Sac State, UC Davis football have 8 total games on national TV in 2026. How to watch
The Sacramento State and UC Davis football programs will have a combined eight football games aired on national broadcasts this fall, the schools’ athletic departments announced Tuesday.
Under new coach Alonzo Carter, the Hornets have five games that will air on ESPN, ESPN2 and CBS Sports Network in their first season as an FBS program, the highest level of NCAA Division I play.
Sac State played in the FCS-level Big Sky Conference for 29 years before the move to the Mid-American Conference. Five national TV appearances are a record for Sac State, which in April capped a spirited spring drill camp.
UC Davis to show off home turf on ESPN2
Competing in football since 1915, UCD remains in the Big Sky Conference. Coach Tim Plough’s Aggies have been ranked in the preseason Top 10 at the FCS after spring workouts that included finding a new quarterback star.
UCD on Oct. 3 will play Eastern Washington on ESPN2, the first home game on a linear ESPN network in Aggies program history.
UCD beat then-ranked No. 7 Montana in Missoula on ESPN in 2024, and UCD last fall hosted a second-round NCAA FCS playoff game that was aired on ESPN, a win over Rhode Island.
UCD will play at SMU on Sept. 12, aired on ACCNX, and the Aggies will host Montana on Sept. 26 on Scripps Sports.
Big games for Sac State football
The five national telecasts for Sac State is a record for a program that was founded in 1954 and won Big Sky crowns in 2019, 2021 and 2022.
Sac State’s contest at Fresno State on Sept. 12 will air on CBS Sports Network, a first for the Hornets.
On Sept. 19, Sac State will host North Dakota State at Hornet Stadium on ESPN, the first meeting between the programs since the 1988 NCAA Division II semifinals, won by North Dakota State. North Dakota State is also moving up to the FBS level this fall.
Sac State’s home game Oct. 30 against Kent State will be carried by ESPN2. It is a Friday game.