Three’s company at Sac State

Carson Camp started the 2023 season at quarterback for Sacramento State and finished it Saturday in a stadium he once called home. The junior transfer from South Dakota returned to Grand Forks for a second-round FCS playoff game and did all he could to spark the Hornets, but his effort was not enough in a 34-24 loss to his former team.

Camp made just his fourth appearance of the season after Kaiden Bennett was injured and exited in the second quarter. Turnabout must be fair play because Bennett replaced Camp in the second quarter of the Aug. 31 opener at Nicholls State. Camp was pulled after struggling in his debut with the Hornets and Bennett came to the rescue.

Carson Camp made a case to start in 2024 with a solid relief effort in Sacramento State’s loss to South Dakota on Saturday.

Bennett made a case to become the starter by throwing for two touchdowns and running for a third in a 38-24 victory. His first start came a week later in a 34-6 win over Texas A&M-Commerce and Bennett again delivered, throwing for 176 yards and rushing for 101. His two touchdown runs propelled the Hornets to a 24-0 lead at halftime.

His second start was even better. Bennett threw for 279 yards and ran for 100 in a 30-23 victory at Stanford. His footwork went beyond his 13 carries. Bennett scrambled out of a sack and flipped a pass to running back Marcus Fulcher, who did the rest for a 49-yard touchdown with 1:32 to play.

The spotlight shifted to Carson Conklin, however, after the true freshman relieved Bennett in a 51-16 victory at Idaho State on Oct. 28. Conklin threw for 273 yards and three touchdowns to put himself in line for more playing time. Conklin made his first start Nov. 11 in a 41-30 win over Cal Poly and rewarded the coaches for putting their faith in him.

Some folks will say the Hornets were not risking that much by going with Conklin because the Mustangs were 1-5 in the Big Sky Conference. The game was much closer than expected, so Conklin made the difference by passing for 313 yards and three touchdowns.

Conklin did not come close to those numbers against UC Davis in the Causeway Classic on Nov. 18. He got the hook at halftime with the Aggies leading 17-0 after going 13-of-25 for 137 yards. Bennett completed 19 of 28 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns in the second half as the Hornets salvaged a smidgen of pride.

Bennett was incredible in a 42-35 win at North Dakota in the first round of the playoffs, accounting for three touchdowns with 333 yards of total offense. His injury Saturday might have had a silver lining because the offense was in need of a jump-start. The first four possessions ended in two punts, an interception and a fumble that South Dakota returned for a touchdown to take a 17-0 lead.

Camp provided it on the ensuing possession by throwing for 36 yards and running for 24 as the Hornets drove 75 yards to score their first touchdown with 9:31 to play in the second quarter. His effort did not rescue the Hornets, but it makes for quite a quarterback battle when the Hornets reconvene to prepare for the 2024 season.

The Hornets essentially had two starting quarterbacks the past two seasons with Jake Dunniway and Asher O’Hara. Now let’s see if they can juggle three.

Hornets try to stretch season

Sacramento State has not reached the end of the road, but the Hornets are facing a familiar pothole. Saturday’s 42-35 victory at North Dakota earned the Hornets a second game in the FCS playoffs for the third time since 2019, but they have yet to play a third game.

The Hornets will return to the Midwest for that second game this week and face third-seeded South Dakota in Vermillion. The Coyotes are 9-2 and rallied at home to beat North Dakota 14-10 on Nov. 11. Sacramento State and South Dakota will meet for the first time.

This season has not been like the past two for the Hornets. They brought an eight-game winning streak in the 2021 playoffs to earn a first-round bye and then lost to South Dakota State. They were 12-0 last year after a first-round win over Richmond and then lost 66-63 to Incarnate Word. The Hornets and Cardinals combined for 57 points in the fourth quarter.

Kaiden Bennett threw for 207 yards and rushed for 126 on Saturday to propel the Hornets to a 42-35 victory at North Dakota.

Sacramento State was lucky just to make the 24-team playoffs this season, much less receive a bye or a home game, after going 7-4 in the regular season and losing 31-21 to UC Davis in the Causeway Classic. That left the Hornets with a 1,743-mile trip to Grand Forks.

Finding their way to the Alterus Center was far easier than trying to figure out who would start at quarterback against the Fighting Hawks. Freshman Carson Conklin started the previous two games, but he was pulled at halftime against UC Davis with a 17-0 deficit.

Junior Kaiden Bennett threw three touchdown passes in the second half, the third making it 24-14 with 5:45 to play. The Hornets gambled on their next possession by going for it on fourth-and-12 at their 18-yard line, but Bennett’s pass intended for wide receiver Carlos Hill fell incomplete.

Lan Larison scored on a 12-yard run with 3:30 remaining for his fourth touchdown of the day to put the game away. The Aggies snapped a three-game losing streak against the Hornets.

Bennett’s start Saturday was his ninth of the season and he made the most of it. The Folsom High School graduate passed for 207 yards, ran for 126 and accounted for three touchdowns. The third was a 4-yard scamper for the go-ahead touchdown with 4:45 to go.

Tight end Marshel Martin IV wrapped his arms around Bennett at the 2-yard line and pulled him into the end zone. Bennett accounted for 63 of 75 yards during the seven-play drive by completing all of his three passes for 40 yards and gaining 23 on three carries.

Bennett has run for 100 or more yards in three games this season. He surpassed senior Marcus Fulcher on Saturday for the team lead in rushing yards with 578. Fulcher has 527.

Insider information for Hornets

Sacramento State has not played North Dakota since 2019, but the Hornets will know all about the Fighting Hawks before the teams tangle in the FCS playoffs Saturday in Grand Forks. Sacramento State happens to have an inside source with an updated scouting report.

And the Hornets need all the help they can get after losing 31-21 to UC Davis in the Causeway Classic on Saturday. Sacramento State was among the last four teams to get into the playoffs when the 24-team bracket was announced Sunday despite being ranked 10th in the latest FCS poll. UC Davis was among the final four teams to be snubbed.

Quarterback Carson Camp may be of assistance for Sacramento State because he faced North Dakota in 2021 when he was starting for South Dakota. And he led the Coyotes to a 20-13 victory by throwing for 179 yards and two touchdowns. Camp lost the starting job in 2022, however, and jumped into the transfer portal.

UC Davis linebacker Nick Eaton only has eyes for Sacramento State’s Carson Conklin.

Sacramento State was the ideal place for a quarterback trying to resurrect his college career. The Hornets were in need of a starter after the tag team of Jake Dunniway and Asher O’Hara guided Sacramento State to consecutive Big Sky Conference championships.

Kaiden Bennett was the heir apparent after paying his dues for two years. Camp won the job, however, and started the season opener at Nicholls State. His 26-yard run was the big play during the Hornets’ first possession as they drove 75 yards to take a 7-0 lead.

Bennett split time with Camp and made his case to become the starter. Bennett completed 11 of 16 passes for 221 yards and two touchdowns. Camp was 5-of-11 for 35 yards and threw an interception in the third quarter that Nicholls State turned into a touchdown.

That score cut Sacramento State’s lead to 17-10. Bennett regained momentum for the Hornets with a 40-yard touchdown pass to Jared Gipson with 58 seconds to go in the quarter. Bennett started the following week against Texas A&M-Commerce, led Sacramento State to a 30-23 win at Stanford on Sept. 16 and held the job for the next six games.

Camp dropped to third on the depth chart when freshman Carson Conklin started over Bennett against Cal Poly on Nov. 11. Conklin earned the start by throwing for 235 yards and three touchdowns after relieving Bennett in the Hornets’ 51-16 win over Idaho State.

Conklin passed for 313 yards and three touchdowns in the 41-30 victory over Cal Poly. The Hornets had more trouble putting the Mustangs away than UC Davis did in beating Cal Poly 31-13 on Sept. 30. The Aggies were in cruise control after leading 24-7 at halftime.

UC Davis also had a 17-point halftime lead against Sacramento State. Conklin’s day ended at the half with a 17-0 deficit. He was 13-of-25 for 129 yards and his last pass was intercepted by UC Davis linebacker Teddye Buchanan with 52 seconds to go in the half.

Bennett gave Sacramento State a bit of hope in the second half by throwing for 232 yards and three touchdowns. His performance leaves the Hornets with having to decide who will start against North Dakota. The safe bet is it will not be Camp.

Catching on to blocking

Devin Gandy does not earn his keep at Sacramento State by blocking. It might be mentioned in the fine print of the job description for a wide receiver, but the Hornets rely on Gandy for his sure hands and game-breaking speed.

Both attributes were evident last Saturday night at Stanford in Sacramento State’s 30-23 victory. Gandy caught a career-high five passes for 64 yards, including a 39-yarder on fourth-and-3 at the Stanford 45-yard line in the third quarter.

Sophomore Devin Gandy has come back from knee surgery to give the Hornets a deep threat at wide receiver this season.

That gave the Hornets a first-and-goal at the 6, but the drive ended when Kaiden Bennett threw an interception. The turnover was not costly because Stanford’s ensuing possession also ended with an interception.

Each team got two field goals after that with Zach Schreiber’s 44-yarder pulling Sacramento State into a 23-all tie with 4:08 to play. The Hornets defense then stuffed the Cardinal to force a punt at the Stanford 19.

Bennett gained 4 yards on first down, but he followed with an incomplete pass to leave the Hornets with third-and-6 at the Stanford 49. Sacramento State was a play away from wasting its best drive start of the night.

The third-down play did not go according to offensive coordinator Bobby Fresques’ plan. Bennett dropped back to pass and noticed tight end Marshall Martin stayed put to block instead of taking off into his route. 

Marcus Fulcher stayed in the backfield to protect Bennett, but the running back missed a block on blitzing linebacker Gaethan Bernadel. Bennett scrambled to his right in a desperate search for an open receiver. 

The only available target turned out to be Fulcher, who had the good sense to flare out to the right. Bennett was nearly sacked as Bernadel pulled him down from behind when he managed to flip the ball to Fulcher.

Gandy was running a deep route on the right, but the sophomore cut it off after looking back to see Bennett was in trouble. After Fulcher caught the pass and found room to run, Gandy transformed into a blocker.

Safety Alaka’i Gilman was the last Stanford player with a chance to stop Fulcher from reaching the end zone. Gandy made sure that would not happen by cutting off Gilman and knocking him out of Fulcher’s way. 

Gilman had a 24-pound advantage on the 170-pound Gandy, but Gandy was prepared to confront the challenge.

Devin Gandy

“We’ve had a big emphasis on blocking the last couple of weeks, especially against Stanford,” said Gandy, who attended Silverado High School in Victorville. “They’re bigger guys because they play in the Pac-12.”

Sacramento State was not intimidated by Stanford’s size in its fourth win against an FBS team since 2011. Stanford was Sacramento State’s third Pac-12 victim, following Oregon State (2011) and Colorado (2012). The fourth victory came against Colorado State last season

By the time the Hornets returned to Sacramento, they were already looking ahead to Saturday’s game at Idaho. The game is one of two Big Sky Conference openers featuring two ranked teams. Sacramento is No. 4 and Idaho No. 7 in the latest FCS poll. No. 3 Montana State will travel to No. 8 Weber State.

Gandy did not play last October when the Hornets beat the Vandals 31-24. Sacramento State blew a 17-point lead but came back to win when quarterback Asher O’Hara’ scored on a 2-yard run with 1:48 to play.

Surgery on his left knee forced Gandy to miss the 2022 regular season, but he played in the two FCS playoff games. He could have returned sooner, but playing in five games would have cost him a year of eligibility. 

The Hornets wanted to have Gandy available in case they had four playoff games, the maximum for his participation without losing a year of eligibility. He marked his return to action with three receptions for 60 yards in the 38-31 playoff victory against Richmond.

His first catch was for 39 yards and erased any doubts about his knee, especially on a rain-soaked synthetic field.

“It was the best feeling because I put in the work to make it back. It was a big play and they knew they could rely on me,” said Gandy, who probably had a better feeling after the surprising victory against Stanford.

Hornets reload without Taylor

Two seasons with two quarterbacks capable of running Sacramento State’s offense made Bobby Fresques’ job as the quarterbacks coach almost too easy. Jake Dunniway and Asher O’Hara made the most of being interchangeable as the Hornets won 21 of 25 games and two Big Sky Conference championships the past two seasons.

 “It worked because we were successful,” Fresques explained. “If we’re not successful, then one of them is going to be disgruntled. By both of them being really good, it’s like the old saying ‘Iron sharpens iron.’ They made each other better. Neither one of them could afford to be complacent. And we got the best out of both of them.” 

Offensive coordinator Bobby Fresques

That was then, however. Fresques now faces the challenge of finding a new starting quarterback or possibly two who can share playing time. And now that Fresques will be calling plays, the game plan will depend on who is behind center. Fresques was promoted to  offensive coordinator after head coach Troy Taylor bolted  to Stanford.

Fresques, associate head coach Kris Richardson and defensive coordinator Andy Thompson all interviewed to succeed Taylor. Fresques credits Mark Orr, Sacramento State’s Director of Athletics, for not going outside to find a new head coach who would have likely dismissed all of Taylor’s assistants in favor of assembling his own staff.

There was also the possibility of Taylor taking some of his assistants with him to Stanford. Fresques said he, Thompson and Richardson made a pact to remain with the Hornets regardless of who would be named as  head coach. Fresques laughed when asked if he and Richardson conspired to let Thompson take the helm – and the stress.

“Exactly,” Fresques said. “The head coach responsibility is big and Andy is finding that out. But there is no better guy for the job. If they didn’t go in house, we could have been a 12-1 football team (in 2022) with a whole new staff. We’ve built a great foundation. I’d like to think we’re not going to change anything or skip a beat.”

The beat will go on because Fresques inherits an offense with six returning starters. Dunniway and O’Hara graduated along with wide receiver Pierre Williams and guard Brandon Weldon. Sophomore running back Cameron Skattebo, the 2022 Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Year, used the transfer portal to go to Arizona State.

Kaiden Bennett

Williams, Weldon and O’Hara were all first-team selections in All-Big Sky voting last year. O’Hara was named the conference’s best all-purpose player after rushing for 19 touchdowns and passing for 11. The Hornets have experienced depth at running back, wide receiver and guard. Quarterback is the question mark.

Kaiden Bennett is the only quarterback on the roster to take a snap with the Hornets. The junior appeared in six games last season, completing four of seven passes for 26 yards and rushing for 72 yards on 12 carries. Bennett’s competition appears to be Carson Camp, a junior transfer from South Dakota. Camp was benched after starting the first seven games for the Coyotes in 2022 to extend his streak of consecutive starts to 23.

Fresques is in no hurry to name a starter. Spring practices were an opportunity to take a good long look at each quarterback candidate. The competition will resume for real in August.

“Right now it’s about putting in the offense, getting (the quarterbacks) reps and see where we’re at going into the summer,”  said Fresques, who played quarterback for the Hornets from 1990 to 1992. “You always want someone to emerge, but we’re not looking to make that decision until the fall. I told (the quarterbacks) three things – don’t compare yourself to anybody else, be a ferocious learner and never cease trying to be better.”

May the better quarterback, or two,  win and answer the No. 1 question for the Hornets as the 2023 season approaches.