Sacramento State plans to play in FBS in ’26 despite NCAA denial

At the very least, Sacramento State football is determined, vowing to move from the FCS level to FBS in 2026 even though the NCAA Division I council denied a waiver this week for the program to move up a level.
Since 2024, Sacramento State has expressed a desire to move into college football’s highest level, with original hopes of moving into a reconfigured Pac-12 Conference that was set to return to action in 2026 with five Mountain West Conference programs.
But the Hornets program did not receive an invitation for its football program to join an existing conference. Instead, the Hornets launched a plan to leave the Big Sky Conference for the Big West Conference in all sports but football and have its football team play as an FBS independent in 2026.
While the NCAA has nixed that plan, at least for the time being, the school plans on moving forward anyway.
“We still plan to be playing FBS football in 2026,” Sacramento State president Luke Wood posted on X after the NCAA denied the school’s waiver request.
“Sacramento State has met every meaningful benchmark for FBS membership, and we believe our university, our students, and the entire Sacramento region deserve major college football,” Wood wrote.
As part of its plan to move its football program to the FBS level, Sacramento State has proposed a 25,000-seat football stadium. Its current football venue, at just over 21,000 seats, is configured with temporary stands.
The Hornets also secured a deal to move its men’s and women’s basketball games into the Sacramento Kings’ home arena for 2026.
On the football field last season, Sacramento State did not fit the bill of an FBS team with a 3-9 record. The Hornets did go 8-5 in 2023 and won a first-round game in the FCS playoffs.