have the quarterback, skill players and defense to win games late. It’s going to be fun and I think every game is going to be tough, but as I told the team, we are in this thing so we might as well give it everything we’ve got and see how far we can take it. I’m excited and so are the guys for the challenge.”