Sacramento State Football

Sacramento State has major plans for its football program, and those could include bringing in a notable former NFL quarterback as its head coach.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Monday that Sacramento State was "in discussions" to make Michael Vick its next head coach. This comes after Vick told David Teel and Michael Sauls of The Virginian-Pilot he expects a decision "soon" after he interviewed for the head-coaching position at Norfolk State.

"Sacramento State plans to move up to FBS, is building a new stadium and has over $50 million in NIL," Schefter wrote. "Sacramento State would build an experienced coaching staff around Vick that is in line with the new frontier of college football."

Schefter also shared a quote from Sacramento State president Luke Wood:

Vick is best known for his playing days with the Atlanta Falcons and doesn't have coaching experience.

Still, he told Teel and Sauls, "I know how to lead and I know what it takes."

He would have quite the rebuilding job ahead of him if he took the Norfolk State head-coaching position, as the program fired head coach Dawson Odums after going 15-31 in parts of four seasons. It also has just one winning season since 2012, which happened in 2021 when it went 6-5.

Sacramento State isn't exactly a football powerhouse either and went 3-9 overall and 1-7 in Big Sky play during the 2024 campaign. Its lone conference win came in double-overtime against Weber State on Oct. 19.

Yet the Hornets aren't far removed from their 12-1 season in 2022 that ended with a stunning 66-63 loss to Incarnate Word in the FCS quarterfinals. They also went 9-3 in 2021 and reached the playoffs, where they lost to South Dakota State in the second round.

Schefter described a program that is ready to make a significant financial contribution toward winning in the future, and Vick would bring instant name recognition on the recruiting trail.

After all, he was the No. 1 overall pick of the 2001 NFL draft and was a three-time Pro Bowler in his first six seasons in the league with the Falcons. His dynamic style of play and ability to make defenders miss with his speed and agility made him a fan favorite, and he is still largely associated with the franchise when discussing his playing days.

His career was paused for two years, though, when he served 18 months in prison and two months in home confinement for financing a dog-fighting ring.

Yet Vick returned to the league in 2009 and played seven more seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers. He was the 2010 Comeback Player of the Year and a Pro Bowler that season during his time with Philadelphia.

He has since remained around the game as an NFL analyst for Fox Sports.

The Sacramento Kings have offered Sacramento State men's and women's basketball programs the chance to play home games at Golden 1 Center "pending arena availability," per NBA insider Chris Haynes.

Haynes described the Kings' offer as "a major hurdle cleared" in Sacramento State's reported bid to join the Pac-12.

Sacramento State has been a member of the Big Sky conference since the FCS league was formed in 1963. The Pac-12 meanwhile needs at least one more full-time member in order to meet FBS membership requirements.

Golden 1 Center seats about 17,600 fans for Kings games. Hornets basketball is currently played in a multipurpose gym, which was built in 1955 and can house just over 1,000 people.

That isn't the only Sacramento State athletics program that could see a significant capacity increase in the near future. The Hornets announced last Thursday plans to construct a new football stadium that will increase the venue's capacity by 4,000 people to 25,000 while updating a venue built in 1969.

The football stadium news was followed by third-party fundraising committee SAC12's Monday announcement that the group had raised more than $35 million in NIL funds for Sacramento State in a span of 24 hours.

The SAC12 said it was hoping to fundraise $50 million in order to capitalize on "the continued momentum to elevate Sacramento State Athletics to the Pac-12 and the Hornet football program to the FBS."

The Pac-12 announced on Tuesday that the conference would be adding Gonzaga as an eighth member, a total that leaves the league short of FBS minimum requirements because the Bulldogs do not run a football program.

ESPN's Pete Thamel and Kyle Bonagura reported on Tuesday that the Pac-12 has held early talks with Grand Canyon and Saint Mary's, but that "the conference is expected to remain focused on adding another football-playing school before shifting its attention back to basketball."

Sacramento State is hoping the new football stadium, the NIL fundraising display and now the Kings' offer to share their arena will make them an appealing option as a full member.

Stanford has hired Troy Taylor as its next football coach, the school announced Saturday.

Joe Davidson of the Sacramento Bee first reported the news.

Taylor has coached Sacramento State for four years and led the Hornets to an undefeated regular-season record and the No. 2 seed in the FCS playoffs this year. They reached the quarterfinals before a 66-63 upset loss to Incarnate Word on Friday.

Stanford director of athletics Bernard Muir discussed the hire in a statement:

"Troy is a proven winner who has experienced success at many levels of football. Throughout our visits together he demonstrated an understanding of what makes Stanford special, and a deep desire to capitalize on our unique strengths. He possesses an incredible football mind and has a long history of caring deeply for the student-athletes he leads. I am excited for the next chapter of Cardinal football and eager for our student-athletes to experience Troy's passion, wisdom and leadership."

Former Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett was a finalist for the Stanford job, according to Stewart Mandel of The Athletic, but he announced Thursday that he would remain an analyst for NBC Sports. Former Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall, Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman and former Denver Broncos head coach Vic Fangio were also reportedly in the running.

Taylor has served as Sacramento State's head coach and offensive coordinator. He has been the Big Sky Coach of the Year twice and won the Eddie Robinson Award in 2019 as the FCS coach of the year.

Prior to his time at Sacramento State, the 54-year-old was the offensive coordinator for Eastern Washington in 2016, coaching receiver Cooper Kupp, before moving to the Pac-12 and leading the offense for Utah in 2017 and 2018.

He played four years as a quarterback for California, tallying 51 touchdown passes from 1986 to 1989. He played two years in the NFL with the New York Jets and then moved into coaching, including five seasons as a position coach at Cal from 1996 to 2000.

Taylor will try to turn things around for Stanford after back-to-back 3-9 seasons.

The Cardinal were a perennial Top 10 team in the first part of former coach David Shaw's tenure after he took over in 2011, but the program has floundered in recent years and has only 14 wins in the last four seasons.

Shaw resigned in November as the winningest coach in Stanford history.