Expectations for playoffs. How do they match up with Illinois State / SEMO, maybe South Dakota. If we got the chance to play Montana State or Idaho again in the semis, what would be different about the game plan?

The Matchup is set! Send in your questions, topics you’d like us to cover and your comments for this week’s episode!

How do you dissect film, when a team as explosive as SEMO shoots themselves in the foot, reloads and continues shooting the other foot. I've never seen such a blatant disregard for ball security -- nearly 600 yards of offense, 8 turnovers, 1 ejection, Illinois State clearly took their foot off the gas in the late 3rd quarter, and were content to not show too much and take care of closing the game out. What a weird game to watch if you're the coaching staff. Watching the replay, you have to believe the Aggies will have some success throwing the ball...and credit to the Redbirds, they clocked 5 INTs in a playoff game...the Redhawks were gunslinging, but you have to be in good position to log that kind of turnover margin.

Beyond that, this is one of first two Big Sky vs. Missouri Valley matchups in the Playoffs (Montana @ SDSU) and ALL roads lead through the Dakotas eventually, The focus is on Illinois State, but is there any Big Sky Conference pride going into this game?

The last time the Aggies hosted a playoff game in 2018, it was a 6-5 Northern Iowa team who played Davis to the bone, so expecting a tough game. MVFC plays hard nosed, complete football.

Conklin torched us for nearly 400 yards and 5 TDs. Was this a function of a real talented scrambling qb or do we need to make adjustments in our secondary going into the playoffs?

Not the first game we yielded a lot of yardage with a lead. East Texas A&M, 457 yards passing.
i think the observation on last weeks Aggie Pride podcast that the corners don’t guard closely with a lead is correct. I think that is according to scheme.
Hopefully Tyson McWilliams is available, after his injury against Sac.

about 180 yards of that 457 was in garbage time.

i know, but it is irritating to see one sided affairs turn into what looks to have been a close game. Going back to last year, which might have cost a playoff bid.

Brock and Dwight sum up the bitter pill ending in Vermillion:

A Brutal End to a Memorable Season



On a bright holiday note though, Congratulations you guys on the new Podcast and the opening season success! Great start, now you gotta find out what you're doing in the off-season - or - are you going to cover Soccer --- Basketball --- Baseball? It's a Football Podcast, which I'm totally down with - just leave it at that. Gotta talk the signing class, the transfer portal, returning underclassmen - and the outlook and schedule for 2025. We're @ Mercer on 8/23/25 is that correct?

Thank you all for the support. We are going to record a final episode and post in January after the holidays. We are still discerning future endeavors and hope to land more financial support for sustainability in 2025.

you guys really captured my feelings after the game. Just disappointed for the players and staff to lose that final game, knowing it was could have been different. You guys know what effort they’ve put in and your empathy comes out.

Watching your video of getting to the game really made me certain I made the right choice not flying into Omaha for the game. Midwest December driving ain’t for this Californian! Painful enough watching on TV

Thank you guys for your stories, enthusiasm, and coverage of UC Davis football this season. I haven't had the chance to meet either of you guys personally, but I think you guys are a huge factor in revitalizing at least part of the UCD fanbase. I don't think it's a coincidence that we've seen so many new names around this forum over the course of the season.

I hope that we will still get some off season episodes even if it isn't a weekly endeavor. It's become such an automatic thing for me to tune in, I don't know what I'm gonna do with that free hour now! Maybe there'll be some MW news for you guys to cover soon.

Thanks again and GO AGS!

In all honesty, Brock and Dwight deserve a break.

I'm all for them taking a break! It'd just be brutal to have to wait until next preseason for another episode!

Great job as usual. Tough game in SD, but tremendous season. I’m going to miss the seniors and seeing their families at the games. This year is going to be challenging to duplicate.

Suggested topic: Have the AD on and ask Q's about the House Settlement (scholarship limits and roster limits) Like, what is the Big Sky going to do in this area. Opt in?

In all honesty, Brock and Dwight deserve a break

Agreed. They have jobs and families. Love their podcasts - a great inaugural season, hope they can continue with football next season.

The roster and scholarship limits are unchanged for FCS, so what is their for the Big Sky to opt into?
I think the FBS expanding their FB scholarships to 105 is motivated by a desire to suppress competition by allowing major colleges room to raid lesser programs rosters, but there is nothing a FCS conference can do about it, unless all the teams want to pay 5 million apiece and join FBS.

https://herosports.com/fcs-notebook-house-settlement-impact-scholarship-limits-bzbz/

1. An FCS school can conceiveably go above 63
2. FBS rosters are capped at 125. That is going to be reduced to 105, so the effects go both ways.

Getting ready for our first episode of 2025! Send your topics, comments, guest requests, etc! We will have new subscription information for those who were supporting the show as well!

Pumped for the first episode of 2025! I'm already looking forward at the roster and trying to fill in the empty spaces. The offense is going to be so different, I'm interested in your guys' takes on QB, RB, WR, etc. Gonna be a lot of new faces all around.

Agreed. So much change compared to 2023-2024!

Topics:
1. QB1
2. Transfers - specifically who's making plays at WR for the Aggies in 2025?
3. Assistant Coaching Changes
4. How will Offense Evolve Without Larison - or is Fisher going to be THAT guy?
5. Defensive Line, LB Unit, Kavir Bains leaving - As Coach Carter would say, We're going to have NEW LEADING TACKLERS in 2025. Obviously Rex and Porter are the ones leading that group now.
6. OL - Only losing Nava at RT? Should be a Strength in 2025.

The House Settlement, if you want to get wonky.

DavisAggie a few weeks back posted a link to an article that “the NCAA Division I Board of Directors granted a blanket waiver to any athletes who attended a non-NCAA school to remain eligible for 2025-26 if they otherwise would have exhausted their eligibility in 2024-25. That applies to Nava, as he played at a JC in 2021. Another player in this category is Grant Garretson

I don't want to go as far as I saying that I'm worried about WR, but I do think it's concerning that of players that put up notable stats last season we're only returning Gbatu. Dobbins should get more play time, but we're losing A LOT of talent there.

I personally think we're going to get a combination of Fisher and Vargas next season at RB. They are 2 very different runners, could be a real lightning and thunder combo.

I’ve been a big fan of WRs Davis and especially Hutton. But between the players in our roster and this years recruits, they’ll find some productive replacements. The roster mostly doesn’t list players by eligibility, so there are seniors who could play next year if they and the team want that,
It will be interesting if Perez comes back. He did well in South Dakota game.
So that is a topic for the podcast; which seniors, who have eligibility, plan to return? Nava? Perez? Masui? Verner? McWilliams? Alessi? Garretson? I guess we will know when they list a spring roster.

Spring roster is up. WR room looks thin to me. Perez is listed.

Spring 2024. They made that the default but it isn’t new.

WR is thin because the didn’t play many guys that return, Depth development wasn’t important to the coaches. I view depth there as untested not nonexistent, but I’m an optimist. ,

What wide receivers did we lose? Hutton, Davis, Tompkins, Larrison (RB), and sparsely used Mitchell Dixon, along with tight ends Winston Williams and Josh Gale. Did I miss anybody?

Losing 6'4" Robbie Mascheroni may have been a big loss, we'll see. Out of HS he had offers from UW, Oregon, and Cal? Some could have been WOs. It's a tough balancing act w so many senior WRs. Another reason I voiced support for PT for Fisher and Dobbins - we don't want kids losing hope and entering the portal.