MAC momentum: Sacramento State's football program to join FBS conference this upcoming season

Sacramento State's football program is making the jump to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), with Mid-American Conference (MAC) officials voting to add the Hornets to the league. 

Sacramento State is expected to pay $18 million to join the conference, with the total cost expected to be $23 million, as the university will have to pay $5 million to the NCAA. 

The university is now the first school in 57 years to move from the FCS to the FBS, which is the highest level of NCAA Division-1 football in the country. University leaders call the move 'transformational' for the university and the region. 

The MAC is made up of schools like Ball State, Kent State and University of Massachusetts Amherst. 

"We didn't wake up one morning and say, we are gonna be in the MAC. This dates back to even when President Nelson was here," said Sac State Director of Athletics Mark Orr. "I understand $18 million is a lot of money and I don't want to make light of that. But I also think it's an investment to our student-athletes, our university and quite frankly, to Sacramento. There was doubt as to whether Sacramento State can elevate to an FBS program. And guess what? Sacramento comes through again." 

Sacramento State President Luke Wood has long been pushing for the Hornets to make the jump to the FBS. They were rejected by the NCAA to join as an independent last summer. 

"The MAC wanted us. When I had the chance to sit around the table with the president and engage with the commissioner, our media market, having the top 20 market in the country with no FBS program, was what the big appeal was for them," said Wood. 

It's an investment that Wood says will pay off in the long run. 

The move to FBS play means more scholarship, national media exposure and game guarantees, which means major football programs across the country, like Alabama or Ohio State, would pay Sac State millions of dollars for non-conference games. 

"Athletics has never had access to its full revenue until now," said Wood. "Our ability to generate more through being an FBS program through game guarantees is significantly higher than it is as an FCS program."  

The Hornets football team was left as an independent after deciding to leave the Big Sky Conference, where they had been for nearly 30 years. Now, the team will join the MAC for the upcoming 2026 season. 

In a letter to Sac State students, Wood that student fees and tuition dollars will not be used for conference entry fees. He says the primary revenue source is expected to be game guarantee payouts. 

Wood says the university's athletic economic impact is predicted to triple annually, increasing to $975 million over the five-year agreement with MAC. 

However, some Sac State students are speaking out, saying they are worried the university is placing too much priority on athletics over academics. 

"There's a lot of questions as to where they're suddenly getting all this money from, especially when we're seeing course cuts, the library is being slashed by half a million dollars and it's a university with crumbling infrastructure," said Michael Lee-Chang, a Sac State senior. 

Lee-Chang says he feels the MAC move was not transparent, taking many students and the faculty senate by surprise, as he says many also fear they could foot the bill if funding falls short. 

"If it works out, it's great. If it doesn't work out, it's not exactly the university administration who are going to pay. It's students who are going to pay through increased fees. It's staff and faculty who are going to pay through layoffs. It's a high-risk, high-reward situation where it's not fully clear what the reward is," said Lee-Chang. 

But for the Greater Sacramento Economic Council, the MAC move is a big deal for the entire region. 

"Sac State has to become an enterprise or it will fail. And what Luke Wood is doing at Sac State is turning it into an enterprise," said Broome, who called the university the 'most exciting' Cal State school. 

Broome says momentum like this brings with it the likelihood of more investment and more exposure for Sacramento. 

"They're starting to put the dots together that, hey, this Sacramento place, it's got a pretty impressive future. Why aren't we putting jobs and money into this town?" said Broome. "It's about inspiration and aspiration more than dollars and cents. It's about moving up, not moving down." 

Orr says Sac State alumni are already buying in. 

"I can't tell you how excited our donor base and community is and want to support Sacramento State and big-time college football here in Sacramento," said Orr. 

Sac State also says that starting in 2027, 15 percent of all revenue from football will be poured back in to academic affairs. 

Football will be the only sport to join the MAC, as other sports are set to join the Big West this upcoming season. 

Sac State this season will play an eight-game conference schedule and four non-conference games. The schedule is set to be released by the end of the month.

With the move, the university is upgrading Hornet Stadium to get it up to FBS standards. That includes a new away locker room, a new away-team athletic director suite and end zone seating that wraps the stadium.  

Wood said that plans to bring a football stadium to Cal Expo are still underway. 

The Hornets hired Arizona assistant Alonzo Carter following the departure of Brennan Marion after last season. 

As part of the MAC transition, the Hornets will be ineligible for postseason play for the next two seasons.