Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
UC Davis
Game 4: 3-0 Wildcats open Big Sky play at UC Davis Saturday
9/21/2022 8:37:00 AM | Football
• The 3-0 Weber State football team will hit the road and open Big Sky Conference play. The Wildcats will take on the UC Davis Aggies this Saturday, Sept. 24 in the conference opener at UC Davis Health Stadium in Davis, California. The game will kickoff at 7 p.m. Pacific time (8 p.m. Mountain time).
Media coverage
Saturday's game will be televised on ESPN+ and the ESPN app.
The Weber State radio coverage will be on KLO 103.1 FM "The Wave" with Steve Klauke and former Wildcat head coach and athletic director Jerry Graybeal on the call.
Live stats available at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
Wildcats move to 3-0 with 44-14 win over Utah Tech
Weber State improved to 3-0 to start a full season for the first time since 1998, following a 44-14 win over Utah Tech Saturday night at Stewart Stadium. The Wildcats jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and led 24-14 at halftime. The 'Cats scored 20 points in the second half and shutout the Trailblazers for the win.
WSU totaled 623 yards of offense, the most yards since the season opener of the 2021 spring season, with 368 yards passing and 255 yards on the ground. The Wildcat defense forced four turnovers, with three interceptions.
Wildcats move up in national polls
With the win, Weber State moved to 12th in the nation in both the Stats Perform and the AFCA Coaches FCS polls. The Wildcats have been ranked in every week this season and WSU is one of five teams from the Big Sky Conference in the top 15 in the national rankings.
Bronson Barron named Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week
After the win over the Trailblazers, Bronson Barron was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week after his performance.
Barron threw for a career-high 368 yards and tied his career-high with four touchdowns in the win. He was 25 of 33 passing on the day with no interceptions in leading the Wildcats to the win.
He threw touchdown passes of 13, 35, 36, and 17 yards in the win, with three touchdowns going to Ty MacPherson. It was his second career game with four passing touchdowns.
Barron also became the 17th player in WSU history to reach 3,000 career passing yards. He has 3,339 career passing yards with 21 touchdowns in his 16 career games as a Wildcat.
Defensive domination
The Weber State defense had another strong performance, totaling four turnovers, including three interceptions. Abraham Williams had two interceptions and recovered a fumble, and Maxwell Anderson had an interception, his fourth of the season. The Wildcats held Utah Tech to 331 yards of total offense, including 86 yards on the ground. Weber State also totaled three sacks and seven tackles for loss and had nine pass breakups. Winston Reid led the 'Cats with 11 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss.
First in all of NCAA with 10 interceptions
Weber State leads the nation with 10 interceptions through three games. The Wildcats are the only team in all of NCAA (FBS, FCS, Division II and Division III) with 10 interceptions so far this season.
Maxwell Anderson is tied for first in FCS football with four interceptions.
National defensive rankings
After three games, Weber State is proving itself as one of the top defensive teams in the nation. The Wildcats lead the country in four defensive statistical categories and rank in the top five in four others.
In addition to first in interceptions, the 'Cats are also first in FCS in third down conversion defense, allowing opponents to convert on just 16.3 percent of third downs. WSU is also first in the country in turnovers gained with 12 and first in pass efficiency defense.
Weber State ranks second in the country in turnover margin at +7 and second in red zone defense at .333. The Wildcats are third in the country in scoring defense at 8.7 points per game and rank fifth in total defense, allowing 236.3 yards per game.
Another strong game for Haze Hadley
Junior Haze Hadley had another strong game returning punts in Saturday's win. He finished with nine punt returns for 105 yards, an average of 11.7 yards per return, and had a long return of 26 yards. The 105 yards is tied for the fourth-most yards in WSU history.
Through three games, Hadley leads the nation in total returns and returns yards and ranks fifth in return average. He has 17 returns, which is nine more than second-place, for a total of 243 yards, 120 yards more than second-place. He is averaging 14.3 yards per return. The 243 return yards is already the 10th most in a season in WSU history.
He now ranks fourth in WSU career history in punt return yardage with 505 yards.
Three receiving touchdowns for Ty MacPherson; milestones reached
Wildcat senior wide receiver Ty MacPherson totaled three touchdowns and reached two milestones in Saturday's win over Utah Tech. MacPherson had six receptions for 160 yards and hauled in three touchdowns in the win.
He now has five touchdowns in the last two games for the Wildcats and is tied for first in the nation with five touchdowns on the season. He has 10 receptions for 243 yards through three games.
Also on Saturday, MacPherson reached two milestones in the WSU record books. He became the 29th player in Weber State history to reach 100 career receptions and now ranks 27th with 102. He also became the 23rd player in WSU history to surpass 1,500 career receiving yards and is now 19th in school history with 1,632 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Career-high for Damon Bankston
Wildcat sophomore running back Damon Bankston had a career-high in Saturday's win over Utah Tech. The Katy, Texas native had 15 carries for a career-high 161 rushing yards and one touchdown in the win. He had a six-yard touchdown down in the fourth quarter.
Through three games, Bankston is now second in the Big Sky in rushing at 85.3 yards per game. He has 43 carries for 256 yards and one touchdown, averaging six yards per carry.
Big Sky openers
Saturday night's game at UC Davis will be the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams for the second-straight season. The two teams opened Big Sky play last year with UC Davis winning in Ogden, which snapped a six-game winning streak in conference openers for Weber State.
The Wildcats have won 10 of the last 14 Big Sky openers overall and have won four-straight conference openers on the road.
Team captains
As selected by their teammates, Weber State has five captains for the 2022 season. This year's captains are junior offensive lineman Noah Atagi, junior cornerback Eddie Heckard, senior wide receiver Ty MacPherson, junior linebacker Winston Reid and senior safety Desmond Williams. MacPherson also served as a team captain during the spring 2021 and the 2021 seasons.
Quick hits
Sophomore kicker Kyle Thompson is tied for first in the nation with seven field goals made through the first three games. Thompson is 7 of 10 on the season...Weber State has led after the first quarter in all three games this season.
About UC Davis
UC Davis enters Saturday's game with a 1-2 record. The Aggies started the season with a loss at Cal, then lost by two points at No. 2 South Dakota State. They are coming off a 37-13 win over San Diego last Saturday at home.
Through the first three games, UC Davis ranks second in the Big Sky in red zone offense and is second in passing offense at 265.3 yards per game. The Aggies are also fourth in the league in scoring defense.
Individually, Miles Hastings leads the conference in passing at 261.7 yards per game. Ulonzo Gilliam is third in the league in rushing at 84.7 yards per game and Rex Connors is third in tackles.
Last season, UC Davis was 8-4 overall and tied with Weber State at 5-3 in Big Sky play. The Aggies advanced to the first round of the FCS Playoffs. The Aggies were picked to finish fifth in the Big Sky preseason polls.
Head coach Dan Hawkins
The Aggies are coached by longtime coach Dan Hawkins who is in his sixth season at UC Davis, his alma mater. Hawkins was also head coach at Boise State and Colorado. He guided UC Davis to a share of the Big Sky title in 2018 and a trip to the FCS Quarterfinals.
Hawkins enters this week with a career record of 32-24 in his six years at UC Davis and is 21-16 in Big Sky games. He is 144-85-1 in his 21 seasons as a head coach including five seasons at Willamette, five seasons at Boise State and five seasons at Colorado.
Series history
This will be the 10th ever meeting between the two schools with Weber State holding a 6-3 all-time series lead. The Wildcats had won five-straight games before UC Davis won in Ogden last September. The Aggies scored two touchdowns in the second half and shutout the Wildcats in the half en route to a 17-14 win at Stewart Stadium on Sept. 25.
In games in Davis, Weber State is 2-1 all-time and has won the last two games, winning 38-35 in 2016 and 36-20 in 2019.
Up next
The Wildcats will have a bye week on October 1 before jumping back into action. WSU will host Eastern Washington on October 8 in the annual Homecoming game at Weber State. After that, Weber State hits the road at Portland State and Montana State before coming home for three-straight home games.
