The Ags fell a game short of a .500 season going 27-28 including 13-17 in conference. They were 15-13 at home 12-15 away.

High praise for Ylan Esso-Essis from Jim Les:

"We are thrilled to announce the addition of Ylan to the UC Davis Men's Basketball program," Les said. "Ylan is a highly skilled wing with a rare combination of size, skill, and basketball IQ. Standing at 6'8", he brings a dynamic presence to the court—able to handle the ball, create opportunities for himself and his teammates, and stretch the floor with his elite shooting range, making him a serious matchup problem for opponents.

"What sets Ylan apart isn't just his physical tools or offensive versatility—it's his mindset. His passion for the game and relentless work ethic make him a true gym rat, and that hunger to improve is what gives him one of the highest ceilings of any player I've coached in 24 years. We can't wait to see the impact Ylan will make as an Aggie. Welcome to UC Davis, Ylan!"

https://ucdavisaggies.com/news/2025/5/16/ylan-esso-essis-to-join-mens-basketball-program.aspx

Marion adds another former 4 star high school recruit who had offers from many of the top P4 schools in the country. LB/DE Dylan Gooden, who is the son of former MLB pitcher, Dwight Gooden, has transferred to Sac from Maryland. ESPN ranked Gooden as the #29 DE in the nation when he originally committed to Maryland.

Marsh is going to really be challenged this season — Oldbanduhalum

No kidding...I was tongue tied when I told my wife about these new recruits!

It looks like we got us a 3 point shooter with the size to play above the rim as well!

In 2023, Texas A&M WR transfer, Ernest Campbell, ran a 10.22 second 100 meter dash which is the 6th fastest 100 meter time in Texas high school history.

https://aggieswire.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/aggies/recruiting/2023/07/16/2024-4-star-wide-receiver-ernest-campbell-texas-am-football/77801450007/

There is a video included in the Sac Bee article that I can't find a way to copy and post but Orr also talks about a whole section of seats at one end of the court that will be reserved for donors and VIP's. The video ends by saying that Woods and Orr immediately left to meet with donors in southern California immediately after the tour of the Well.

Who knows...but I think they must have a bucket of it somewhere given all of these 4 and 5 star FBS transfers that Marion has brought in.

I really like the recruiting class that Les has brought in so far and I'm excited to see these new Ags in action this fall. It feels like we are building towards being ready for the move to the MWC in 2026. I wonder if we have any more scholarships available for this year or if we're done now?

Article from the Sac Bee yesterday by Joe Davidson:

Mike Bibby and Campus Leaders Abuzz on Tour of Sac State’s New Basketball Venue

They were handing out hard hats and bright green vests on Friday morning, required garb for any construction site, including a quick tour of a work in progress at Sacramento State.

The renovation project for a long-needed, bigger basketball venue on campus is no longer rumor and speculation. It’s happening, and it serves as the backdrop of the rolling momentum for the men’s basketball team that has been buzzing with former Sacramento Kings star guard Mike Bibby taking over as head coach and Hall of Fame great Shaquille O’Neal accepting the program’s general manager post in an unpaid, voluntary position.

Bibby and O’Neal have been friends for years, never mind their fierce rivalry days in the NBA in the early 2000s, when the Kings-Lakers playoff showdowns made for rich global entertainment. That pairing makes for quite a dynamic as the Hornets aim to produce a winner in a sport that has managed just two winning seasons since moving from Division II to Division I in 1991.

The venue, located just past the north end zone of Hornet Stadium, has been busy with activity for months. The new floor covered is covered by plyboard sheets to hold materials, new 24-second shot clocks and equipment. Expected to be ready by summer, the pavilion will feature 3,200 seats, two big video boards and other trappings that sparkle in rendering images.

The days of the Hornets basketball teams competing in the 73-year old Nest, a charming yet outdated 1,000-seat venue, are over. The Nest will remain as a practice venue and be used for other sports, but it will no longer be labeled as the poorest Division I basketball venue in the country.

“Big improvement,” Sacramento State president Luke Wood said Friday. “No more lipstick for a pig.”

The pig reference was from when Wood said in a November 2023 interview with The Sacramento Bee that all the new green paint in the tired old Nest was nothing short of putting “lipstick on a pig.”

On Friday, Wood along with Hornets athletic director Mark Orr, Bibby and Otto Construction project manager Corbin Martin took The Bee on a venue tour of the new home court.

“It’s a sign of progress,” Orr said. “We’ve needed this for years. It’s the evolution of the program. Since I was a kid growing up here in Sacramento, Sac State has always been looking for a sustainable venue. We will finally have it, and our school and our student-athletes deserve it. We want to maximize the student experience.”

A moment later, Orr pointed to the ceiling to announce: “Look! We even have air conditioning!”

Hornets Want a Rabid Home Setting

Bibby was radiant in peering into the venue and into future.

He envisions a Duke-like atmosphere in this pavilion, to channel some of the decades-long love affair that Sacramento has showered on the Kings into this venture. He can see students and fans standing, cheering, stomping in this venue during games, and having to shout during time outs to be heard above the noise.

Bibby has 12 newly signed players on board, mostly through the transfer portal. He has former Kings strength and conditioning coach Al Biancani on his staff to get players in tip-top shape. Bibby wants to pressure teams on defense and to “run teams out of the gym”, adding, “We’re going to be exciting, and 3,200 seats may not be enough.”

The project has been anchored by the relentless efforts of Wood and Orr, experts in rubbing elbows and working a crowd and the phones. Sacramento State in late 2023 announced that funding for an events center in The Well fitness and health facility had been approved. Wood thought this was a more feasible plan of a basketball venue than trying to raise some $100 million for a brand-new arena on campus, which could take years. Wood doesn’t want years. He wants now.

In late 2023, the Board of Directors for the nonprofit that runs The Well and Sac State’s University Union hall unanimously approved a resolution to provide up to $5.2 million from reserves for the project. Wood and Orr said their phone lines are open for potential signage and sponsorships. The two hustled off to the airport Friday morning to meet with donors in Southern California.

Who’s Playing at The Well?

Sac State’s current roster has no holdover players from last season’s 7-25 campaign. Turnover like this is common as athletic scholarships are a year-to-year deal, and college sports has become something of a turnstile of players coming and going. The Sacramento State football program has brought in national-leading 50 players through the portal, with more coming, under first-year coach Brennan Marion.

Bibby vowed to bring in big names when he was hired. His first big name addition was Shaq’s son Shaqir O’Neal, a 6-foot-8 forward who will be a senior this season after transferring from Florida A&M.

Another four-star prep prospect now in the program is 6-3 guard Mikey Williams, who scored a San Diego Section-record 77 points in a high school game as a freshman. He later accepted a scholarship to Memphis and wound up at UCF, where last season he played in 18 games and missed 19 due to injury.

Taj Glover, the son of retired NBA player Dion Glover, is a 6-3 guard who transferred from South Florida. Jahni Summers is a 6-6 guard who comes from Indiana State. Jeremiah Cherry is a 6-11 post from UNLV, and Brandon Gardner is a 6-8 forward from USC. In a dunk contest in Los Angeles, Gardner soared over eventual NFL No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, now a quarterback with the Chicago Bears.

There is also a local flavor on the revamped roster. Sacramento Bee Player of the Year Mark Lavrenov, a 6-8 forward, was signed by the previous Hornets coaching staff and appears to be the sort of player Bibby wants — fundamentally sound, versatile, easy to coach and tough-minded.

Former Capital Christian High School of Sacramento star Jayden Treat is a 6-2 guard who transferred in from the Utah Utes. He played three seasons at Jesuit before his transfer to Capital Christian, today known as Destiny Christian Academy.

Bibby said he expects to sign three more player to fill out the roster at 15. He said that the emails that pour into the basketball office include hundreds of video clips from players from across the country.

Bibby feels the buzz because he’s a big part of that buzz.

“We’re giving guys an opportunity to play, to get coached up,” Bibby said. “We can do big things here.”

https://www.sacbee.com/sports/college/article306007126.html

He is slender for sure but he's quick, can get up and down the floor fast and can leap. I think his quickness and leaping ability can help him become a disruptive, rim protector while staying out of foul trouble.

I watched a couple of short highlights videos of Noudjihidi on Hudl and he's long, very athletic and runs the floor really well for a 6'11 post. He looks like he could be an elite defender with the ability to score close to the rim and has a lot of growth potential.

Good points. It's hard for FCS programs to land WR's with both size and speed. The P4 programs gobble them up especially now that they can legally pay them big NIL money. I like having smaller receivers with blazing speed who can run great routes, create separation and get yards after the catch with their speed and quickness.

Marion continues to recruit at a breakneck pace. According to 247 Sports, he has secured 16 hard commits already for 2026 and has given out a mind-boggling 384 offers! No wonder they have such a large coaching and support staff for football. Can you imagine the time and effort it must take to make contact with this many potential recruits?

2026 Commits:

https://247sports.com/college/sacramento-state/season/2026-football/commits/

2026 Offers by Position:

QB - 8
RB - 17
WR - 68
TE - 11
OT - 27
OL - 27
Edge - 31
DL - 41
LB - 27
CB - 44
S -22
Athlete - 61

https://247sports.com/college/sacramento-state/season/2026-football/offers/

Jaden Rashada breaks silence on lengthy transfer process, Sacramento State pick: 'I had more pure intentions'
Brennan Marion's Hornets have cleared the runway for Rashada to be QB1 in Sacramento

Jaden Rashada's college recruitment has been under a microscope since he announced his commitment to Miami almost three years ago. The decorated quarterback from the 2023 recruiting class has become one of the most recognizable faces and cautionary tales of the NIL era due to a series of high-profile events, which includes a fallout with Florida that resulted in a lawsuit against, among others, coach Billy Napier.

"We are definitely in on (Jaden) being our guy," Marion told CBS Sports. "For us in every room, we want guys who can be draft picks, starters and stars. In every room, if you look at what we are doing in the transfer portal and what we have done with high school recruiting, every single room had that. Except for the quarterback room, we did not upgrade to the level I liked."

Whole article here: https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/jaden-rashada-breaks-silence-on-lengthy-transfer-process-sacramento-state-pick-i-had-more-pure-intentions/

Georgia QB Jaden Rashada sues Florida coach Billy Napier, among others, over botched $13.85M NIL deal

Georgia quarterback Jaden Rashada has filed a lawsuit against Florida coach Billy Napier, top Gators booster Hugh Hathcock and former football staffer Marcus Castro-Walker over a failed name, image and likeness deal that would have paid the quarterback $13.85 million, according to a suit filed in federal court on Tuesday.

The bombshell lawsuit, which features the unprecedented action of an active SEC quarterback suing a sitting rival head coach, is the most notable NIL-related lawsuit to date. In many ways, Rashada became the face of the chaotic nature of early NIL that was full of big promises with little oversight on the heels of his Florida deal falling apart.

Whole article here: https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/georgia-qb-jaden-rashada-sues-florida-coach-billy-napier-among-others-over-botched-13-85m-nil-deal/

Sac's football roster includes a GM and and Assistant GM. I've never seen so many coaches and support staff on a roster. They list 30 under the heading of Coaching Staff and 9 more under Football Support Staff.

Basketball is showing 6 Coaches and 6 Support Staff.

https://hornetsports.com/sports/football/roster

https://hornetsports.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster

It will be interesting to see if Mani will reach his potential at Fresno State. He was injured a lot here and, when he did finally get some playing time, he seemed to have a tough time with the physicality of defending in the paint. He certainly has a beautiful 3 point shot so maybe Fresno will use him as a tough matchup on the perimeter.

Quite a pitching duel! I looked at the box score and the game started at 6:06 pm and finished at 10:52 pm...4 hours and 46 minutes long with a good crowd of 1885 in attendance. I wonder how many stayed until the end?

The Aggies are now 22-23 overall and 9-13 in the BW with 10 games to go. I'm sure they'd like to finish above .500 for the season. Go Ags!