A BRIEF PREVIEW

• For the final time this regular season, the Sacramento State football team will take to the field at Hornet Stadium as it hosts Cal Poly on Saturday, Nov. 11, at 2 p.m. Prior to the game, the Hornets will recognize 17 seniors who will be competing for the final time in a home game.
• Sacramento State dropped to 6-3 overall and 3-3 in Big Sky games with a 34-7 loss at No. 4 Montana last Saturday. The Hornets scored the first points of the game but was unable to slow a Montana offense which amassed over 500 yards of offense. All three losses for Sacramento State this season have come against teams currently ranked in the top five of the FCS polls.
• The Hornets dropped to ninth in this week's Stats Perform FCS media poll and fell to 11th in the AFCA FCS coaches poll.
• Hornet fans can tune in to ESPN 1320 AM to hear the radio call of Dave Lewis, Steve McElroy and Danny Sullivan. Live audio streaming is also available via www.hornetsports.com and the Audacy app.
• The game will also be aired on KMAX31 and ESPN+. Jason Ross (play-by-play) and Darren Arbet (color) will bring the action.

OPPONENT PREVIEW: CAL POLY

• Cal Poly is 3-6 overall and 1-5 in conference games. The Mustangs lost at Eastern Washington last Saturday, 48-13. EWU jumped out to a 35-2 lead in the first half and was never tested in the game. Cal Poly finished with a touchdown and three safeties.
• Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Huard leads the Mustang offense. Huard, who was one of the top high school QBs in the country two years ago, has thrown for 1,565 yards and 14 touchdowns with six interceptions in six games. His favorite target has been Giancarlo Woods who leads the team with 36 receptions for 354 yards and four scores. Slot receiver Tyrece Fairly-Diyen also has four TD catches to go along with 29 receptions for a team-high 418 yards. Mark Biggins is the top rusher with 270 yards and two touchdowns.
• Linebacker David Meyer leads the team with 48 tackles. Rush end Elijah Ponder has lived in the backfield this year with 11 tackles-for-loss, including eight sacks.
• Cal Poly is coached by Paul Wulff who is in his first year in the position. Wulff has been the head coach at Eastern Washington and Washington State and was also an assistant coach at Sacramento State. Co-Defensive Coordinator Will Plemmons was also a former Hornet assistant for two different tenures.

SENIOR SEND OFF

• Prior to the start of Saturday's game, Sacramento State will recognize 17 seniors who will be appearing  at Hornet Stadium for the final time in a regular season game.
• Among the group are 11 players who have spent their entire collegiate career at Sacramento State. On the other side, Ashton Moultire is in his first season with the Hornets.
• The senior class includes five players who have earned all-Big Sky honors, including three who have been first team selections. Tight end Marshel Martin has been a two-time first team selection as well as an FCS All-American. He was joined in the first team last year by linebacker Armon Bailey. Defensive tackle Jett Stanley and cornerback Caleb Nelson were named to the second team. Running back Marcus Fulcher was selected to the third team in 2022.
• Nine members of the class have already earned their bachelor's degree from Sacramento State.

Below is a complete list of the 2023 senior class:
No.    Name    Pos.    Hometown
0    Carlos Hill    WR    Miami, Fla.
1    Caleb Nelson    CB    Roseville, Calif.
3    Dillon Juniel    CB    Sacramento, Calif.
4    Armon Bailey    LB    Vallejo, Calif.
9    Marcus Fulcher    RB    Fresno, Calif.
10    Brock Mather    LB    Ridgecrest, Calif.
11    Parker Clayton    WR    Folsom, Calif.
13    Jeremy Harris    LB    Simi Valley, Calif.
16    Marshel Martin IV    TE    Vallejo, Calif.
21    Kylen Ross    S    Los Angeles, Calif.
42    Ashton Moultrie    S    Fresno, Calif.
53    Jordan Stanley    OL    Brentwood, Calif.
55    Jett Stanley    DL    Brentwood, Calif.
71    Troy Stiefel    OL    Yorba Linda, Calif.
81    Tao McClinton    WR    Seattle, Wash.
88    Charlie McBride    TE    Rocklin, Calif.
93    Tyler Hardeman    DL    Cameron Park, Calif.

RANKINGS REHASH

• For just the third time in school history, Sacramento State began the season ranked among the top 25 in the FCS preseason polls. The only other times the Hornets started the season in the top 25 came in 2011 when the team was 24th in the Stats poll and last season where the team debuted at seventh.
• This week marks the 36th time since the start of the 2019 season that the team has been ranked in the top 25 and the 28th consecutive game. Prior to that season, the team only played seven games as a ranked squad between 1993-2018.
• The Hornets were picked third by the Big Sky head coaches in the preseason poll and fourth by the media. Montana State was selected to finish first in both the coaches and media polls.

BOUNCE BACK ABILITY

• Since the start of 2019, Sacramento State is 6-1 following a regular season loss.
• The team's first loss in 2019 came at Arizona State (19-7) and was followed by a 50-0 home win over Northern Colorado. The next week, the Hornets dropped a 34-20 game at Fresno State but responded with a 48-27 victory at home over Eastern Washington.
• In 2021, Sacramento State lost its home opener to UNI (36-14) and then fell at Cal (42-30) for its only two-game losing streak in the last four seasons. The Hornets got back on track the following week with a 23-21 win at Idaho State.
• After extending its regular season winning streak to 23 games, Sacramento State lost at Idaho (36-27). The Hornets picked up a win the following week after defeating Northern Arizona (31-30). Sacramento State bounced back from a loss to Montana State with a dominating win over Idaho State (51-16).
• The last time Sacramento State lost back-to-back Big Sky Conference games came in 2018 when the Hornets went 0-7 (one game was canceled due to air quality).

THE MAGIC NUMBER

• Both Sacramento State enters this week's game needing one more victory to reach seven wins against NCAA Div. I opponents this year. That number has historically been the mark needed to guarantee a berth into the FCS Playoffs.
• The Hornets are one of 37 teams who can win at least seven games against Div. I opponents this year. Top-ranked South Dakota State is the only team to have nine D1 victories this year while Furman has eight.
• There are 10 automatic qualifiers to the FCS Playoffs comprised of the winners of the Big Sky, Big South, CAA, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Patriot, Pioneer, SoCon, Southland and United conferences. The remainder of the field is made up of 14 at-large bids.
• The FCS Playoff field will be announced at 9:30 a.m. PT on Nov. 19 on ESPNU. The top eight teams will be seeded and receive a first round bye. The remaining 16 teams will play their opening game on Saturday, Nov. 25.
• Sacramento State is seeking its fourth consecutive FCS Playoff appearance. The Hornets have been seeded the previous three times and moved on to the quarterfinals last year for the first time.

PART OF HISTORY

• Despite being credited with a season-low four tackles in the loss at Montana, linebacker Armon Bailey moved up to 18th place in school history with 205 career tackles. Against the Griz, Bailey had one solo and three assisted stops. That halted a streak in which he had five or more tackles in 10 nine consecutive games and 17 of the past 18 dating back to last season.
• On his current average of 8.11 tackles per game, Bailey will move past four more former players on the career tackle list and into 14th place.
• Bailey leads the Hornets with 73 total tackles this season. His average places him 53rd in the Big Sky this season and 53rd in the FCS.
• The Vallejo, Calif., native has four games with at least 10 tackles in 2023 all of which came in a five game stretch. His first double digit came at Stanford where he had a career high 11 stops. He matched that total a week later at Idaho and then had 10 tackles against Northern Arizona. After finishing with eight tackles at Northern Colorado, he had 12 tackles against Montana State. He became the first Hornet since Austin Clark in 2017 to have three consecutive games with double digit tackles. During the last six games, Bailey is averaging 9.7 tackles per game.
• Bailey tallied a team-leading 88 tackles last season. He had at least four tackles in all 13 games and had five or more in 10 games. That stretch included three consecutive games with nine tackles.
• The senior was named first team all-Big Sky in 2022 and was a preseason all-conference choice prior to this year.

Career Tackles    Total    Needs
13. Camron Mbewa (2000-03)    236    31
14. Ramon Payne (2001-04)    212    7
T15. Carlos Williams (1996-99)    210    5
T15. Marcus Bruce (2015-19)    210    5
17. Jeff Badger (2009-12)    206    1
18. Armon Bailey (2018-pres.)    205    ---

AMONG THE BEST TO EVER DO IT

• With three receptions at Montana, tight end Marshel Martin has caught multiple passes in four consecutive games and six of the last seven. The senior has at least one reception in 44 of 45 career games in which he has appeared. His lone exception was last season's contest against Idaho where he played one snap.
• Martin set his season bests in the win over Idaho State where he caught six passes for 103 yards and scored his first touchdown of the year. The yardage total was easily the best for Martin this season, surpassing his previous high of 32 yards at Northern Colorado. His receptions also matched his output from that game. Jared Gipson is the only other player on the team to go over 100 receiving yards in a game this year with 108 yards against Northern Arizona.
• Martin now has six career 100-yard receiving games. He had two in 2021 before three last season. Last year's efforts included back-to-back games with over 100 yards in the FCS Playoffs as he had 10 catches for 149 yards against Richmond and 12 receptions for 144 yards against Incarnate Word.
• After suffering an injury on the opening drive of the season at Nicholls, Martin was limited for the majority of the first half of the season. He did not play against Texas A&M-Commerce and saw reduced action at Stanford and Idaho and against NAU. Over the last three games, he has 18 receptions for 154 yards (8.6 yards per rec.).
• Martin landed on every preseason FCS All-America team this offseason after being named to the second team by The Associated Press, Stats Perform and the AFCA in 2022. Martin led the team with 879 receiving yards, 65 receptions and 12 receiving touchdowns.
• The senior has now accumulated more receptions (182), receiving yards (2,284) and receiving touchdowns (26) than any other non-wide receiver in school history.
• Martin was named first team all-Big Sky in 2021 and was a second team All-American by the AFCA. He was recognized by HERO Sports as a Freshman All-American in 2019 and a Sophomore All-American in 2021. Martin was also a preseason all-Big Sky choice and preseason All-American heading into 2022.

Career Receiving Yards    Total    Needs
3.    DeAndre Carter (2011-14)    2,760    476
4.    Morris Norrise (2010-13)    2,650    366
5.    Marshel Martin (2019-pres.)    2,284    ---

Career Receiving Touchdowns    Total    Needs
1.    DeAndre Carter (2011-14)    35    9
2.     Fred Amey (2001-04)    27    1
3.     Marshel Martin (2019-pres.)    26    ---

Career Receptions    Total    Needs
3.    DeAndre Carter (2011-14)    207    25
T4. Pierre Williams (2018-22)    182    ---
T4. Marshel Martin (2019-pres.)    182    ---

KNOCKING ON THE DOOR

• Marcus Fulcher saw his first significant playing time in six weeks and responded with 11 carries for 87 yards and a touchdown against Montana. Fulcher's yardage total surpassed the Griz average of 66 rushing yards allowed in the team's previous Big Sky games.
• Fulcher leads the team with an average of 57.0 rushing yards per game. That mark is skewed by the Montana State game where he had just two carries before having to leave with an injury. The senior has rushed for over 70 yards against Nicholls, Texas A&M-Commerce and Montana.
• The senior's five rushing touchdowns are the most on the team. Fulcher scored two rushing TDs in the season opener at Nicholls and added a rushing score against Texas A&M-Commerce, Idaho and Montana. He also had receiving TDs at Stanford and Idaho to give him seven total touchdowns this season.

Career Rushing Yards    Total    Needs
18. John Scorza (1967-68)    1,357    156
19. Ed Bueno (1988-89)    1,259    58
20. Kevin Thomson (2017-19)    1,247    46
---    Marcus Fulcher (2019-pres.)    1,201    ---

Career Rushing Touchdowns    Total    Needs
9.    Kevin Thomson (2017-19)    21    5
T10. Marcus Fulcher (2019-pres.)    16    ---
T10. Garrett Safron (2011-14)    16    ---
T10. Tyronne Gross (2000-04)    16    ---
T10. Garrett White (1999-2002)    16    ---

MAKING THE MOST OF HIS CHANCE

• Junior Gavin Davis-Smith took advantage of his start at nickelback at Montana by recording a couple of career firsts. Davis-Smith led Sacramento State with a career-high 11 tackles, including his first career sack.
• Davis-Smith had four solo and seven assisted tackles against the Griz. He became the third Hornet this season to finish with double-digit stops in a game, joining Armon Bailey and Cameron Broussard. Davis-Smith's previous career high was nine tackles against Utah Tech last season.
• Nickelback has been a rotating door for Sacramento State this season. The trouble began in July when Davion Ross tore his Achilles' tendon. Jace O'Hara missed the opening game with a knee injury and was replaced by Darian Pollard. Pollard broke his finger at Nicholls and gave way to Davis-Smith for the next two games. O'Hara returned at Idaho and lasted for two games before a second knee injury. Pollard came back for three games but missed the Montana game.

GETTING OVER THE HILL

• Carlos Hill continued his breakout season with a team-high four receptions for 53 yards at Montana. The senior now has 30 receptions for 424 yards and three touchdowns this season which places him at least tied for first in each category.
• Hill has blown past all his numbers from a year ago where he had five receptions for 73 yards without a touchdown in 12 games.
• Originally from Miami, Fla., Hill began his collegiate career at Antelope Valley JC in Lancaster, Calif. He was a unanimous all-conference selection as a sophomore with 47 passes for 737 yards and 10 touchdowns.

CREATING SOME SEPARATION

• With interceptions in back-to-back games, Kylen Ross has taken over the team lead with three picks this season. Ross' latest takeaway came at Montana where he made a diving catch to stop a drive at the Hornet 7-yard line.
• Cameron Broussard is the active leader on the team with four career interceptions. Ross is tied for second along with Dillon Juniel and Caleb Nelson.
• Sacramento State tied a school FCS-era record with four interceptions against Idaho State. The game marked the 12th time since 1993 that the team has had four interceptions in a game. The most recent occasion came against Southern Oregon in 2019. The last time the team had four picks against an FCS program was in 2017 against Incarnate Word.
• All four interceptions against the Bengals came from different players. Linebackers Brock Mather and Mitchell Wolfe as well as safeties Cameron Broussard and Kylen Ross each had an interception. Mather, Broussard and Ross each recorded their second pick of the year while Wolfe earned the first one of his career.
• Sacramento State now has 11 interceptions as a team from seven different players. The one thing missing from this year's team is a long return on an interception. The longest return by a Hornet this year is 13 yards by Broussard. Conversely, opponents have seven interceptions this year and average 24.1 yards per return with a long of 61 yards.

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED

• Part of last season's record breaking season was the unheralded play of the offensive line. The Hornets used the same starting five in all 11 regular season games and did the dirty work for a record-setting rushing performance.
• An injury to Troy Stiefel in the Causeway Classic forced Sacramento State to make a change up front for the team's two FCS Playoffs games. Overall, the Hornets used just two combinations on the offensive line for all 13 games.
• This year has been a different story as Sacramento State has already seen five unique starting fives in the trenches through the first nine games of the year. The Hornets have yet to start its anticipated starting lineup on the offensive line this season.
• Only Jackson Slater (left guard) and Nathan Mejia (center) have started all seven games at the same position. Slater has now started 30 consecutive games on the line dating back to 2019 while Mejia has 21 consecutive starts in the middle of the line.
• Ivan Garza joins the pair in starting all eight games this year but has split time at right tackle (four games) and left tackle (four games). Garza has started 31 consecutive games which is the longest streak among offensive players on the team and trails only Jett Stanley's 33-game streak among all Hornets.
• Sacramento State has counted on Aidan Meek, Troy Stiefel, Kenndel Riley, Kaden Richardson and Jordan Stanley to start games on the line this year. Meek opened the year as the starter at right tackle but suffered a broken clavicle while making a tackle on an interception return at Nicholls. He returned to the lineup to start at right guard at Northern Colorado and moved back to right tackle this past week against Montana State.
• Riley had the longest gap between starts as he was in the unit against Nicholls at right guard in the opener but was injured against the Colonels. Riley returned to the position against Montana State.
• Kaden Richardson filled in at right guard for four  games (weeks 2-5). Richardson, who is the son of offensive line coach Kris Richardson, is also the team's backup center and plays on special teams.
• Troy Stiefel is in his seventh year at Sacramento State where he has started 29 games. Stiefel missed the first two weeks of the season while recuperating from a knee injury but seized the starting position at left tackle for three games (weeks 3-5).
• Jordan Stanley rounds out the eight players who have started games on the line this year. Stanley played for the Hornets in 2019 but then left the program before returning last spring. He has started at right tackle against Texas A&M-Commerce and Northern Colorado.

MIXED RESULTS

• High winds and a slick playing surface led to Sacramento State's usually stellar special teams having its toughest game of the season last Saturday at Montana.
• Punter Cal McGough was able to match his career long during the game with a booming punt of 62 yards which was downed at the Montana 1-yard line. McGough's first attempt of the game was mishit, traveling just 33 yards and allowing Junior Bergen to have a 28-yard return for a net of just five yards. McGough finished the game with seven punts for an average of 44.6 yards per kick.
• McGough's season average of 45.19 yards per punt is on pace to break the Sacramento State single-season record of 44.91 which was set by Justin Weldon in 2013. The Hornets currently rank fourth in the FCS with a net punting average of 42.25. Idaho is the FCS national leader at 43.67 yards.
• Kicker Zach Schreiner missed both of his field goal attempts at Montana and is now 11-of-16 on the season. Schreiner remains perfect on PATs, making all 32 of his attempts. His next field goal will move him into a tie for 10th in school single season history.

Single-Season Field Goals    Total    Needs
T7. Chris DIniz (2010)    13    2
T7. Scott Brown (1998)    13    2
T7. Jim Couch (1991)    13    2
T10. Chris Diniz (2009)    12    1
T10. Juan Gamboa (2008)    12    1

QUICK HITTERS

• Sacramento State's victory at Stanford was the team's fourth over an FBS opponent since 2011. The Hornets now have wins over Oregon State (2011), Colorado (2012), Colorado State (2022) and Stanford. Only North Dakota State has more FBS victories in that span as the Bison have won five. Eastern Washington is tied with Sacramento State with four wins.
• The Hornets swept the Big Sky Players of the Week after win for the first time in school history with Kaiden Bennett (offense), Armon Bailey (defense) and Zach Schreiner (special teams) earning the  awards.
• The four sacks recorded by Northern Arizona were the most allowed by Sacramento State since 2018 (prior to Kris Richardson's arrival as o-line coach).
• Dating back to 2021, Sacramento State is 19-1 when holding the opponent under 60 percent passing. The only team to beat the Hornets when completing less than 60 percent of its passes was South Dakota State in the 2021 FCS Playoffs.
• The Hornets played 71 players in the victory over Idaho State. The team had 11 players credited with a rush, seven have a reception and 28 make a tackle.
• Sacramento State has seven different players score a touchdown against Idaho State for the first time since a 50-0 win against Northern Colorado on Sept. 14, 2019.
• Sacramento State has at least one sack in all but one game (MSU) this season. The team has 20 sacks this season coming from 12 different players. Sophomore DeShawn Lynch leads the team with 4.5 while Jett Stanley is close behind with four.
• Kaiden Bennett ranks third in the Big Sky with 240.9 yards of total offense per game. That average would rank 10th in school single-season history.
• The game at Montana marked the first time this season that Bennett did not throw a touchdown pass.
• Bennett's completion percentage of 63.3 percent would be the fourth highest in school history and rank third among quarterbacks who have had at least 200 attempts.
• Jared Gipson is the Big Sky leader with an average of 17.48 yards per reception. Gipson had a big game against NAU where he caught five passes for a career-high 108 yards.