Sac State President Luke Wood’s FBS aspirations look like a risky agenda | Opinion

Sacramento State President Luke Wood dazzles with energy and charisma, but lately his leadership feels more like sleight of hand than substance.

The students of Sacramento State have become Hornets for the same reason why anyone goes to college: To pursue an education and create a better future for themselves.

They entrust Wood to lead the university with their best interests at heart. That trust carries weight — and with it, a clear responsibility to put students first.

Wood would not confirm if he and Sac State are now considering paying a multi-million dollar fee to join the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Known as the FBS, it is where the biggest college football programs play.

North Dakota State recently paid $12 million to get into the FBS. While not confirming he’d pay a fee similar to North Dakota State, Wood told The Bee that moving into the higher ranks of college football would be a good investment for Sacramento State. That leaves open the question of how much Sacramento State would pay to move up.

Sac State currently plays in the Football Championship Division, which is below the FBS. If Sac State actually pays an FBS entry fee, it would also owe the NCAA a mandatory $5 million application fee. Could the total bill for moving up cost Sac State $10 to $15 million in money not spent on classrooms or faculty? Would Luke Wood pay that price to chase athletic prestige?

And then there’s the university’s aspiration to build a new stadium on Cal Expo. Wednesday Wood took to X to reassure that’s still the plan.

Since Luke Wood became president of Sacramento State in 2023, operating funds for academics have increased by about 1% while support for athletics has increased by 120%, according to university budgets. The imbalance is glaring.

But to really grasp how strange Wood’s push for FBS is, look no further than the campus.

Sac State’s complex campus

Sac State’s campus is one part modern and one part past. Some buildings are shiny and new and some were meant to be temporary but became permanent, much like the stands at the Hornet football stadium.

I walked on the campus of Sac State on Monday to get a better sense of how the recent news has resonated with the students there.

During my time on campus, I spoke with several students, who did not wish to be identified, about Wood and the university’s increased spending on athletics. Their responses ranged from shrugging it off to expressing frustration that the school’s big announcements focus more on sports than on academics.

Walking into Sequoia Hall, I understand why a student could feel disappointed and frustrated with seeing investments in sports and a downtown campus.

The ceilings of the Sequoia Hall, built in 1967, are cracked and covered in dark dust. Some are sagging, with gunk splattered on them.

Neglected buildings such as Sequoia Hall are more than an eyesore — they shout that leadership has its priorities backwards.

Now, some buildings are new and up-to-date. Construction is under way on the north side of campus for a new hall. But we can’t just forget the entire student experience. Students use every part of campus, and when they see fees increase, student athletes with new gear, while taking classes in an old building that has gunk on the ceilings, they rightfully become angry.

Responsible leadership means keeping a healthy balance between athletics and academics. Right now, Wood isn’t doing that.

Sac State’s success relies on more than football

I’ve said throughout Wood’s quest to go into the FBS that his part in all of this will be laying the foundation, not getting to bask in the labor of his hard work. Is that unfortunate? Sure, but it’s the reality of being the president of a university that has a football stadium with stands are still on stilts that was supposed to be a temporary fix.

Just take a look at North Dakota State University. It just paid $12 million to join the Mountain West Football Conference. But unlike the Hornets, who just had their young, promising coach leave after a year in which they didn’t even make it to the FCS championship playoffs, NDSU has won 10 of the last 15 FCS championships. More, they received a private donation to fund a $55 million practice facility for them in 2024.

That’s what real foundation-building looks like. Yet Wood continues to overlook this lesson. His refusal to face Sac State’s true needs could be his undoing.

Football is a perk, a function that could honestly be dropped next year and have little-to-no consequence for students’ lives.

The next generation of Sac State students won’t rely on the outcome of a game — they’re counting on leadership that invests wisely. Their future depends on a president who puts funding where it matters most, not on a football sweepstakes.

LeBron Hill

The Sacramento Bee

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LeBron Hill is an opinion writer for The Sacramento Bee and a member of its Editorial Board. He is a native of Tennessee, with stops at The Tennessean in Nashville and the Chattanooga Times Free Press. LeBron enjoys writing about politics, culture and education, among other topics.