College football: Sacramento State skates past Portland State, rolls to 10-0
The Sacramento State Hornets have become road warriors and masters of inclement weather.
Ranked second in the FCS, Sacramento State routed Portland State 45-17 in a Big Sky Conference game in 40-degree temperatures and gusty 15-mph winds at Hillsboro Stadium in the Hornets’ first Friday night game since the 1970s.
The Hornets led 24-0 at the half, the third time this season the team has shut out an opponent in the first two quarters, and they moved to 10-0 with their 18th consecutive regular-season victory and 14th in succession on the road against FCS competition.
Jake Dunniway passed for 147 yards and had a touchdown strike to Pierre Williams, Asher O’Hara had a touchdown pass to Williams and ran for a score, and Marcus Fulcher had two rushing touchdowns as the Hornets recorded 10 victories for just the second time in program history.
The last time was in 1988 when the Hornets went 10-3 and reached the NCAA Division II semifinals. Sacramento State moved to Division I in 1993.
Sacramento State led 38-3 entering the fourth quarter and set an all-time program record for yards rushing in a season as Cameron Skattebo rushed for a game-high 104 yards on nine carries. The Hornets now head into next Saturday’s Causeway Classic against rival UC Davis one victory away from three-peating as Big Sky champions and securing a national No. 1 or 2 seed in the FCS playoffs — meaning three home playoff games at Hornet Stadium, if the wins keep coming.
Since coach Troy Taylor and staff took over before the 2019 season, the Hornets have gone 22-1 in the Big Sky, the only setback coming to Weber State in 2019. Sacramento State topped Weber State 33-30 on Nov. 5 in Ogden in the wind and rain.
Against Portland State, Williams had touchdown grabs of 5 and 4 yards, O’Hara had a 39-yard scoring run, Fulcher reached the end zone on sprints of 4 and 35 yards and had 71 yards total, and Marshel Martin returned an onside kick attempt 45 yards for a touchdown to make it 45-10.
Sacramento State last played a Friday night game on Oct. 29, 1976, a 10-9 loss at San Francisco State. This game was the result of a scheduling snafu by Portland State, which was not able to secure its home stadium for Saturday.
On the 10-0 start, Taylor said: “It’s great to realize that we’ve won every game we’ve played in. I’m really proud of the guys. It’s really the day-to-day stuff that makes this all possible.”
“We’ve stayed healthy, which is a big part of our success,” he added. “Guys are strong and playing with a lot of energy and passion. It’s not all perfect, but we strive for it.”
This story was originally published November 11, 2022 at 9:33 PM.