The California Conference hierarchy comes down to this weekend as top-ranked Saint Mary’s hosts UC Davis at 1 PM PT Saturday at Saint Mary's Stadium in Moraga, CA.

The game itself is a meeting of champions. The Gaels have won national D1A titles in three of the last four years. The Aggies appeared in the last three D1AA national finals, winning twice.

Watch UC Davis at Saint Mary's LIVE on FloRugby

This season, Davis moved up to D1A and immediately showed the program belonged in the division. A non-conference defeat of Central Washington followed by a 33-27 win over Cal Poly put the Aggies squarely in the playoff conversation.

Saint Mary's Shows Off Its Power Running:

But Saint Mary’s has been impressive. While Davis beat a somewhat younger Central Washington team 33-14 on January 5, a day later Saint Mary’s routed a more experienced CWU squad 73-5. While Davis beat Santa Barbara and Santa Clara by 55 and 44 points, respectively, Saint Mary’s won those matchups by 67- and 82-point margins. 

The Gaels have a unique blend of power up front, range in the lock/flanker position, and speed. Their success is not only a product of their athleticism but also their speed of thought. The players are ready to run and ready to exploit a lackadaisical defense. They will tap and go from almost anywhere.

The foundation of the Saint Mary’s is the pack. Its front row of Payton Telea-llaio, Ethan Waller, and Peter Waldren is powerful, well coached, and able to keep up with the speed of the Gaels’ game.

Saint Mary's Is Clinical:

Davis has talent, to be sure, and loose forwards Harrison Morrow and Dom Burke, not to mention center Ari Wargon and wing Brad Maples, would be at home on any college team. But the pieces may not all be there quite yet. Head coach Andy Malpass said his biggest issue is depth. It’s not that the Aggies can’t compete on any day; it’s whether they can compete every day and every week.

California Conference Results And Standings

The need to be at your best in every game was spelled out February 10 when Davis lost 29-13 to San Diego State. That setback opened the door for SD State to take second in the conference. To avoid that, Davis needs a couple of things to — Cal Poly to beat the Aztecs on April 7 and the Aggies to garner a bonus point (at the very least) this weekend.

Four tries against Saint Mary’s? The Gaels didn’t give up four tries to BYU, so it’s not going to be easy. The Gaels, meanwhile, should clinch with a bonus-point victory.

UC Davis at Saint Mary’s is streaming LIVE on FloRugby at 1 PM PT on Saturday.