UC Davis announcement of its 2018 schedule included this -- That match against the Hornets will not count toward the Big West standings as the league’s head coaches voted to scrap the two division setup in favor of a single table where each team will face each league member once. The move was made in an effort to increase opportunities for programs to improve their respective RPI standings by allowing time for more non-conference matches that could enhance their NCAA Tournament resume. http://www.ucdavisaggies.com/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/053018aaa.html
“We as a group in the Big West did some research, looked at some other conferences around the country and followed the model of the the Atlantic Coast Conference with the idea of giving us more opportunities to play higher ranked opponents outside of the conference,” Shaffer said." "Following the model of the ACC ?" Kind of a difficult model to follow (even remotely).
I hope this means the teams are expanding their travel budgets. Because if all they're doing is playing the same non-con teams in California, it won't make much difference on their RPI.
Davis is playing Omaha, Creighton, Gonzaga and Utah Valley, whom I don't recall them playing recently. Whether those opponents help or hurt their RPI depends on fall season results, just like every year.