Sacramento State Issues Statement Urging D-I Council to Approve Transition to FBS

The Hornets are aiming to make the leap from FCS next summer.

Sacramento State celebrates a touchdown during a matchup against Stanford in 2023. / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Sacramento State would like to take its football program to the next level.

The university is set to ditch the Big Sky Conference and join the Big West in every sport but football next summer, taking a gamble to make the leap from FCS and reclassify as an independent FBS school in 2026.

The decision on whether or not to approve Sacramento State's waiver request to join FBS is ultimately up to the Division I Council. However, last week the NCAA Football Oversight Committee recommended the Division I Council should deny the waiver. A decision is expected in the coming days.

Sacramento State president Luke Wood issued a statement Wednesday, asking the Division I Council to grant the school's waiver despite the committee's recommendation.

"This is bigger than football," the statement reads. "Sacramento State's move to FBS would be transformative not just for our university, but for our city and our entire region. Major college football in Sacramento would drive economic growth, increase enrollment, attract investment and elevate both school pride and national visibility."

Woods also went after the committee's reasoning for its recommendation.

"The rationale, that a lack of a conference invite 'signals readiness,' is flawed," the statement reads. "In a normal situation this rationale would make sense, except for we are located in a part of the country that has limited FBS conference options. The only reason we don't have an invite is geography. Multiple FBS commissioners and presidents who are outside our region have told us directly they would welcome Sacramento State, but cannot make the travel work."

Sacramento State has been an FCS program since 1993. They have made four appearances in the FCS playoffs, most recently in 2023, when it went 8-5 before falling to South Dakota in the second round.

---

More College Football on Sports Illustrated

feed