College football: Here’s how resilience and ruthlessness gave Sacramento State a stopper
Armon Bailey has had mixed experiences with Weber State, some joyous and some miserable, with one more shot at the Wildcats this week in a battle of Big Sky Conference title contenders.
Sacramento State’s powerhouse 6-foot-1, 230-pound senior linebacker beamed as he recalled his first big collegiate moment.
“Freshman year, I had a sack fumble recovery for a touchdown, and I knew some of those guys at Weber, so it was fan, a great moment,” Bailey said after Tuesday’s practice.
Then the anguish transformed Bailey’s beam to furrowed brows.
“Sophomore year, 2019,” he said, “I tackled Kevin Smith, my guy, a teammate from Vanden High School. My foot planted, but my body kept going. Tore all the ligaments in my left ankle.”
Season over. The Hornets won their first Big Sky championship that season, in 2019, but Bailey could only watch from afar with crutches as the team celebrated.
The 2020 fall season was wiped out due to the pandemic and Bailey played the first two games of the 2021 season before missing the bulk of the season with nagging ankle issues.
This season? All systems go. Bailey has never been better. He’s been a defensive stalwart for the No. 2 Hornets, who are 8-0 and used defensive stops to put away Montana and Idaho the past two games in front of season-high crowds at Hornet Stadium. He has twice been named Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week and could have won it again last week.
Sacramento State went three games without recording a sack before Bailey had three on his own against Idaho last week, including the sealing stop to end a 31-28 win.
“The word resilience comes to mind when I think of Armon,” Sacramento State defensive coordinator Andy Thompson said. “He works really hard. He had injuries that kept him out but he stuck with it. He’s a kid who in the summer was doing extra sprints, extra weight room, watching more film. He’s been consistent with his effort, and you watch him play and you think, ‘Man, that kid can run, plays hard, has a lot of passion.’”
And one more word comes to mind for Bailey in describing his motor and intent to reach the quarterback or bust up a play.
“Ruthless!” Bailey said with a laugh. “It’s that Kobe Bryant mamba mentality. It’s a violent sport, and I was super violent as a kid and I let out all my anger and frustrations out on the football field when I was a kid.”
That childhood was spent in Vallejo, and his high school days at Vanden were in nearby Fairfield. Bailey added, “I had a good childhood but football was a way to get things out.”
Bailey’s last three games have been perhaps the best of his Hornets career, producing nine tackles in each contest. The joy of winning certainly surpasses losing. Bailey was part of Sacramento State’s 2018 team that went winless in the Big Sky, leading to a new coaching turnover, with Troy Taylor taking over.
Since the start of the 2019 season, Sacramento State is 21-1 in the Big Sky that lone loss coming at home to Weber State.
“In 2018, we had no fans, no one came to games,” Bailey said. “People thought Sac State was a community college with as bad as we played. I wanted to see us become a good program. We have. It’s been great to see.”
Taylor said Bailey has been a beast.
“He brings us some physicality, and when he hits you, you feel it,” Taylor said. “He’s got a great motor and has been phenomenal. Sometimes, when a player gets hurt, it’s no fault of their own. It’s bad luck or whatever. He’s showed great resiliency, then he’s put together the year he’s having.”
A criminal justice major, Bailey wants to continue his pursuit of people when he’s finished with football, only this time in a suit and tie.
“When I was a kid, I wanted to be in the CIA,” Bailey said. “Now I’m thinking FBI as a profiler. That’s always interested me.”
First, there’s a season to finish, starting with Weber State, then a game at Portland State and then the regular-season finale at home against UC Davis in the annual Causeway Classic on Nov. 19.
Sacramento State is aiming for a top seed in the FCS playoffs, which would mean the Hornets could host three games, if they keep winning. Bailey’s parents will be there, like they have every game, every year. Donyell and Tephanie Bailey are constants in the stands.
“Oh, I hear my mom screaming my name,” he said, including his sealing sack against Idaho. “It was loud, but I could hear her.”
No. 2 Sacramento State (8-0) at No 5 Weber State (7-1)
When: Saturday, noon
Where: Stewart Stadium, Ogden, Utah
On air: ESPN1320, ESPN+
Quick hits: Sacramento State is 5-0 in the Big Sky and Weber State is 4-1...Weber State is 11-1 against Sacramento State in Ogden. ... The Wildcats have the top defense in the Big Sky, allowing 16.3 points, and the Hornets have the best offense, averaging 44 points. ... Sacramento State has won 16 consecutive Big Sky games, the last loss coming against Weber State in 2019. ... Quarterback Asher O’Hara has rushed for a touchdown in all eight games for the Hornets, including game winners to topple Montana and Idaho, and he has 14 rushing scores this season. ... Hornets running back Cameron Skattebo is the Big Sky rushing leader with 985 yards.