A late-summer sun sets over Hornet Stadium, illuminating the final tune-up game ahead of what is assuredly the most important season in Sacramento State football history.
The offense in white and defense in green clustered together on one side of the field, roaring their approval for every impact play. The scrimmage prioritized creating competition and implementing a culture for a newly constructed unit.
“Sometimes you need a little humble pie to get back to work,” new head coach Brennan Marion said. “Some of these guys thought that they had already arrived, but they got a little humble pie tonight. You want to be on a team with real competition and not expect to think that you just have it.”
Since hiring Marion, the Sac State Hornets have generated significant buzz in the offseason, bringing in 79 new faces to reshape a 3-9 2024 roster as Sac State’s vision of exiting the Football Championship Subdivision for the Football Bowl Subdivision became public.
In addition to plans for a 25,000-seat stadium and pledges of $50 million for NIL deals, the Hornets brought in a class of players dotted with four to five-star transfers and recruits.
Sac State’s push for a move into the upper echelon of college football was stopped at the goal line by the NCAA Division I council, citing the lack of a conference invite. In response, the school hired prominent attorney Jeffrey Kessler, to explore legal action.
This leaves the Hornets’ place in college football in flux for 2026, as they will no longer be a part of the Big Sky Conference and have not secured an invite to a major conference as of the writing of this article. Without one, the Hornets will likely be relegated to FCS independency for the next season.
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Sac State will enter the year with almost an entirely different roster, but maybe the most intriguing change of all is at the quarterback position.
The presumptive starter is redshirt sophomore quarterback Jaden Rashada, a former four-star prodigy who’s had stints at Arizona State and Georgia in a whirlwind collegiate career. With newfound freedom and a high-octane offense, Rashada will have a chance to put his four-star pedigree on display in 2025 and will be spelled by dynamic junior quarterback Cardell Williams, a former starter at Tulsa.
Rashada struggled to find his footing in the final scrimmage, tossing two interceptions, but showed off the arm strength and mobility that made him intriguing as a prospect.
Rashada will be joined in the backfield with one of the most talent-laden running back rooms in the FCS. Decorated senior running back Jamar Curtis is coming off back-to-back quadruple-digit yard and double-digit touchdown seasons at Lafayette, both of which made him a finalist for the Walter Payton Award.
Behind him, senior running backs Rodney Hammond Jr. and Savion Red had key roles at FBS programs Pittsburg and Nevada, combining for 13 scores across the last two years. In total, the group has four FBS-to-FCS transfers, giving coach Marion a multitude of weapons for his multiple-back “Go-Go” offense.
Freshman running back Jaquail Smith impressed in the scrimmage, making several explosive runs, two of which were for first downs.
“Jaquail Smith is dynamic,” Marion said. “There’s a lot of times where he breaks three tackles in the backfield and goes for explosive runs. I think he’s going to be a special freshman for us this year.”
Marion utilized multiple different formations and sets to spread touches out, leading to a varied and productive rushing attack that looked to be Sac State’s most potent weapon out of the gate this season.
To complement the backs, the wide receivers are highlighted by four-star redshirt freshmen Ernest Campbell and Jordan Anderson. Campbell is blazing fast, winning the Texas 2A 100M as a junior and a sophomore. Last year, he recorded a personal record 10.02 100M for Texas A&M.
Anderson didn’t record a statistic in four appearances with Oregon State, but was highly rated as a high school recruit, nearly eclipsing 1,000 yards in his senior and junior seasons. Joining them are junior wide receiver Jace Wilson and senior wide receiver Tim Conerly, who played limited roles at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, respectively.
Tight ends with blocking chops are ideal for a “Go-Go” offense, and that was evident in their usage throughout the scrimmage. Three of the leading players in that position group are 6-foot-5 or taller, all of whom come from FCS programs. Freshman Bear Tenney, a three-star transfer from Utah, is a name to watch as both a blocking and a receiving threat, showing off a large catch radius at 6-foot-6.
The trenches will be key to Sac State’s rushing attack and will need to be the Hornets’ biggest area of improvement after only averaging 4.5 yards per rush in 2024, 9th in the Big Sky.
Team captain and returning senior lineman Aidan Meek looms large, earning an all-conference nod for the Big Sky. Returning sophomore guard Cade Gretlein and senior Sawyer Hays will fortify the line after the departure of Jackson Slater in the NFL Draft. They’ll be aided by newcoming FBS transfers like redshirt junior Jordan Herman (Charlotte), junior Bryson Summers (Coastal Carolina) and senior Dean Abdullah (San Diego State).
The offensive moves have dominated the headlines this offseason, but the defense looked like a well-oiled machine at the scrimmage. They forced four interceptions, six sacks, two fumbles and scored a touchdown on sophomore cornerback Ricky Lee’s interception of Jaden Rashada.
Junior edge rusher Kris Ross (Texas), redshirt linebacker sophomore Dylan Gooden (Maryland) and junior defensive lineman Brodie Tagaloa (Nebraska) impressed, wreaking havoc against the run and the pass, forcing several tackle-for-losses. The trio kept Sac State’s quarterbacks under pressure the whole game, aided by the efforts of team captain senior defensive lineman Xavier Williams, who made a TFL for a safety towards the end of the game.
“From the ones to the twos to the threes, the whole D-line has really been effective all camp offensively,” Marion said. “Coach [Marcus] Patton has done a really good job of creating the toughness and making these guys get after it and be physical every day. I think we’ll be really special on defense.”
The secondary was another strong point during the scrimmage, deflecting countless deep shots and maintaining tight coverage in man and zone sets.
The returners, senior safeties Kaleb Higgins and Jalen Williams, racked up tackles while junior cornerback Jason Oliver and Ricky Lee hauled in interceptions against the first team offense.
“They’ve been pushing us to step up and make plays,” Lee said. “It was situational football; I anticipated the throw. All I saw was green.”
With the offseason coming to a close, the Hornets now set their sights on a week one matchup at South Dakota State on Aug. 30.
As of August 2025, the Jackrabbits have made 14 appearances in the FCS playoffs, posting an overall record of 24–12 (.667). Their 13 straight playoff berths rank as the second-longest active streak in the country.
During that stretch, South Dakota State secured two national championships, finished once as runner-up and reached the semifinals seven times.
The game kicks off at 4 p.m. Pacific time on ESPN+ on Aug. 30, 2025.
