Before the fireworks went off on Saturday night, there was the sound of profound relief, the collective exhale from players, coaches, administrators, fans and everyone tied to the green of Sacramento State’s wildly entertaining if a bit flawed football team.
Surrendering 24 consecutive points in the fourth quarter and beyond, and their season circling the drain in quick order, the tough-luck Hornets avoided their third consecutive loss and the unfamiliar perch of dead last in the 12-member Big Sky Conference.
Sacramento State defeated Weber State 51-48 in double overtime at Hornet Stadium in front of 15,530 spectators to salvage their season, a credit to the team’s resolve and grit, and none of it possible if a tying field goal attempt by the Wildcats of Ogden didn’t miss inches to the left to send it to another period.
When the ball did not go through the uprights, Hornets players and coaches rushed the field, head sets flying, and helmets, too.
Quarterback Carson Conklin, fresh off another monstrous outing, sprinted to the far end of the field, overcome by emotion and joy. A loss would have meant a dreadfully long walk to the locker room, a feeling the Hornets endured after their last two contests.
Now at 3-6 overall and 1-2 in the Big Sky, the season suddenly has new life. A conference championship may be out of the picture after the Hornets hoisted Big Sky trophies in 2019, 2021 and 2022, but the playoffs might not be dashed - if the Hornets run the table from here.
But no one is thinking that far ahead. It’s the immediate that matters most, starting with Monday’s practice and next week’s game at Idaho State. Teams that have something to play for tend to play all the more inspired.
“Relief for sure,” said Conklin, the talented redshirt freshman from Yorba Linda, Ca. “Football is a game of inches. If the field goal misses, we’re running down the field celebrating. We could still be in overtime right now if the ball was two inches to the right.”
Andy Thompson wore expressions of pride and exhaustion. He doubles as the Hornets’ head coach and defensive coordinator. The Big Sky has for decades been defined by high-scoring games and frantic finishes, including UC Davis needing a last-play touchdown earlier this season to upend winless Portland State.
“Proud would be the word I’d use,” Thompson said. “We fought and kept on going all night. It was a roller coaster of a game. We talked about faith in each other and sticking together and found a way to win. We always want to win. They work their tails off. They’re really happy in that locker room. They give us a ton. That’s all a coach can ask for.”
A week after tossing a career-high four touchdown passes, Conklin passed for a career-best 357 yards and three touchdowns. Elijah Tau-Tolliver rushed 19 times for 141 yards and three scores, each of them off direct snaps as offensive coordinator Bobby Fresques added a wrinkle to help jump-start the team.
Tau-Tolliver also caught a career-best 11 passes for 85 yards. Anderson Grover had two touchdown receptions as the Hornets rolled up 544 yards of offense.
But Weber State moved the ball, too, rushing for 316 yards, and the defense stalled the Hornets enough to roar back into it. The only bad play Tau-Tolliver had was an intended trick turned pick: He tried to pass to Conklin after taking a handoff from the quarterback, but his ball was intercepted by Frankie Edwards, who raced the other way 95 yards to pull his team to within 41-31 with 13:26 left to play, igniting Weber State’s rally.
“That throw,” Tau-Tolliver said, “I needed to put a little more on it. Can’t float it.”
The junior from Sparks, Nev. added, “As a leader, we try to do what we can to win. The win is all we care about.”
After Weber State scored 24 straight points, the Hornets capped it by scoring the final 10, and then praying with all their might that a field goal would miss. Conklin hit Grover with a 9-yard TD toss to tie it 48-48 to force a second overtime, where Zach Schreiner booted a 36-yard field goal that proved to be the winner.
Sacramento State senior defensive lineman Brandon Knott said he had one thought after the missed field goal.
“Thank God!” the Inderkum High School of Sacramento graduate said. “I had faith in these guys, and the (offensive line), everyone. There wasn’t a thought in my mind (that we would lose).”
Thompson praised his team’s ability and desire to hang in there, week after week in a season of high hopes that included a preseason Top 10 FCS ranking. College football can be unforgiving. The Hornets lived it up with the Big Sky crowns in the finest stretch of seasons since the program started playing football in 1954, but they were humbled with frustrating losses to open Big Sky play this season at Northern Arizona, 34-15, and last week at home against Eastern Washington, 35-28.
Sacramento State has lost players for the year due to injury, have not started the same lineup in back to back games, have used an army of players on offense and defense and are down a quarterback. Kaiden Bennett, The Bee’s Player of the Year in 2018 from nearby Folsom High School, has not been with the team the last several weeks as he rehabilitates a sore shoulder.
The senior remains on the roster. He started the first two games, got hurt and gave way to Conklin, who has solidified his standing as the program’s quarterback of today and tomorrow.
“We’ve had a lot of guys in and out of the line up,” coach Thompson said. “The guys continue to do their best to represent this school. We had a great crowd. Sacramento is loud. These guys take a lot of pride in this program and they want to elevate it. Being on the right side (of victory) feels good, but we’ll be right back to work.”
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