Sacramento State, who was preseason ranked No. 12 in the Stats Perform Top 25, has decided not to play in the spring of 2021.
The Hornets are the seventh FCS team to opt out of the spring season.
They were one of the top stories in the FCS in 2019, turning a 2-8 record in 2018 into a 9-4 record last year with a share of the Big Sky title and the No. 4 seed in the playoffs. Sac State lost right away in the bracket to Austin Peay, 42-28.
“After thoughtful deliberation we have determined that it is in the best interest of both our student-athletes and our football program to opt out of a possible spring football season,” Sacramento State head coach Troy Taylor said. “Our concern regarding the effects of a short turnaround and recovery time from a spring season to a fall season, in our opinion, were too big of a health risk. Obviously, we are disappointed in not having a football season this year. But we are already striving and preparing for the 2021 fall season.”
“I agree with Coach (Taylor),” Sacramento State President Dr. Robert S. Nelsen said. “It is disappointing. COVID-19 has brought many disappointments, and we are sad. But postponing our fall season due to COVID, and opting out of spring due to the truncated season and the risks it could cause to our players’ wellbeing, are not the biggest disappointments brought on by the pandemic. Hundreds of thousands of Americans have died from this disease. We want to play football, but we want – we need – to keep the Hornet family safe.”
