Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
UC Davis
Game 5: Back on the road to start Big Sky play Saturday
9/23/2025 5:10:00 PM | Football
Weber State plays at nationally-ranked UC Davis Saturday night in the Big Sky opener
• It's back on the road to open Big Sky Conference play as the Wildcats take on nationally-ranked UC Davis Saturday night.
• Weber State is coming off a 38-24 win over Butler in the home opener last Saturday night.
• The Wildcats finished the non-conference schedule at 2-2.
• UC Davis is 2-1 on the season and is ranked eighth in the country in the AFCA Coaches poll and ninth in the Stats Perform media poll.
• Davion Godley ran for a career-high 193 yards in Saturday's win.
• This is the first game between the two schools in two years and Weber State's first game in Davis in three seasons.
• The Wildcats are 7-4 all-time against the Aggies.
• Weber State is playing the fourth of the first five games on the road.
Media coverage
Saturday's game will kickoff at 7 p.m. Pacific time (8 p.m. MT) from UC Davis Health Stadium in Davis, California, and will be streamed on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Scott Marsh and Scott Gordon will call the action on ESPN+.
The Weber State radio broadcast will be on 103.1 FM with Carl Arky and former WSU head coach and athletic director Jerry Graybeal on the call.
Live stats available at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
Wildcats close out non-conference play and open home season with win over Butler
Weber State returned to Stewart Stadium for the home opener last Saturday night and defeated Butler 38-24 in the first ever meeting between the two schools.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter. Weber State totaled 442 yards of offense, including a season-high 257 yards rushing.
With the win, Weber State closed out the non-conference portion of the schedule with a 2-2 record, including a 2-0 mark against FCS schools.
The Wildcats started the season with back-to-back road losses at James Madison and Arizona, but bounced back with a 42-41 win at McNeese last week. This was the first season ever that Weber State started the year with three straight road games, and now returns to the road for the Big Sky opener.
Davion Godley posts career-high in win; surpasses 1,000 career yards
Weber State sophomore Davion Godley posted a career-high and reached a milestone in Saturday's win. Godley had 19 carries for 193 rushing yards and one touchdown in the win. The 193 yards is a career-high and the second time in his career he has surpassed 100 yards in a game. He scored a 15-yard touchdown for the first points of the game and also had a long run of 52 yards.
Through four games, Godley ranks fourth in the Big Sky in rushing at 75.3 yards per game.
Also on Saturday, he became the 35th player in Weber State history to surpass 1,000 career rushing yards. He now has 1,042 rushing yards and seven touchdowns in his 19 career games with the Wildcats.
Offense
In addition to Godley, WSU quarterback Jackson Gilkey threw for 185 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday's win. He also completed passes to six different receivers. Marvin Session had four catches for 63 yards and AJ Jayroe and Ammon Munyer each caught their first career touchdowns. Gilkey has thrown for 555 yards and four touchdowns through the first four games.
Defense
The Wildcat defense totaled seven tackles for loss, two sacks, and one interception in Saturday's win. Ishaan Daniels had an interception late in the second quarter in the end zone that stopped a Butler drive. Josh Hardy had two sacks for the 'Cats in the second half. The WSU defense also held Butler to 0 and 14 on third down conversions.
This season, Weber State is tied for first in the Big Sky and 15th in the nation in interceptions with four through the first four games. Angel King has two interceptions which is tied for second in the Big Sky.
Special teams
Sloan Calder was a perfect 3 of 3 on field goal attempts in Saturday's win, knocking down field goals of 29, 26, and 36 yards. He is 5 of 6 on field goals this season. Weber State is also third in the country in punt return defense and Bird Butler is 12th in the country in punt returns.
On the road again
The Wildcats just can't wait to get on the road again. After stopping home for the home opener at Stewart Stadium last Saturday, it's back on the road for the 'Cats this week.
Weber State is playing four of its first five games on the road this season, one of 11 teams in the country to do so.
WSU is the only team in the nation to play the first four road games in four different time zones (not including Hawaii). The Wildcats will travel more than 5,000 miles in the first four road games.
After Saturday's game, Weber State will have three of the next four games at home.
Big Sky Conference openers
Action begins this week in the Big Sky Conference, with the first of eight conference games for each team.
This week, the Big Sky has six teams ranked in the top 25 polls this week, including four in the top 10.
Weber State has won eight of the last 10 Big Sky Conference opening games. The 'Cats have opened conference play against UC Davis four times in the last nine years.
Team captains
As selected by their teammates, Weber State has named four captains for the 2025 season. Wildcat senior fullback Colter May, senior offensive lineman Gavin Ortega, senior wide receiver Jayleen Record, and junior defensive tackle Keahnist Thompson will be the team captains for the 2025 season. Record is a captain for the second-straight season. May and Ortega were both selected as preseason All-Big Sky selections.
Head coach Mickey Mental returns for third season as head coach
Mickey Mental is in his third season as head coach and his fourth overall season at Weber State. He is also the offensive coordinator for the Wildcats.
Mental came to Weber State as the offensive coordinator under Jay Hill for the 2022 season and helped lead the Wildcats to the second round of the FCS Playoffs. He was named the 12th head coach in Weber State history in December 2022. In his third season as head coach, he has a 10-15 overall record and a 7-9 Big Sky record at Weber State.
Prior to coming to Weber State, Mental was the head coach at Notre Dame College in Ohio for two seasons where he posted a 16-2 overall record and a 13-1 record in conference play. In the spring 2021 season, he led the Falcons to a conference championship. He is a native of Olmstead Falls, Ohio.
Quick hits
Weber State has 28 players on this year's roster from the state of California, second only to 32 players from Utah...WSU improved to 10-2 under coach Mental when leading after the first quarter and 11-2 when leading at halftime...Wildcat sophomore wide receiver and kick returner Noah Kjar will miss the rest of the season with an ACL injury suffered in the McNeese game.
About UC Davis
The Aggies of UC Davis enter Big Sky play with a 2-1 overall record. UC Davis is ranked eighth in the nation in this week's AFCA Coaches poll and ninth in the Stats Perform media poll.
The Aggies opened the season with three games away from home. The first game was against No. 11 Mercer in the FCS Kickoff Classic in Montgomery, Alabama. The Aggies were wining that game in the fourth quarter when weather forced the stoppage of the game and it was declared a no contest.
UC Davis won 31-24 at Utah Tech, then lost 70-10 at Washington. The Aggies are coming off a 50-34 win over Southern Utah last Saturday where they rushed for 357 yards and five touchdowns. Jacob Psyk was also named the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week after recording seven tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles.
UCD is ninth in the country in turnover margin at +3. They are also third in the conference in rushing at 199 yards per game.
The Aggies were 11-3 overall last season and finished 7-1 in Big Sky play. They advanced to the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs.
UC Davis was picked to finish third in the preseason Big Sky polls.
Tim Plough is in his second season as head coach and has a 13-4 record. Plough is a former UC Davis quarterback.
Series history
This will be the 12th all-time meeting between the two schools with Weber State holding a 7-4 series lead. The two teams last played in October 2023, a 17-16 Aggie win in Ogden.
In games in Davis, Weber State is 3-1 all-time and has won the last three games. This will be WSU's first game at Davis since winning 17-12 on September 24, 2022.
Looking ahead
After Saturday's game, the Wildcats will have a bye before the next game, which will be on October 11 against Sacramento State in the annual Homecoming game at Weber State.
