An 86-point win marks the biggest winning scoring margin in Aggie history, beating the previous mark of 85 in a win over Santa Cruz on November 22, 1974.
115 points is the most scored by the Aggies in the Division I era, it's also the most scored at home, with the previous record being 108 in a win over Patten on December 28, 1996.
Is Sacramento State a realistic expansion option for the Pac-12, or are the Hornets a better fit for the Mountain West? — @MarcSheehan006
Sacramento State has done a fabulous job marketing itself as an expansion candidate for the Pac-12 or Mountain West and went so far as to set a goal of securing $50 million in NIL pledges this fall. Last we checked, the Hornets had roughly $35 million pledged.
(Note: They do not have $35 million in hand, much less the $50 million that an ESPN report suggested earlier this week.)
Sacramento State is an FCS program that resides in the nation’s No. 20 media market, is reasonably close to the Bay Area tech money and has easy access to high-level recruits. (Folsom High School is a powerhouse.)
But we have not received confirmation of serious interest by the two FBS conferences, which are taking contrasting approaches to expansion.
The Mountain West is hustling to increase membership, having added UC Davis (in all sports but football) and currently targeting Northern Illinois. Meanwhile, the Pac-12 paused expansion in order to focus on media rights negotiations.
Something else to consider: The Big Ten and SEC don’t want more FCS schools making the jump to the FBS — they believe there are too many mouths to feed already — and have made their feelings known at the highest levels.
Our hunch is that Sacramento State will remain an FCS school at least through this round of western conference realignment.
Rodney Hammond Jr. spent his first collegiate season with former Pitt wide receivers coach Brennan Marion, and now he’ll spend his last with Marion.
Hammond — a 5-foot-9, 200-pound running back from Booker T. Washington in Norfolk, Va. — committed to Sacramento State on Sunday night, Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports reported. He entered the transfer portal earlier this month, which wasn’t an unexpected outcome to his career in Pittsburgh.
Sacramento State hired Marion, who served as the Pitt wide receivers coach in 2021, Texas wide receivers coach in 2022 and UNLV offensive coordinator in 2023-24, as its next head coach earlier this week.
It’s a nice landing spot for Hammond, who will join an offensive scheme that takes advantage of his skillset on the ground and through the air.
Hammond initially committed to Pitt as a three-star recruit in the class of 2021, earning playing time immediately as a true freshman. He showed flashes during his tenure in Pittsburgh, but for whatever reason (coaching decisions or a team-imposed suspension), he wasn’t able to put it all together.
He was suspended at the start of this season, missing the first four games of the season, but he was reinstated before the North Carolina game. He played in just four games — deciding to sit out and preserve his eligibility after playing four games.
Pepperdine picked a bad year to load up on Big West schools. The Aggies (7-4) are the fifth Big West squad to meet the Waves (5-7), who are 0-4 vs. the conference this season. Stefan Todorovic had 32 points in a losing cause to Long Beach State the other night, raising his season scoring average to 20.0. Todorovic shoots .403 from the 3-point line and has 65 free throw attempts, making 87.7% of them. This is the last D1 non-conference game for Davis, which has won 4 straight contests.