When the UC Davis Aggies (7-3) and Sacramento State Hornets (7-4) come together on Saturday in California in what will be a monumental game in their longstanding rivalry series. The Aggies and the Hornets always
end their seasons together with a dance known as the “Causeway Classic” but this year’s rendition of the game will be one of the bigger ones they’ve ever had and not just because of all of the playoff implications that are on the line. It may very will be the last one they play for a good, long while.
It’s been a challenging season in many ways for both the Aggies and the Hornets in 2025. UC Davis began the year with ton of hope but between a weird no contest with Mercer in Week 0 (despite having played more than half of it), an upset loss a few weeks ago to Idaho State and a whole slew of injuries including a season-ender to All-American safety Rex Connors, it has not gone totally according to plan for Tim Plough and his team. Even in spite of all of that, though, they still should be a playoff team especially with a win this weekend over their rivals.
Then there’s Sac State who has made the headlines this year for mostly all the wrong reasons. Whether it was university president Luke Wood openly trash talking Montana last month (right before a game the Hornets lost to the Grizzlies) or head coach Brennan Marion getting fined for publicly criticizing officiating, the Hornets have ruffled feathers in this, their final year in the Big Sky Conference. They are soon to be an FCS independent with the hopes of making the FBS jump in the near future. And because of that, Sacramento State’s yearly series with UC Davis may be at its last stop this weekend. They, too, have a bunch to play for as far as the postseason is concerned.
A last-second win over Idaho last weekend kept Sac State’s playoff hopes afloat but they likely need to win this Saturday to avoid being left out in the cold come Selection Sunday. It’s a spot that it didn’t necessarily seem like this team would be in a few weeks ago or, really, even a year ago after a dismal three-win season in 2024. The hiring of Marion, though, sparked a big turnaround this fall and now the Hornets have the chance to further silence doubters and play on after Thanksgiving.
Led by an electric rushing attack that averages 256.8 rush yards per contest, Sac State poses an intriguing challenge to a UC Davis defense that surrenders just 167.3 yards a game in that department. Then, on the other side, dynamic freshman signal caller Caden Pinnick could be a problem for the Hornets defense. He’s as mobile as any QB out there right now, having rushed for 307 yards and thrown for 2,221 more. Pinnick has accounted for 25 total touchdowns this year. Sacramento State’s defense has been really good at getting to opposing quarterbacks, though. With 37 sacks this year, they rank fifth in the entire FCS.
However it shakes out on Saturday in the Golden State, the “Causeway Classic” is probably the ticket into the playoffs for someone here. UC Davis, who was a 5-seed in last year’s tournament, might be out of the running for a bye week but can make two-for-two in postseason appearances during Plough’s young head coaching career. Sacramento State has been good at generating buzz all year along and drum up a whole lot more if they can get this exciting group into the 24-team bracket also. It would require beating an Aggies team they haven’t been able to get the better of since 2023 but if Marion’s team has anything it’s a flare for the dramatic and nothing would be more dramatic than knocking off their rivals in maybe their last ever game together to get in.
You can catch UC Davis and Sacramento State on Saturday at 4:00 PM (ET) on ESPN+.
