UC Davis Football Season Starts Today: Can the Team Improve?

It is time for football season and the Aggies are looking to notch one more Great West Conference Championship before they move to the Big Sky Conference in 2012.

UC Davis’s hopes for this season will rest heavily on sophomore quarterback Randy Wright.

The 6-3 Santa Rosa, Calif. native struggled after being named starter in the beginning to the 2011 season, but Wright clearly improved as the season moved on — leading the Aggies to wins in the last three games. With another year of experience under his belt, the Aggies will be expecting big things from Wright this season.

“As he gained experience, as he understood defenses, as the game slowed down for him, he could be accurate and be quicker with his reads and quicker with the ball," said head coach Bob Biggs.

Wright will have to find a new target to throw to this season, however. Last year’s two top pass-catchers — wide receiver Sean Creadick and tight end Dean Rogers — have both graduated, leaving the team with a group of unproven receivers. 

“We have a number of players that have stepped up in the spring and fall and are ready to contribute," said Biggs. “We're still waiting for some other players to emerge on a consistent basis.”

Wright’s best receiving option may be junior wide-out Anthony Soto. Soto led the Aggies with 64 receiving yards in the Aggies’ Blue-Gold scrimmage.

On the defensive side, UC Davis will be looking to replace last year’s senior leadership. The Aggies lost senior linebacker Dozi Amajoyi and safety Mike Hart to graduation. The duo finished last season as the team’s top-two tacklers.

With Hart and Amajoyi out of the picture, an increased amount of pressure will fall on junior Jordan Glass who will start at middle linebacker. Glass tallied 66 tackles in 2010, third-best on the team.

In the secondary, the Aggies feel good about where they stand despite losing Hart.

“I think we’re loaded at safety and corner,” Biggs said. “I’ve told people that this is the best group or safeties and corners I’ve had in my 19 years as a head coach.”

Sophomore cornerback Jonathan Perkins was named to the Great West second-team last season and will look to improve on that this season. Perkins will join fellow returning starters Jonathan Calhoun and Kevyn Lewis in the defensive backfield.

The Aggies will also count on an experienced defensive line this season. Despite losing defensive tackle Eric Sobatka, the Aggies will have a strong group of returning defensive ends with seniors Victor Lee and Tommy Grillo, and junior Bobby Erskine all expected to see playing time.

For the fourth-straight season, UC Davis will start their season against a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent. The Aggies will open their year today against Pac-12 opponent Arizona State. UC Davis will be looking to improve on last year’s 52-3 loss in the first week against California.

UC Davis will play their first home game September 17, when they face San Diego in Aggie Stadium.  The Aggies will also have a key home game against rival Cal Poly on November 5 in the “Battle for the Golden Horseshoe.”

Two weeks later UC Davis will travel down the Capital City Freeway to face Sacramento State in the 58^th annual Causeway Classic.