UCSD Expected to Announce Joining the Big West on Monday SAC State was an affiliate member for baseball, and I believe they still are for soccer.
There are fewer sports at CSUS, and their athletics program gets money from the state (whereas UCD's relies entirely on donations). The trade-off there is the govt. gets to meddle as much as it wants. Of course the on- campus athletics facilities are smaller, mostly pre- Vietnam War (except for the stickball sports). They've been there so long Tom Hanks probably thought they were old when he was a student. Hey- oh !
But the thing is when you have a smaller program that doesn't spend millions of dollars on a 1 win field hockey team (especially when you already have a run down the field with a stick making other women less pretty sport), and have small, outdated facilities that don't require as much upkeep you have money for things like lights for your baseball stadium and travel for your teams, so more trade- offs I guess.
While we're at it, why not invite Cal State Monterey Bay ? No one will root against the otters. If you do you hate animals !