Game Notes: @UNCBearsFB Welcomes #16/21 UC Davis for Homecoming

Northern Colorado football welcomes yet another ranked team to Nottingham Field with No. 16/21 UC Davis coming to town on Saturday. The Bears will celebrate homecoming when the Aggies visit for the 12 pm kickoff.

Setting the Stage
- Northern Colorado struggled to stop the ground and pound game of North Dakota, falling 38-13 at home.

- UC Davis was off last week, after opening Big Sky Play up with a 44-21 win over Idaho at home. The Aggies moved up in the polls despite being on bye last week up to No. 16 in the FCS Stats poll and No. 21 in the Coaches poll.

- Saturday is homecoming for UNC. The Bears are 40-18 in homecoming games, winning three of the past four. Last season was the lone loss in that stretch on a field goal as time expired against Montana State. UC Davis has been Northern Colorado's homecoming opponent one other time in 2015 when the Bears won 56-27 over the Aggies. UNC led 42-3 at the half of that game.

- Fans of the passing game are in for a treat on Saturday, as two of the best receivers in the FCS are set to face each other in UNC's Alex Wesley, and UC Davis' Keelan Doss. Wesely comes into Saturday with the better numbers, but Doss has been double covered almost all season as he came into the season with his name on the Walter Payton Award list after being a finalist in 2017.

Scouting UC Davis
Under the second year of Dan Hawkins leadership, UC Davis relies on a high-powered passing attack with just the right amount of run plays to defeat teams. The Aggies passing attack rests on the arm of Jake Maier who is averaging 299.5 passing yards a game and has eight touchdown passes through four games. Keelan Doss is his top target as the big 6-3 wide receiver has caught 32 passes for 264 yards and a touchdown. Four other UC Davis players have at least 10 receptions this year. Running back Ulonzo Gilliam gives the Aggies a nice balanced, averaging 67.0 yards a game and scoring five touchdowns this season. Gilliam is joined in the backfield by Tehran Thomas who is averaging 58.7 yards a game.

The Aggies have a bend but don't break defense that is giving up 408.5 yards per game. Teams are averaging 293.5 passing yards and 115.0 rushing yards trying to keep pace with UC Davis' high-powered offense. So far this season every opponent has scored at least 21 points against UCD. They have an even pass rush with nine different players each having a sack. The Aggies have been opportunistic in the secondary with seven interceptions.

History Against the UC Davis
Northern Colorado and UC Davis are meeting up for the 10th time in the programs' histories with UC Davis holding a 6-3 advantage. The Bears and Aggies first met in 2003 with UNC winning the first meeting 35-28 in Davis. Northern Colorado is 1-3 when playing at home in the series, the lone win came in 2016 on homecoming 56-27.

Last 5 Meetings
October 15, 2016, UC Davis, 34-21 in Davis
October 17, 2015, Northern Colorado, 56-27 in Greeley
November 1, 2014, Northern Colorado, 27-21 in Davis
October 19, 2013, UC Davis, 34-18 in Greeley
October 4, 2008, UC Davis, 34-30 in Davis

Around the Big Sky
With the beginning of October, it is time for the cream to rise to the top of the Big Sky Conference. The league has four teams currently ranked in the Top 25 led by Eastern Washington at tied for fourth in the Coaches Poll and fifth in the Stats FCS Poll. Montana, Eastern Washington and Idaho State all look to improve to 3-0 in conference play, while UNC, Sacramento State, Southern Utah, Cal Poly and Portland State all seek their first conference win to move up the standings. All four ranked teams are in action on Saturday, but none face each other.

Coaches Show
The Earnest Collins Jr. Coaches Show is back again this season but at a new location. The 2018 coaches show will be at the Dugout B-B-Q off of 11th Ave each Tuesday during the year from 6-7 pm. The Voice of the Bears Troy Coverdale will sit down and talk with head coach Earnest Collins Jr and guests to recap the previous week and look ahead to the next. The coaches show will also be broadcast on the home for the Bears 1310 KFKA.

Home Away from Home
Stuft, Burger Bar is UNC football's home away from home. Unable to make the trip with the Bears, join other UNC fans and cheer on the team on the official watch party of all road games.

What's Ahead
The Bears hit the road for the first time in two weeks heading to the Pacific Northwest to face Portland State, UNC and PSU are set for a 3 pm MT/2 pm PT kickoff. The last time the two teams played was in 2016, with the Bears winning an overtime thriller 56-49 in Portland.

To stay up to date on all things UNC football, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNCBearsFB.

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