No. 10 Sacramento State falls flat in Flagstaff, loses in Big Sky Conference opener to NAU

The momentum the Sacramento State Hornets built up after consecutive victories took a significant hit on Saturday afternoon in Flagstaff.

Northern Arizona applied constant pressure on defense, limited the visitors to 59 yards rushing and scored 20 points off three turnovers to stun the FCS No. 10-ranked Hornets in delivering a decisive 34-16 decision in a Big Sky Conference opener.

Ammon Allen turned a tight game into what was soon to become an upset when he returned a fumble 8 yards for a score and a 20-9 Lumberjacks lead with 7:22 left in the third quarter. NAU outscored the prolific Hornets 24-7 in the second half, and Sacramento State fell to 2-3 on the season after recording defensive shutouts with victories over Nicholls State and Texas A&M Commerce.

Ty Pennington completed 21 of 25 passes for 240 yards and two touchdowns, and the NAU defense yielded just three first-half field goals to Zach Schreiner to improve to 3-2 in snapping a three-game losing streak to the Hornets.

NAU (3-2) outgained Sacramento State 355-221 and had the ball for 34 minutes, 4 seconds compared to the Hornets’ 25:56.

“We’ve got to execute better,” Hornets coach Andy Thompson said after the game. “Players and coaches have to improve. We have to figure out a better plan so we don’t have the turnovers. Give NAU credit. They played really well. They’re 1-0 (in the Big Sky), and we aren’t.”

Thompson knows Flagstaff well, having coached at NAU for 13 seasons, including a stint as defensive coordinator, before landing at Sacramento State as defensive coordinator before the 2019 season. He is in his second season as the Hornets’ head coach.

Sacramento State’s only points in the second half were off a 20-yard touchdown pass from Carson Conklin to Jared Gipson to cut it to 27-16 with 10:25 left in the game.

Sacramento State played on the road for the fourth time this season and has a bye on Oct. 4. The Hornets host Eastern Washington on Oct. 12 and Weber State on Oct. 19. The program has won three Big Sky championships since 2019, and 2023 marked Sacramento State’s fourth successive FCS playoff showing.