DAVIS, Calif. — Carlos Hill had a career day receiving and
Kaiden Bennett threw three second half touchdowns but Sacramento State could not slow Lan Larison in a 31-21 loss to UC Davis in the 69th Causeway Classic at a rainy UC Davis Health Stadium on Saturday.
The loss dropped the Hornets to 7-4 overall and 4-4 in the Big Sky Conference. Three of the team's four losses came on the road and against teams ranked in the top 10. UC Davis also finished with a 7-4 record and was 5-3 in league games. Both teams will now await their postseason fate as the NCAA FCS Playoff field will be announced on Sunday morning at 9:30 a.m. PT on ESPNU.
UC Davis led from start to finish beginning with a 3-yard Larison touchdown run on the opening drive of the game. The score was the first of four touchdowns for the junior who finished 121 rushing yards and 54 receiving yards in the contest.
The Aggies led 17-0 late in the second quarter following a 7-yard score from Larison and a 42-yard field goal from Hunter Ridley. Sacramento State had two chances to get points on the board in the first half but a fourth-down pass from the 4-yard line sailed over the head of Marshel Martin in the end zone with three minutes showing. After getting a stop, The Hornets moved the ball to the Aggie 38 before Teddye Buchanan intercepted a pass with just under a minute remaining.
The teams traded touchdowns in the second half beginning with a 16-yard pass from
Kaiden Bennett to
Anderson Grover. Bennett was able to scramble to keep the play alive and then found Grover along the left sideline just shy of the goal line for his second receiving touchdown of the season.
Sacramento State forced UC Davis into a 3rd-and-14 near midfield on the ensuing possession but Miles Hastings dumped the ball off to Larison who then tight-roped the sideline, breaking a pair of tackles for a 47-yard touchdown reception. The Hornets needed just four minutes to answer with Bennett finding
Jared Gipson in the middle of the end zone for a 14-yard pass to make the score 24-14.
Sacramento State got the ball back with 5:28 to play but turned it over on downs deep in its own half. Larison found the end zone two plays later with a 12-yard rush to make it a three-score game. The Hornets' final touchdown came with 2:26 remaining when Bennett and Hill combined for a 35-yard pass up the left sideline.
Hill became the first Hornet to have 10 receptions this season as he caught 10 balls for 144 yards and a score. Those numbers blew past his previous career highs of seven grabs for 91 yards. Bennett, who came on late in the second quarter, completed 19-of-28 passes for 232 yards and a career-high tying three scores. As a team, the Hornets had 361 yards on 32-of-53 passing. Sacramento State struggled running the football, combining for a season-low 27 yards on 20 carries.
Along with Larison's output, Miles Hastings was 16-of-23 through the air for 175 yards and a score.
Armon Bailey led Sacramento State with nine tackles, including a pair of tackles-for-loss. Bailey is now 14th on the Hornet career tackle list with 214.
Sacramento State finished with 388 yards compared to 308 from UC Davis. The big difference for the team came on third and fourth down where the Hornets were able to convert only 3-of-13 chances on third down and 1-of-6 tries on fourth down. Conversely, the Aggies had success on 6-of-14 third downs but was 0-for-1 on fourth down.
The FCS Playoffs are comprised of 10 automatic bids and 14 at-large selections. If Sacramento State is selected, it will mark the fourth straight fall season in which the team qualified for the postseason. The Hornets have 37 wins in those seasons — the most successful four-year stretch in school history.
