Hornets looking to finish on top in the Big Sky Conference
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The capital of California may not be thought of as a college football town to most. The Sacramento Kings and semi-professional Sacramento Republic FC and Sacramento Rivercats, the triple-A affiliate for the San Francisco Giants, may be better known sports exports.
But don’t tell that to the Sacramento State football program, who currently sit second in the Big Sky Conference, one game behind Montana State.
The Hornets are up to No. 15 in the FCS poll with about a month left in the regular season.
They haven’t lost in conference play yet and blanked Northern Arizona University 44-0 on Oct. 23, 2021. According to the Big Sky Conference, Sacramento State Jake Dunniway recorded his third 300-plus yard passing game of the season and two touchdowns.
The sophomore quarterback from Tracy, California, has 10 touchdowns on the season, 1,417 passing yards and is averaging 202.4 yards per game. Junior quarterback Asher O’Hara is also contributing to the Hornet’s offensive success with six rushing touchdowns in the red zone. O’Hara had 82 yards passing and one touchdown and 32 yards rushing and one touchdown against Northern Arizona.
The team are protecting their quarterbacks as well. The offensive line has only allowed one sack in each of the last three games.
One bright spot for the Hornets’ rushing game is Cameron Skattebo. The freshman running back from the Sacramento area Rio Linda High School ran for 117 yards on 10 attempts and one touchdown.
The Hornets are posting an impressive 471.4 total yards per game, have 10 total rushing touchdowns on the season and have nine defensive interceptions. They’re defensive is solid, ranking second in the conference against the rush and third against passing.
The Hornets are led by senior defensive lineman Josiah Erickson with 24 tackles and six sacks. Three other defensive players have 20-plus tackles on the season.
According to the Sacramento State school newspaper, The State Hornet, the team’s secondary is red hot with five consecutive weeks with at least one interception. The paper also notes that Sac State’s next opponent, Northern Colorado, is coached by Ed McCaffrey, father of Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey, and his brothers Max McCaffrey, the offensive coordinator for Northern Colorado, and graduate student quarterback Dylan McCaffrey.
Look for Sacramento State to finish the season contending for a Big Sky Conference title. Winning the conference would be their second championship in three seasons. The Hornets will end the season against crosstown rivals UC Davis on Nov. 20.
This is an unedited user writing submission. The views, information, or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Best Version Media or its employees.