Cleeland, UC Davis dodge Portland St. upset bid with 31-24 win

HILLSBORO, Ore. -- — Treynor Cleeland threw two touchdown passes and Jordan Fisher ran for two scores, and UC Davis overcame a 21-point deficit to beat Portland State 34-21 in a season and Big Sky Conference opener on Saturday. Cleeland threw a 22-yard, catch-and-run touchdown to Laviel Picket with 27 seconds left. The Vikings' Tyrese Smith threw incomplete in the end zone to end it. The Aggies tied it at 24 on Cleeland's 15-yard touchdown pass to Samuel Gbatu Jr. with 4:35 left. Cleeland threw to Picket for the two-point conversion. UC Davis entered as a 24-point favorite and ranked sixth in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 poll. Smith's 1-yard scoring run ended a nine-play, 70-yard drive with 59 seconds left before the end of the first quarter for a 7-0 Vikings lead. After a three-and-out, the Vikings' Cru Newman returned a punt 78 yards for a touchdown and made it 14-0. Later, Smith led a 16-play, 87-yard drive with eight seconds left before halftime when he carried it in from the 1. UC Davis recorded a safety for its first points of the game. Fisher ran it in from the 1 with 6:01 left in the third quarter to make it 21-9. Fisher ran it in from the 4 to end a six-play, 50-yard drive at the end of the third. —- Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP’s full college football coverage here