For the first time in over a decade, Sacramento State will head northeast to play Nevada on Saturday, their lone FBS opponent this season.
After a disappointing showing in their opening game against the South Dakota Jackrabbits, the Hornets will play the Wolf Pack, the highest-ranked opponent on their schedule at 120th in the FBS, per CBS Sports.
“A lot of people are down on our team because we had a loss,” head coach Brennan Marion said. “It’s very hard to go undefeated in today’s football, but I told our guys from the start, ‘there’s no excuses.’”
Sac State football hasn’t managed to find a win against Nevada since 1976. There have been some brutal losses in the past: a 75-point shut out in 1977 and, most recently, a 50-point defeat in 2004. This Hornet team will look to buck this trend before heading home for a three-game homestand to kick off their Big Sky campaign.
“We’re starting off with two real football games,” Marion said. “We don’t have any layups.”
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Against South Dakota on Aug. 30, Sac State struggled to establish their offense and never climbed out of an early hole, despite defensive flashes in the second half.
The run game was bottled up at the game’s outset and was hardly a factor in the second half, averaging only one yard per attempt. Senior running backs Rodney Hammond, Jr. and Jamar Curtis split the majority of the carries, but neither were able to break off a run longer than five yards.
“Our backs are really our strength,” Marion said. “[South Dakota State] and Reno are the two strongest defensive lines that we’re going to face, but as a playcaller, I’ve got to call more runs to get the juices flowing and establish momentum.”
While the defensive line looked like a strong point, accumulating seven sacks, the Hornets gave up 240 yards on the ground. Stopping the run will be a huge focus for the defense this week, as Nevada will look to bounce back after managing only 78 yards rushing against FBS #2 Penn State.
As far as changes in the backfield go, the Hornets have fresh legs when they need them. The trio of Curtis, Hammond and senior running back Savion Red will likely split carries in effort to wind down Nevada’s defense.
Keys to win the game:
There were a few costly penalties in last week’s game, with Sac State committing nine penalties for 66 yards.
Limiting penalties and playing disciplined football is crucial to winning college football games, a strategy Sac State will need to spoil Nevada’s season opener.
“We got to third and short, but then we had false starts, and we had turnovers,” Marion said. “We had different things that made us have to accelerate the process into passing the ball early.”
Nevada struggled to defend the pass in last week’s game, giving up over 303 yards in the air. Marion will look to take advantage of a weaker secondary by taking deep shots down the field to advance the Hornets’ offense.
The Hornets are looking to connect on those deep shots after missing an opportunity last week. One significant play was cut short with a dropped touchdown pass from redshirt sophomore quarterback Jaden Rashada to senior wide receiver Tim Conerly. The pass would’ve made the game a one-score contest, at 10-17 with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter.
On the other side of the ball, Sac State should aim to establish dominance early by forcing turnovers and not letting senior quarterback Chubba Purdy, brother of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, stay clean in the pocket.
“[Dealing with Purdy] is going to be a challenge,” edge rushers coach Jake Vang said. “He’s not a statue back there. As long as we rush as a unit and fill the lanes, we’ll be great.”
Facing off against FBS schools has been tough for FCS schools, who’ve only won 34 of 560 games since 2020, according to fearthefcs.com. Sac State is on that list after their huge win at Stanford in 2023.
The task is tall, but it would be a statement win for Sac State’s FBS ambitions.
“We don’t put a name to our opponents,” redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Dylan Hampsten said. “They’re great on film and a good opponent, but the ‘FBS’ title doesn’t scare us.”
The Hornets face off at Nevada on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 2 p.m.
