Sacramento State to sign up with Big West in 2026-27
Jun 18, 2025, 03:58 PM ET
Sacramento State will sign up with the Huge West conference as a full member starting with the 2026-27 academic year.Sacramento State
informed the Big Sky on Wednesday that it will leave the conference after this year and the Huge West announced that the school will end up being the 12th school in the conference. “The Big West membership and conference staff are excited to welcome Sacramento State to The Huge West,”commissioner Dan Butterly stated in a declaration. “In addition to enhancing The Big West competitively and expanding our geographical footprint, Sacramento State is a strong supporter for excellence in academics, athletics and service within their community. The make over Huge West promises to bring a new level of competition and friendly rivalry for student-athletes and fans alike.”The Big West doesn’t sponsor football so Sacramento State’s program will be an independent in that sport. The Hornets are trying to go up from FCS level to FBS as an independent and are waiting for a ruling next week from the NCAA Department I Council.The FBS Oversight Committee recommended versus the relocation previously today, mentioning the”vital value”of having an invite to join an FBS conference. The NCAA had formerly granted a waiver to Liberty in 2017 to move to FBS as an independent but stated the circumstances have changed because then.The Flames were an independent in football from 2018-22 before joining Conference USA.
“Although a waiver of the authentic invitation requirement was granted in 2017, that decision
was made in a different era, under a different set of facts and rules …” the committee recommended, according to public conference minutes.”Due to the significance of the bona fide invitation from an FBS conference requirement and the lack of engaging mitigation discussing why that requirement, one that a number of other FCS institutions have actually fulfilled in recent years, has actually not been fulfilled, the committee does not support relief.”Sacramento State stated the school will think about all conference options for football if the council votes versus its application.Sacramento State had actually been an affiliate member of the Big West in various sports in the past now will have 16 groups competing in the conference beginning in 2026-27.
“We are enjoyed end up being a full member of The Huge West and are grateful for the invite,” athletic director Mark Orr said. “Sacramento State makes every effort to provide our student-athletes the opportunity to be in the very best position to be nationally competitive, and The Huge West for years has actually been a conference that has actually taken pleasure in nationwide success in numerous sports. We are eager to contend for champions, boost existing rivalries, and establish brand-new relationships with our peer conference members. “The Hornets will formally sign up with The Big West on July 1, 2026, signing up with a lineup that consists of California Baptist, Cal Poly, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State,
CSUN, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, and Utah Valley.The Big West has no current strategies to expand beyond 12-member institutions.The Hornets have actually made a huge investment in the men’s basketball program just recently, employing previous NBA star Mike Bibby as head coach and Shaquille O’Neal as a voluntary GM for the program.Sacramento State
went 7-25 last season under interim coach Michael Czepil, who was promoted last spring after David Patrick left to take a job as associate head coach at LSU.The Hornets had actually gone 28-42 in two seasons under Patrick and the program has never ever made an NCAA tournament because moving up to Division I in 1991-92. The Hornets have had a winning record just two times ever since, going 16-14 in 2019-20 and 21-12 in 2014-15.