Riding a season-long four-game losing streak, the Sacramento State football team will look to bounce back this week against UC Davis in the 48th-annual Causeway Classic on Saturday, Oct. 27. The game will be held at Fred Anderson Field and will kickoff at 6:05 p.m.

Sacramento State enters the game with a 2-5 overall record. The team suffered a 42-35 overtime defeat against Eastern Washington last Saturday. The Aggies are 5-2 overall but are also coming off a loss. UC Davis dropped a 31-28 decision against Cal Poly and has now lost two of its last three games.

The game marks the 49th meeting between the two teams. The series dates back to 1954 where UC Davis walked away with a 14-0 win. This is the 48th regular-season matchup — the two teams played in the 1988 Div. II playoffs. Last season, the Aggies held on for a 13-10 win at Hughes Stadium in a game which was played in miserable weather.

In last week’s loss against Eastern Washington, Sacramento State was led by the play of running back Kendall Riley. The freshman became just the second Hornet this season to cross the century mark as he collected 113 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns. Ryan Leadingham threw for 192 yards including a 15-yard TD to Russell Gardner. Camron Mbewa led the team with a career-high 14.5 tackles. Mbewa also blocked a punt and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown.

EWU overcame a 21-0 deficit by turning to Jesse Chatman. The running back set the school record by tallying 298 yards and four scores. Chatman had three 1-yard TDs and a 23-yard score. The biggest, however, came in overtime where he scored from the one.

The UC Davis-Cal Poly game had a similar feel. Cal Poly jumped to a 31-14 halftime lead but saw the Aggies rally to make the score 31-28 with 6:49 to play. UC Davis quarterback J.T O’Sullivan threw for 265 yards and a pair of touchdowns but was intercepted a career-high four times.

With a Win...

• Sacramento State will snap its four-game losing streak.

• The Hornets will have defeated the Aggies for the second-straight time at Fred Anderson Field.

• UC Davis will have lost three games for the first time since the 1997 season.

• Sacramento State will be 12-4 in its last 16 home games.

With a Loss...

• Sacramento State will have lost five games in a row for the first time since 1996.

• The Hornets will have suffered three-consecutive home losses for the first time since losing to Northern Arizona, Portland State and Montana State in 1997.

• UCD will have won at Sacramento State for the first time since a 36-28 triple-overtime win in 1996.

• Meet the Coaches

Head coach John Volek is in his seventh season at Sacramento State. Volek has guided the Hornets to winning records each of the past two seasons, including a I-AA school record 7-4 mark in 2000.

The UC Riverside graduate has built a high-powered offense which has set 30 offensive team records and 41 individual records. He has also had seven players go on to sign NFL contracts.

Volek’s coaching career began at UCR. He then moved to Santa Cruz High School before moving to Mt. San Jacinto JC. From there, Volek headed north to Walla Walla JC where he was an assistant and then head coach (1984-87). He later returned to California to lead Fresno City JC from 1988-94 before taking over at Sacramento State.

Volek enters the week with a 26-46-1 overall record but has posted a 20-17 mark over the last four years (1998-present).

UC Davis is led by Bob Biggs. A former Aggie quarterback, Biggs has posted a 76-26-1 record in his nine seasons. He has led the team to a winning record each year and six playoff appearances.

A Look at the Hornets

•Getting Older and Younger

With each game the Sacramento State football team gains a little more experience. It is no secret that the team is young, however, it is a surprise that it keeps getting younger. The team already starts a freshman quarterback, a sophomore safety, two sophomore linemen and a freshman wide receiver on offense. The defense features freshman defensive lineman and two freshmen linebackers.

This past week against Eastern Washington, the Hornets added two true freshmen into the starting lineup as well as another redshirt freshman. Running back Kendall Riley and kicker Bret LeVier, both true freshman, made their first career starts against the Eagles while redshirt frosh B.J. Tittlemier earned the nod at right guard. Those changes put nine underclassmen in the starting lineup and just six seniors.

Both Riley and LeVier made the most of their opportunities. Riley tallied 113 yards while LeVier made all five of his extra points.

This week, the team might be forced to make additional changes. Senior Ed Canonico suffered a hip pointer against EWU and might be replaced by redshirt freshman Ramon Payne at free safety.

• Big Enough for Three Nicknames

Kendall Riley is not small. The freshman running back measured 5-11, 267 pounds at the start of training camp. Since then, Riley has slimmed down to 250 pounds which has allowed him to move from fullback to tailback.

Riley also has a big list of nicknames. The Hiram Johnson HS graduate was tagged “Big Train” in high school. Some Sacramento State players refer to him at “Juicy” while others prefer “Big Sexy”.

Riley’s performance on Saturday earned him another title — starter. He carried the ball 21 times for 113 yards and scored twice. Entering the game, he only had nine carries for 36 yards in six games.

• As Close as You Get

Sacramento State and Eastern Washington have met in a series of close games. In 1999, EWU won in the final minute. Last season, the Hornets claimed a three-point win as time expired. This year, the teams needed overtime to decide the game.

The score, however, was not the only thing that was close. Both team collected 25 first downs in the game. Each squad also had 192 passing yards. Sacramento State ran 83 total plays while EWU had 82. Each team also had one turnover.

Two categories were not so close. The Eagles mustered 342 rushing yards while the Hornets produced 243. EWU was also only penalized two times for 25 yards while Sacramento State was flagged 10 times for 72 yards.

• Into the Record Book

He plays a position that no one notices. He is in the middle of the trenches hidden among 10 players. However on Saturday, Terence Wagner will work his way into the Sacramento State record book.

The senior center will raise his career start total to 41-consecutive games, breaking the mark of 40 held by Jeff Hoffman. Wagner came to Sacramento State from Del Campo HS. He redshirted his first season before earning the starting center job in 1998. Since that point he has not missed a game. Last season against Northern Arizona he proved his toughness by playing the final drive of the game despite breaking his patella during the game.

• Mbewa-tch

Camron Mbewa showed he has no fear against Eastern Washington. The strong safety recorded 14.5 tackles including 12 solo stops in the game. While his total was impressive, it was the ferocity of his hits that stood out. On more than one occasion, Mbewa leveled EWU running back Jesse Chatman including a hit on the 1-yard line in which Chatman was de-cleated.

His performance against the Eagles moved Mbewa into the team lead. The Sacramento, Calif., native now has 42.5 stops despite the fact that he missed the second half of the season opener and the entire Cal Poly game with a knee injury.

Mbewa also left his mark on special teams against EWU. In the second quarter he blocked a punt with one hand, regained his balance, scooped up the ball and cruised 45 yards for a touchdown.

• Musical Feet

The Sacramento State kicking duties have been passed around like a hot potato this year. Through seven games, the team has had three different players attempt kicks.

Freshman Paul Kerr opened the year against Saint Mary’s but was replaced by Jimmy Sanchez the next week. Sanchez gave way to freshman Bret LeVier who kicked against EWU.

LeVier, who will play baseball for the Hornets this spring, was 5-for-5 on extra points and continued to kickoff for the team.

Sanchez remains the team’s punter and seems rejuvenated by returning to just one job. Against Eastern Washington, the Sacramento, Calif., native had six punts for an average of 45.5 yards. Sanchez also tied his career high with a 67-yard boot against the Eagles which was downed on the 1-yard line.

• Do the Math

Although he has not thrown for over 200 yards in two weeks, Ryan Leadingham is still on pace to do some amazing things this season. The redshirt freshman is currently averaging 232.0 yards per game and is on pace to accumulate 2,552 yards this season. That total would make Leadingham the most prolific single-season passer in school history, surpassing the total of 2,532 set by Tony Corbin in 1995.

If he stays at the current rate for his entire career, Leadingham will tally 10,208 yards. The school’s current career leader is Mike Sullivan who recorded 5,085 yards between 1981-83.

Only 10 players in I-AA history have ever crossed the 10,000-yard plateau. Steve McNair heads the list with 14,496 career yards. Other Big Sky notables include Jamie Martin (12,207), Neil Lomax (11,550), Travis Brown (11,400), Dave Dickenson (11,080), Doug Nussmeier (10,824) and John Friesz (10,697).

Earlier this season, Leadingham passed Garrett White’s 639 yards in 1998 to make him the greatest freshman passer in school history. He also set the freshman record for most TDs.

• D-pleted

For one of the few times this season, the Hornet injury report did not grow astronomically. Linebacker Jason Rowell and lineman Steve Choi are the only players that have their status for Saturday in jeopardy.

Linebacker Park McAllister (ankle), safety Ed Canonico (hip pointer) and receiver Mike Johnson, Jr., (shoulder) should all be cleared to play as the week progresses.

On a positive note, Elton Gabourel returned to the lineup and was able to last the entire game. Gabourel has battled a shoulder injury for most of the year.

The defense has been hammered all season. All-American Bilal Watkins was lost for the year with a knee injury against Cal Poly, Lee Turner has been in-and-out of the lineup for most of the year with a myriad of injuries and lineman Drew Bogetti broke his hand.

Other players who have spent time on the IR this year include: WR Kenan Smith (knee, three games), SS Camron Mbewa (knee, one game), DB Brad Candido (broken arm, four games) and WR Gary Austin, Jr. (ankle, one game).

• Great White Hope

Junior Garret White is expected to return to the lineup this week. The comeback will be White’s second of the season. The Corning, Calif., native broke his thumb 48 hours before the season opener. Once his thumb healed, he fractured his ankle during the Idaho State game.

White served as the team’s holder against Eastern Washington but will return to play some quarterback and receiver against UC Davis. This year, he has one receiving TD and is averaging 4.8 yards per carry.

A Look at the Aggies

• UC Davis fell behind early to Cal Poly and was never able to overcome the deficit last Saturday. The Mustangs jumped to a 31-14 halftime advantage but allowed the Aggies to pull within three, 31-28, in the fourth quarter. UC Davis had a chance late in the game but J.T. O’Sullivan fumbled on the 15-yard line. After Cal Poly was forced to punt, O’Sullivan was intercepted to seal the game.

O’Sullivan ended the day with 265 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

• Despite throwing a career-high four interceptions on Saturday, O’Sullivan is the backbone to the UC Davis offense. The Jesuit HS graduate is averaging 276.3 yards per game and has completed 63.9 percent of his passes. O’Sullivan has already thrown 18 touchdown passes this season but has been intercepted 10 times.

• Five Aggies have caught at least 10 passes this season. The quintet is led by Charlie Enos who has 40 receptions for 667 yards and six TDs. Michael Oliva is tied with Enos for the team lead with six receiving scores.

Trae Milton anchors the team’s backfield. Milton is averaging 88.7 rushing yards per game and has scored seven times on the ground. He has also caught 22 passes including a pair of touchdowns.

• Defensively, UC Davis has recorded 22 sacks this season. Junior defensive end Steve Soares leads the team with 5.5 sacks. Viliami Fatukala has added 3.5.

The team has also intercepted seven passes led by Tom Watts and Kwamin Taylor with two each.

The Series

• UC Davis leads the all-time series, 32-16. The Aggies dominated the series from 1970-87 by winning 18-straight meetings.

Who’s Up Next

• Sacramento State will travel to Southern California for what is likely the final meeting with Cal State Northridge. Earlier this year, CSN announced that this will be the final year for Matador football. If that decision holds, Saturday’s game will be the final home game in school history.

Big Sky Notes

• EWU running back Jesse Chatman was named the Big Sky Conference’s Player of the Week. Chatman set the school record by tallying 298 yards and four TDs against the Hornets.

Montana safety Vince Huntsberger took home the Defensive Player of the Week award. The All-American forced three fumbles and returned one for a score.

ISU’s Javier Garcia earned the special teams award for the second-consecutive week. Garcia made two field goals and three extra points.

• The top four teams in the Big Sky will go head-to-head this week. Portland State travels to Montana while Northern Arizona makes the trip to Montana State...In last week’s games, Idaho State built a 27-0 lead against I-A Utah State before allowing the Aggies to score 28-unanswered points in a 28-27 loss...Montana State also had its winning streak snapped as it fell, 53-28, at Washington State...Portland State amassed 696 yards of total offense in its 65-43 win over Weber State.