Sac State QB Rashada is example of grand social media hype. Now, he waits again
Jaden Rashada is on standby, ready to go.
He has to be. The role of a backup quarterback is to be in touch and in tune, helmet in hand, game plan in mind. Rashada has gone from opening-day starter for Sacramento State to backup in a matter of weeks.
This does not mean Rashada has failed, or that he will not see game action this season, because this is a sport in which one play or one crunching hit means he is back taking snaps. He has lived this, having been knocked out of Game 2 at Nevada, the victim of a targeting hit.
Per Brennan Marion’s longtime motto, the Sac State first-year coach went with the hot hand, which still belongs to former Hornets backup to sudden steady starter Cardell Williams. The transfer from Tulsa blessed with a nice arm and fast feet has engineered two consecutive victories and will start his third consecutive game on Saturday night when Cal Poly of San Luis Obispo visits Hornet Stadium for a Big Sky Conference opener.
What all of this also means for Rashada, the former 4-star prep star from the Bay Area, is a reality check. His situation is similar to the majority of players in college football. He is a non-starter. It’s difficult enough to get recruited, and then to sign a letter of intent to accept a full athletic scholarship, and then to make the travel team, or to even take snaps, or even start — not to mention it all unfolding under the scrutiny of social media, where everyone is an expert.
Rashada has endured the full gamut of the good of the game and the frustrations of his high-profile position. He has made national news since his high school days at Pittsburg in Contra Costa County with his 6-foot-4 frame, smooth passing delivery and potential. He made headlines for name, image and likeness (NIL) deals that did not fully happen in his whirlwind recruitment from across the college landscape.
After stops at Arizona State, where he started three games, and then a transfer to the Georgia Bulldogs, where he did not take a snap, Rashada landed back in Northern California. It was a big, headline-making get for Marion as he overturned the roster with 72 new players.
Rashada is now about as highly touted of a backup skill player as there is in the FCS college landscape, and his motto has not changed. He stressed earlier this season that he took ownership for the team’s 20-3 opening-day loss to FCS No. 2-ranked South Dakota State when the “Go-Go” offense did not get going.
He told The Sacramento Bee days after that setback, “Winning is hard, so we have got to be willing to do the hard stuff that comes with it, and we’re aware of that, and what’s important is we learn. I can do everything better, and that’s part of being a quarterback and a leader. I always look at myself in the mirror. I can do a lot of things better, and I look forward to doing that.”
Rashada watched Williams guide Sac State to a 45-16 rout of Central Arkansas last week. Williams passed for 252 yards and a touchdown and he ran for two scores. Rashada came in to finish things off, and he completed two deep passes, touch throws on the money, for 88 yards, including a 50-yard touchdown strike to Ernest Campbell.
‘Fall from grace’
Marion hasn’t lost faith in Rashada.
“The biggest thing for him is anytime someone has a ‘fall from grace,’ in today’s social media society, if you don’t have it all figured out when you’re 18 years old, then you’re a ‘failure,’” Marion said. “You have a bunch of life left to live. He’s only been in college football for two years. It used to be, you waited four or five years until you get your opportunity to play.”
The coach added, “I told (Rashada) to have fun and develop and just trust us. You chose this school for a reason. You chose me to be your coach for a reason. We have a plan for you. We’re not just going to leave you at the end of the bench. We care about you. (Last week), he just had fun and he practiced and just enjoyed being one of the guys. It’s the first time I saw him since he’s been here stress free.”
Rashada’s travels
Rashada attended Liberty High in Brentwood in Contra Costa County before a transfer to prep private school powerhouse IMG Academy in Florida, but he returned to California before IMG’s season started, landing at Pittsburg High.
He passed for 5,275 yards and 59 touchdowns over his junior and senior seasons with the storied Pirates, graduating in the winter of 2022. Rashada initially gave a verbal commitment to play for the Miami Hurricanes, but flipped to the Florida Gators. He requested a release from his letter of intent amid reports that an NIL deal went awry.
Rashada wound up at Arizona State, where his father, Harlen Rashada once played. Rashada earned the starting job at ASU in 2023, and he passed for 236 yards and two touchdowns in a 24-21 win over Southern Utah in his debut. He started three games for the Sun Devils and passed for 485 yards and four touchdowns.
Disappointed with his role with the Sun Devils, Rashada transferred to the Georgia Bulldogs in the spring of 2024, where he did not play in a game that fall. He entered the transfer portal following the season.
Cal Poly (2-2) at No. 21 Sacramento State (2-2)
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
On air: ESPN1320 radio, KMAX 31 TV, ESPN+
Of note: Cal Poly is coached by Paul Wulff, the one-time Davis High School lineman star and a one-time Sac State assistant coach. Wulff is forever motivated by the spirit of his mother, Dolores, who was murdered in 1979 when he was 14 years old, her body not identified until 2020. Ty Diffenbach leads Cal Poly in passing and rushing. Duel-threat backup Anthony Grigsby out of Cosumnes Oaks High in Elk Grove has also played quarterback for the Mustangs. In a rivalry that started in 1967, Cal Poly leads the all-time series against Sac State, 22-21. Cal Poly won 26-23 last season. Sac State defensive end Dylan Hampsten earned Big Sky Conference co-Defensive Player of the Week honors after recording three of his team’s eight sacks against Central Arkansas. Sac State piled up 602 yards on 61 plays against Central Arkansas, and the average of 9.87 yards per play is the fourth best in program history, which dates back to 1954.