SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento State athletics department awarded its 2013-14 broadcast rights to KTKZ 1380 AM The Answer, it was announced today.

The package will include live broadcasts of every Hornet football and men’s basketball game, as well as a 30-minute pregame show during the football season. Broadcasts will also be streamed live and free on iHeart radio and on www.hornetsports.com.

KTKZ previously held Sacramento State’s broadcast rights for seven straight years from 1999-2006.

“We are pleased to renew our relationship with KTKZ,” Sacramento State Director of Athletics Terry Wanless said. “They were great partners in the past, and we look forward to an exciting future with them. This is a new opportunity for us to share the excitement of Hornet football and basketball with our fans, and we are very appreciative of Salem Communications for partnering with us on this endeavor.”

The move to KTKZ allows the Hornets athletics department to broadcast its football and men’s basketball games on the same station for the first time in three years, and places Sacramento State athletics on a station that effectively covers the Sacramento metropolitan area as well as its surrounding communities.

“On behalf of Salem Communications and 1380 The Answer, we are proud to partner again with Sacramento State to broadcast Hornet football and basketball,” 1380 The Answer Sports Director Phil Getman said. “As demonstrated by a five year contract, there is a serious commitment to the growth of Hornet Athletics with these radio rights. We look forward to a successful relationship and the community will have a consistent branding of both the Sacramento State Hornets and 1380 AM The Answer.”

The broadcast schedule begins with the football season opener at San Jose State on Thursday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. Like every game, there will be a 30-minute pregame show featuring interviews with players and coaches as well as a preview of the day’s game.

The broadcasting tandem of Jason Ross and Steve McElroy, as well as sideline reporter Danny Sullivan, will return to broadcast Hornet football. The 2013 football season will mark the 17th straight year that McElroy and Ross have been the “Voice of the Hornets” with Ross handling the play-by-play duties and McElroy adding color commentary.

During the men’s basketball season, McElroy will work as the team’s play-by-play man for the 17th straight year. The basketball broadcast schedule begins on Friday, Nov. 8, when the Hornets host UC Santa Cruz in the season opener.