D1AA Latest: Spartans, Beavers, Seminoles

02.01.2026College Men

San Jose State won well vs Chico State.

Author: Alex Goff

Florida's D1AA Conference and the two sides of the D1AA California Conference were on the field this weekend, and we're already seeing leading teams step forward.

Florida

Florida State made it to 2-0 with a 31-0 shutout of Central Florida. Center Tanner Smith scored two tries while No. 8 Andrew Crouch, scrumhalf Gonzalo Demartin, and reserve Dillon Burke all added one.

The Florida Gators won comfortably over Florida Atlantic 52-7 behind two tries from center Jason Martin and two tries from fullback Charlie Cole, who ended the day with 14 points. Wing Daniel Mata logged 18 points. Florida is now 1-1. MAU vs South Florida, which promises to be a banger, was rescheduled to February 21.

California South

In the California Conference South (aka D1AA Southwest), Arizona State won big over Southern Cal 69-7 thanks to 10 tries and a penalty try. Outside center Austin Cox (seems like that’s the position for try-scorers this weekend) logged two of those tries and fullback Jacob Hurl added a try and converted four. No. 8 Pearse McNamara also scored twice.

Loyola Marymount opened their account with a 40-19 defeat of Claremont Colleges.

California North

In California Conference North, as we mentioned before, Stanford’s injuries led to a forfeit against Cal Poly Humboldt. The Lumberjacks have made the move to D1AA.

“We have a good mix of freshman and veterans and we are all stepping up to the challenges of a looooong rugby year,” said Head Coach Greg Pargee. The key is, they need more consistent games and would normally be getting them … then a team can’t play them. Next up for them is Fresno State.

FAU

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Gators

Claremont

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LMU

USC Trojans

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Sun Devils

FSU Seminoles

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UCF Knights

Wolfpack

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ARC

Wildcats

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SJSU Spartans

Bulldogs

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SFSU

Fresno State, for their part, won 71-33 over San Francisco State. The Bulldogs were led by David Ankama, who scored four tries, while DJ Watts scored three.

That's a good bounce back after FSU's Jan 24 loss to Chico State.

San Jose State moved to 2-0 up their conference account with a 38-24 win over Chico State, handing the Wildcats their first conference loss. Flanker Sam Michotte scored two tries, including the last one to ice it, and added two conversions. Victor Baird also got in on the goalkicking duties and added a try. Prop Angel Hernandez and scrumhalf Miguel Galan Marcello also touched down.

American River is also 2-0 after a hard-nosed win over Nevada Reno. The Wolfpack are a physical but disciplined side and really made ARC work for their supper.

“We struggled with our communication at times,” said ARC Head Coach Zach Swithenbank, adding that the stop-start flow of the game wasn’t what his players wanted. “I do not think we took advantage of it like we could have. That’s part of rugby, but it challenged our rhythm and tested our focus. That does not take away from Reno’s effort; they play strong start to finish and are a very good team.”

Dylan Alexander was solid in the backs, keeping the tempo high and making some key plays. Tre Robinson was relentless in the forward pack, winning the collisions and bringing the physicality. Robinson scored a try as did Caleb Smithee and Callan Edgerton, while Julian Niulala scored two.

Wing George Ayers and fullback Eoin McLoughlin were really effective for UNR and caused ARC problems.

“We won today because of heart and toughness, but if we are going to take the next step as a program we have to improve our communication as a unit,” said Switchenbank.” That starts with me and making sure we are all on the same page on the field not just in practice and as a family but on the pitch we need to communicate better and we will put in the time, the focus, and the work to make sure we are locked in and playing as one before our next match.”