FOOTBALL TRAVELS TO #12 CAL POLY IN RETURN OF HISTORIC RIVALRY
9/8/2009
The Sacramento State football team returns to the road this weekend as it renews its longtime rivalry with #12 Cal Poly on Saturday, Sept. 12, at 4:05 p.m. The meeting is the 31st matchup all-time between the two schools with the series tied 15-15. The Hornets and Mustangs met annually from 1983 to 2006 but have not played in the last two seasons. The teams first faced each other in 1967.
There will be numerous ways to listen to this week’s game. Hornet fans can tune in to KRJY 1240 AM to hear the radio call of Jason Ross, Steve McElroy and Danny Sullivan. Live audio streaming is also available via www.hornetsports.com. The game will not be televised.
Sacramento State opened its season this past Saturday with a 38-3 loss at UNLV. In the game, the Hornets fell behind 10-0 midway through the first quarter but pulled within 10-3 at the half and 17-3 at the end of the third quarter. The Rebels, however, scored three fourth quarter touchdowns to hand the Hornets their third loss to a Mountain West Conference school in as many years.
Saturday’s contest will mark the season opener for Cal Poly. The Mustangs are coming off a stellar season in which they posted an 8-3 overall record and won the Great West Football Conference with a perfect 3-0 mark. Cal Poly advanced to the FCS playoffs but were upset at home by Weber State in the first round.
Following the season, head coach Rich Ellerson resigned to take the top spot at Army. Ellerson was replaced by former Sonoma State and Portland State head coach Tim Walsh. The team is also looking to find a replacement for All-America wide receiver Ramses Barden, who was a third round selection of the New York Giants.
Quick Hitters
• Dailey’s 101-yard effort at UNLV made him the fourth player on the Hornet roster to cross the century mark since the start of last season.
• Sacramento State plays its second consecutive road game to start the year for the third time since 2005. In 2005 and 2007, Sacramento State played its first three games away from home.
A Look at the Hornets Add Another to the List
When Terrance Dailey took his 19th carry of the game for a 2-yard gain, he became the fourth player on the 2009 Sacramento State roster to record a 100-yard game for the Hornets.
The Vacaville, Calif., native joined Bryan Hilliard, Evander Wilkins and Jake Croxdale in the century club. While Dailey’s effort against UNLV was his first with the Hornets, it was not his first as a college player. Last season, he rushed for 102 yards against Oregon State while playing for Washington.
Hilliard, who is redshirting this season after surgery on both shoulders, leads the group with eight 100-yard games in his two seasons. Wilkins has two games over the century mark and Croxdale has one.
The foursome put Sacramento State in elite company among Football Championship Subdivision teams. The Hornets are tied with Lafayette for the second most 100-yard rushers on a roster in 2009. Only Appalachian State has more as six Mountaineers have recorded the feat during their career.
Three’s Company
Sacramento State entered the UNLV game with three quarterbacks on the travel roster and all three saw action against the Rebels.
For the third-straight season, Jason Smith earned the opening day start. Smith finished the night 8-of-17 for 85 yards and was intercepted once. The game marked the second straight performance in which Smith was held to under 100 passing yards as he ended last year with a 99-yard showing at Idaho State.
John Loeliger was actually the first QB to take the field against the Rebels. Loeliger is a vital member of the Hornet special teams and was on the kick coverage unit to start the game. He also serves as the team’s punt protector.
Offensively, Loeliger took one snap under center and rushed for a 2-yard game in the team’s “Wildcat” formation.
Loeliger’s path is one of the strangest on the team. The senior was signed in the spring of 2008 after two seasons at Diablo Valley College. After not winning the QB job, the coaches wanted to use his athleticism and shifted him to safety where he eventually cracked the two-deep and was a fixture on special teams. As the year progressed and the top three QBs were injured, Loeliger returned to quarterback and played a series at Northern Arizona.
Bethel-Thompson has the strongest arm among the three and continues to bounce back from a knee injury which cut his 2008 campaign short. In parts of four games, he threw for 415 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 57.1 percent of his passes.
Safety Net The Sacramento State coaches new that safety was one of the team’s strengths in 2009. That point was proven in the season opener as both starting safeties — Deionte Gordon and Zach Schrader — led the team with 13 tackles.
Gordon led all players in the game with a career-high eight solo tackles. His total also set a career high eclipsing his previous best of 11 which came last season against Montana State.
The Seaside, Calif., native has now started all 13 games of his career with the Hornets. Last season, he played the first 11 games at cornerback before making the move to safety for the season finale. He paced the squad with four interceptions seven pass breakups and ranked second overall with 76 total tackles.
Schrader made his Hornet debut a memorable one with six solos and seven assists. The junior played his first two seasons at Western Washington where he was an all-Great Northwest Athletic Conference selection. As a sophomore, he ranked second on the team with 76 total tackles and was the team’s defensive player of the year. Due to the fact the WWU discontinued football, Schrader will not have to sit out a season after transferring.
Staying Local
One of the first promises Marshall Sperbeck made after being named head coach at Sacramento State was that he and his staff would focus their recruiting efforts in Northern California.
Three recruiting classes into his tenure, that promise is now more evident than ever as 68 of the 92 players on the roster hail from the upper portion of the state. That total also includes 41 players who played their high school ball with teams within the Sac-Joaquin Section. A complete list follows:
A Look at the Mustangs
• The Mustangs are coming off their best season since moving to the FCS. Last year, Cal Poly was ranked as high as third in The Sports Network poll and advanced to the FCS playoffs for the second time in school history. During the season, they also won at San Diego State and lost in overtime at Wisconsin.
• Junior Tony Smith will be the opening day starter for the Mustangs. Last season, Smith played sparingly behind Jonathan Dally and completed 3-of-7 passes.
• Cal Poly will also have the challenge of replacing its top three rushers from a year ago. Dally led the team with 821 yards and 11 touchdowns, James Noble was second with 627 yards and nine scores and former Sacramento State player Ryan Mole ranked third with 624 yards and 10 TDs.
• The Mustangs are expected to keep a variation of its option offense but have switched its defensive attack from the double-eagle flex to a more traditional 4-3.
Big Sky Notes
• The first week of the Big Sky season went as expected. Montana and Eastern Washington both played teams from lesser divisions and cruised to wins. The two teams combined to outscore the opposition, 73-7. Weber State, Idaho State, Portland State and Northern Colorado joined the Hornets in playing teams from the FBS. Only WSU put a scare into their opponent, falling at Wyoming, 29-22. The other four teams combined to lose 171-16.
• Eastern Washington’s Aaron Boyce was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week after catching six passes for 126 yards and a score.
Fellow Eagle Kevin Hatch earned the defensive award. Hatch intercepted a pair of passes in the win. He also had six tackles.
The special teams award went to Montana’s Sam Gratton who blocked a punt and later tackled the punter on a bad snap. Both plays led to Griz touchdowns.
Individually, sophomore 
The Sacramento State coaches new that safety was one of the team’s strengths in 2009. That point was proven in the season opener as both starting safeties — 
