10 new members and entire 1988 football team to be inducted in Sac State Football Hall of Fame
Inductees will be honored at the Harper Alumni Center on Oct. 10
File Photo - The State Hornet
Former Sac State wide receiver DeAndre Carter currently plays for the Houston Texans. Carter and nine others will be inducted in the Hall of Fame alongside the entire 1988 football team.
April 10, 2020
The Sacramento State Football Hall of Fame will induct 10 new members and the entire 1988 team, which made it to the Div. II semifinals, for their 2020 class.
In a State Hornet exclusive interview, Dave Hall, chairman of the Sac State Football Hall of Fame Committee, revealed that linebacker/center and former Hornets’ coach Bob Visger, offensive guard Rich Johnke, defensive tackle Mack Thomas, quarterback Drew Wyant, cornerback Mark Albert, linebacker Rob Patton, offensive tackle Marko Cavka, quarterback Ryan Leadingham, wide receiver DeAndre Carter and linebacker Todd Davis will make up the 10 inductees. The entire 1988 team will also be inducted.
The 1988 team will be the second team to be given this honor alongside the 1968 team which was defeated by Grambling State University in the Pasadena Bowl.
The Hornets, led by coach Bob Mattos and quarterback Troy Trosin, finished the 1988 season with a record 10 wins. Their 42-20 loss to North Dakota State University in the semifinals is the farthest Sac State football has ever gone in the playoffs.
RELATED: FROM THE ARCHIVES: 1988 was Hornet football’s best year ever
Carter and Davis are the only two inductees that are current players in the NFL.
Carter played wide receiver for the Hornets from 2010 to 2014.
“I went to Sacramento State with a plan to leave a legacy, to you know, make a statement, and to cement my name,” Carter said. “It was an incredible feeling man.”
During his senior season, Carter led the FCS and Big Sky Conference with 1,321 receiving yards and 17 receiving touchdowns on 99 receptions. The 99 receptions ranks second all-time in league history.
In his collegiate career, Carter earned first-team FCS All-American honors in 2014 and earned two first-team All-Big Sky honors in 2013 and 2014.
Carter is first in career touchdowns with 35, second in career yards with 2,760 and third in career receptions at Sac State with 207.
Carter signed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2015 and bounced around teams until landing with his current team, the Houston Texans in 2018.
Davis played linebacker for the Hornets from 2010 to 2013. He earned All-American honors in 2013 and received All-Big Sky honors three times in his collegiate career.
In 2013, Davis was a first-team All-Big Sky selection after he led the conference and ranked fifth nationally in the FCS with 10.9 tackles per game.
Davis is second in career tackles at Sac State with 351, seventh in unassisted tackles with 157 and is tied for 10th in tackles-for-loss with 30.
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Former Sac State linebacker Todd Davis kisses the Lombardi Trophy after winning Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos. Davis is second in career tackles at Sac State with 351.
Davis started his NFL career in 2014 when he was signed by the New Orleans Saints. After the Saints cut Davis that same season, he signed with his current team, the Denver Broncos.
RELATED: SPORTS PODCAST: Man-to-man with Sac State football alumnus DeAndre Carter
Visger played linebacker and center for the Hornets’ from 1966 to 1968.
Visger’s second stint with the Sac State football team started when he became the strength coach and a position coach for various positions for the Hornets’ from 1992 to 2004. Visger also became travel coordinator for the Hornets and fought to give the team the ability to take charter planes to away games.
Visger has also been just as valuable off the field for Sac State. He has been a major booster for the school and even built the former Sac State weight room, which was originally located where The Well now stands, with a friend who was a contractor.
Visger said, his biggest contribution to Sac State was helping save the football program.
“In 1995 Sac State was going to drop football,” Visger said. “Coaches and players were leaving. It was a dark time for football. There would be a referendum by the student body to keep or drop football.”
Visger and former assistant coaches Lou Patrone, Bob Barnes and Lou Baiz all stayed in hopes of keeping the team together, Visger said. The students ended up voting to increase fees in order to keep football.
“The four of us helped save football at Sac State,” Visger said. “John Volek was hired. We became part of his staff and the rest is history. I’m very proud of the part we played in saving Hornet football.”
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Former Sac State strength coach Bob Visger with Charles Roberts (32) Beau Huiskens (34) Mike Wooster (25) and Andrew Bonner at Northern Arizona University. Visger helped save football when Sac State almost dropped the program in 1995.
Johnke played offensive guard for the Hornets’ from 1967 to 1970. In 1970, Johnke received first-team All-Far West Conference honors.
Thomas was defensive tackle for the Hornets’ from 1969 to 1970.
Wyant quarterbacked the Hornets from 1986 to 1989. He is eighth in career completions in school history with 294, ninth in career passing-yards with 3,800 and seventh in attempts with 563.
Albert was cornerback for the Hornets from 1984 to 1985. In 1985, Albert earned NCAC Defensive MVP honors.
Albert went on to play in the Senior Bowl and was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs in 1986.
Patton played linebacker for the Hornets from 1985 to 1990. In 1990, Patton earned first-team All-Western Football Conference honors.
Cavka was offensive tackle for the Hornets’ from 2000 to 2004. Cavka earned second-team All-Big Sky honors in 2003.
Cavka was drafted in the sixth round of the 2004 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. After his stint with the Jets in the NFL, he played with the Amsterdam Admirals in NFL Europe, then later played with the Hamilton Tiger Cats of the Canadian Football League.
Leadingham quarterbacked the Hornets’ from 2000 to 2004.
Leadingham’s imprint can be seen throughout the Sac State record book. He is second in career passing yards with 8,376, second in completions with 658 and third in passing touchdowns with 50.
A ceremony will be held to honor the 2020 class at the Harper Alumni Center on Oct. 10.
John Volek • May 6, 2020 at 8:07 am
Vinny nice article on bringing team and new inductees forward Thank you !
Mark Young • Apr 28, 2020 at 12:34 pm
My name is Mark Young I played for the 88 team and I’m disappointed that u left my name and Donald Hair name out of the 88 team article ! We both were local athletes that helped turn this program around and to see that u guys think that Tony Trosin who played half of a season led out team is not right ! I caught the game winning pass to beat UC Davis 31-28 for the first time in 18 years we were team captains that was doin it all year ! It’s disrespectful to us and anyone who was associated with that team will tell you ! Plus we’re both Hall of Famers that was inducted in 1998 with Coach Mattos