George Soros does not live in California. Is he your go-to bogeyman?

Ooops...I thought they thanked "the Soros family" when they were having a team prayer at the house was that had the big swimming pool. My bad...didn't't do my homework...

The most interesting part of it for me was Marion talking about his growing up poor and how football was his way out of the hood — BlueGoldAg

Bingo. This is exactly what I saw too. He is going after the market of kids who can play sports but may not have strong grades. Its pretty genius if you think about it. We value education so much and chase academic rankings we forget access can be a high hurdle. SACST can be the D1 school for the everyday student. Don't need to be top of your class to come here...I think he has a very interesting idea.

Athletes do not need to be top of class to attend UC Davis. They need to be about in the top half, not counting exceptions. That makes Davis unusual.

There are at least 100 schools with football programs that will admit any athlete with a mental pulse, Sac State has not discovered an ignored market,.

Quote from one of the players was, "...and beat UC Davis for sure...I can't stand UC Davis..." — BlueGoldAg

Rent free. Love to see it.

Davis and all schools in California are pretty highly academically ranked, which is great. Offering an alternative much like many states like Alabama, Florida, Texas, Ohio, etc would be a good thing for California. Let’s see how it turns out for them.

I, for one, think Sac is really going to be strong this season. See a lot of talent being integrated quickly, and with the GoGo hitting the field in Year 1 for the Big Sky -- like Plough did in Year 1 -- I think it'll be very creative and tough to stop early and often. Whatever league Sac is in in 2026, I think it'll be tougher for the Hornets, because it'll be a higher echelon of talent to compete against and there will be a full year of tape for teams to analyze...but this season, 2025, I see Sac as being a team to far exceed expectations even with all the new personnel.

I imagine Coombs has been dissecting UNLV tape quite a bit since the announcement of Coach Marion coming to Sac.

We'll just have to see if Marion is a HC. Head Coaching ain't for everyone. Sometimes it doesn't work out. He's a great recruiter though.....Davis had high hopes for a first-time HC not too long ago (who coincidently was a great recruiter).

The situation is different I know - CFB is completely different - Marion has been able to bring in an entirely new team. Still, he has to get these guys to play together and know what they are doing on the field for an entire game. And, he has to make HC decisions. Time will tell.

I haven’t seen a convincing argument made that justifies Sac being projected to finish in the middle of the pack like both the Big Sky coaches and media polls. Sac clearly brought in more talent than they lost to transfers, and few teams in the Big Sky did. Picking them behind teams that got decimated by transfers and also have largely new coaching staffs like Idaho is inexplicable. Given that their league schedule is favorable, playing Montana and Idaho at home and not playing Montana State they are definitely a contender.

I was just over talking to my USC buddies and was shocked about how much they liked what SACST is doing. I guess Scott Schrader and the LA high schools are starting to see SACST down there way more than ever before. This is pretty significant because USC never talks about anyone other than elite schools.

They were really liking the idea of another California school for local kids to play which allows them to stay in California.

I assure you that I am well connected to USC (I wish I could really tell you but it would blow my cover) and they are not talking about Sac St.

unless your in my friend group that isn’t a great statement to make. That being said, what was discussed by recruiters is the name SACST is being seen and discussed like never before in Southern California high schools.

What they may like is that Sac State might keep one or two LA high school players from going to another BIG10 or an SEC school, and coming back to haunt the Trojans. Remember that USC cancelled a contract to play UC Davis in 2021...and happily paid to do so.

Sac State very probably won't be on the Trojan schedule anytime soon, so the Hornets are no threat.

My apologies. I read your statement wrong. No, I am not part of your friend group. I thought you wrote that your friends are somehow connected to the USC athletic department.

It's ok. I have many friends in SoCal who are around recruiting. Catching up and having some beers the other day, the topic of SACST came up without any prompt from me. Which I found interesting. That's all.

They’re chasing an undefeated season to build momentum—bold move, high stakes, and pressure thick enough to slice with a playbook. But with the right coach and the talent to match, it’s doable. Still, like I’ve said before … if they stumble against JV-level teams, finish worse than 12-0, and don’t make a serious FCS playoff run… we’re not talking a minor hiccup—we’re talking full-blown disaster.

Oh, and If they go 12-0 and make a deep FCS playoff run, their coaches and players are gone faster than free beer at a SACST tailgate. It’s the classic lose-lose: win too much, and you lose everyone who made it happen.

I don't know. You are right if they stumble and this falls apart it might be curtains, but something tells me there is more to the story. There are some big backer at SACST (SHAQ is huge) and if they come out hot this could gain momentum pretty fast. Add Mike Bibby and the basketball team following up and this thing has legs. Look at their first two games on their schedule:

@SD State
@ Nevada

If they come out with a 2-0 record the only teams I see them having a chance to lose is Montana and Davis.

If they stay and try to build something, which is possible with NIL. this could be very interesting. I love it only because we need a strong rival to elevate our program.

I respect that sac is doing all it can to succeed in a recruiting theory the way Marion thinks is the right way.but I think Plough way should recruit much differently, the way of the Bushido. The Eight Virtues of the Warriors Way. We want players who respect:
Righteousness
Courage
Benevolence
Respect
Integrity
Honor
Loyalty
Self-control

It never hurt that Sochor went with the zen philosophy on the field. It becomes a way of life. Just ask Kenny O’Brian

You may be right about people getting excited if they win their first two games, but South Dakota State is an unknown quantity since their coaching staff and 20+ players left for the FBS. And Nevada has also been plundered after being a cellar dweller last year. Hard to say they proved they’re ready to join a conference by beating a team that was winless in that conference.
I do expect Sac to win games, but so what? They were 12-1 in 2022. Their record is not why they didn’t get a conference invite.

You know, if they win out...we win out...that could be one hell of a Causeway Classic! Who knows, maybe nationally televised game! Now we really are both going to get free publicity.

I think we are going to benefit from what SACST is doing. I've just not figured the how just yet.

re:the video, I noticed Marion telling players to “trust the program …. “ and that “some of you guys have gone sideways”. Seems that it would be difficult to trust a program that is less than a year old (with no games played yet) and where many (or all) claims have not eventuated and are ringing hollow. It is good that he stated that success doesn’t come without hard work, but then later in the recruiting clip has all of those very expensive cars lined up as eye candy (I noted that the editor missed a recruit dropping a MF bomb in that segment. Maybe that is a feature and not a bug).

He quite poignantly says now football was a way out for him - yet 95% or more of his players won’t make the NFL. An occasional “study hard” or “attend to your coursework and get a degree for your future” would be nice. Maybe he does communicate that but it is sure not evident in the tenor of the video.

A lot of DI athletes are pawns.

Agreed, especially in football and basketball. Use them and forget them.

They aren't FCS playoff eligible.

the other thing is that teams will step it up to beat them. Other Big Sky teams probably have their game circled so I expect them to lose 1 game that they shouldn't.

Sac is playoff eligible still because their waiver to start their transition to FBS.without a conference invite was denied.

4

it seems despite the not so impassioned speeches from these two legislators, the SCORE bill moved procedurally closer to the House floor, though the path is less clear in the Senate. The bill provides some ground rules for NIL, some protections to athletes from bad deals, some litigation cover for the NCAA, and clarifies athletes as non-employees. Various agendas have created some odd bedfellows in congress and statehouses for sure, though I think the argument that arbitrary NCAA rules are denying the Sacramento valley a major economic boom is weak.