Sac State’s football season on the line
Image: Sac State’s football season on the line:Tight end Caleb Jones caught one pass for 27 yards vs. NAU.Photo by Nick SchillerState Hornet:
October 22, 2003
The Sacramento State football team will try to stop a three game losing streak when they host Eastern Washington University in Saturday’s homecoming game.
Sac State’s season has taken a turn for the worse since their 47-21 trouncing of the then 12th ranked Idaho State University Bengals on Sept. 27.
Junior quarterback Ryan Leadingham threw six touchdowns and earned Div. 1-AA National Offensive Player of the Week honors as Sac State opened the Big Sky with a victory.
The Hornets’ started their three game collapse in the final minutes of the Causeway Classic, allowing UC Davis a come from behind victory.
The loss of the game was not the only bad news for Sac State as Leadingham was lost for the rest of the season when he fractured his wrist in the third quarter.
Sac State turned the reins over to sophomore Blake Mori who made his first career start at Sac State against Northern Arizona University on Oct. 12.
The Hornets hung tough with the current Big Sky conference leaders but could not overcome the Lumberjacks’ 513 offensive yards, falling 24-21.
After two close losses the Hornets lost to Portland State 20-7 dropping their record to 2-5 overall and 1-2 in conference competition.
The Hornets will need their talented duo of Tyronne Gross and Fred Amey to take advantage of Eastern Washington’s mediocre defense.
Sac State’s defense will also have to step up and shut down one of the Big Sky’s top scoring offenses.
Eastern Washington is looking for its fifth-straight winning season, without graduated All-American quarterback Josh Blankenship. He was last year’s Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year throwing for 3,243 yards and 30 touchdowns.
Sophomore Erik Meyer has stepped in nicely, being named Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 13 after helping the Eagles defeat Portland State.The Eagles, coming in after a 54-31 loss to the Lumberjacks, were held to just 41 total rushing yards.
Sac State has defeated the Eagles two times in a row and holds a 9-2 series lead.
Last year Sac State outscored Eastern Washington 48-41. Gross led the way with 151 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
