Andy Thompson would rather not think of how much money Sacramento State made for its 42-28 loss at San Jose State on Thursday. FBC teams make bank for supposedly being easy prey for an FBS team, but $425,000 will not make it easier for the Hornets to cope with blowing a 14-0 lead.
Thompson did not become Sacramento State’s head coach in 2022 by thinking of non-conference games as fundraisers. A 30-23 win last year against Stanford and his former boss, Troy Taylor, was of greater value to the coach than the $625,000 the Hornets were paid for the 250-mile round trip.
Saturday’s game at Fresno State will not be as lucrative and likely as competitive for the Hornets, who will make $350,000. The Bulldogs gave Michigan a run for the money and trailed 16-10 in the fourth quarter before the Wolverines scored twice in the final six minutes to pull out a 30-10 victory.
This is the first time since 2013 that Sacramento State will battle FBS teams in its first two games. That the Hornets scored against San Jose State is an improvement from 11 years ago when they stumbled out of the gate by losing 24-0 and 55-0 to San Jose State and Arizona State, respectively.
“We are going to work our butt off and try to win the football game, especially against teams close to us in California,” Thompson said. “We get a chance to play two regional games without jumping on a plane. These games are big at the end of the year when you see what your resume looks like.”
UC Davis fans will point to the Stanford game as the only reason Sacramento State made the 2023 FCS playoffs after the Hornets lost 31-21 to the Aggies in the 69th Causeway Classic. A 31-30 win against Northern Arizona was just as important because UC Davis lost 38-21 to Northern Arizona.
Northern Arizona and UC Davis shared fourth place in the Big Sky Conference last season at 5-3. Sacramento State finished 4-4 and lost to each of the top three teams – Montana (7-1), Idaho (6-2) and Montana State (6-2). UC Davis lost to Montana and did not play Montana State or Idaho.
As Sacramento State faces another FBS test this week, UC Davis should have an easier time in its home opener against Texas &M-Commerce. The Aggies tamed the Lions 48-10 last season. Texas A&M-Commerce lost 45-14 at San Diego State last Saturday after managing a 6-3 lead at halftime.
The loss was worth $400,000 to Texas A&M Commerce, which will visit Sacramento State on Sept. 21. The Hornets beat the Lions 34-6 last year. Texas A&M Commerce went 5-6 two years ago in its first Division I season. The Lions were not as fortunate last year at 1-9.
Sacramento State is not the only team that will benefit financially from playing two FBS teams this season. Nicholls made $325,000 last Saturday for losing 25-17 at Louisiana Tech and will collect $760,000, the highest payout for an FBC team this season, for a 69-mile bus ride Saturday to LSU.
There are also payouts when an FBS team breaks a contract with another FBS program. Such was the case in 2021 when Georgia paid San Jose State $1.8 million to get out of its Sept. 4 game in order to play Clemson. San Jose State then earned $1.1 million for playing USC on the same day.
USC needed an opponent for its opener in 2021 after abruptly breaking its contract with UC Davis. The Trojans got an earful from fans who could not believe their beloved team had sunk to that level. USC, UCLA and Notre Dame were at the time the only FBS teams to have not played an FCS team.
UCLA was the first of the three to schedule an FCS game by spending $590,000 for Alabama State in 2022 and $700,000 for North Carolina Central last year. Notre Dame followed in 2023 by doling out $1 million to play Tennessee State, whose coach is 1995 Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George.
Notre Dame and UCLA had noble intentions by offering thousands of dollars to to three historically black colleges. USC had one intention in 2021. “Preserving our history is critically important to us and to our fans,” said then-USC athletic director Mike Bohn, “so we worked to make that happen.”
Breaking its deal with UC Davis cost USC $750,000. The Aggies then made $400,000 by going to Tulsa and coming away with a 19-17 victory. UC Davis made $1.5 million and got a win to boot. The Aggies will profit from playing UCLA in 2027 and 2029 even if the Bruins change their mind.
