By now, if you are a football die-hard, you might have heard of the “Go-Go” offense.
That system, the engine that fuels most of the teams that Brennan Marion has coached, is now rooted at Sacramento State. Its pedigree incudes two prolific seasons at UNLV when Marion was the offensive coordinator, and it is the motto for the Hornets in his first season with the program.
The “Go-Go” features all sorts of options such as passing, use of a fullback — and a number of backs — and more. The offense was stalled or in idle for much of the team’s first two games, losses to FCS No. 2-ranked South Dakota State and to FBS-level Nevada, where the frustration in Reno included two late game-winning touchdown runs getting called back for holding penalties.
Now Sacramento State is 3-1 in its last four games with the “Go-Go” in forward motion, and sometimes in fast-forward mode. The Hornets are coming off of a historic rushing effort last week, and they bound into Saturday night’s homecoming game against upstart Northern Colorado at Hornets Stadium in vowing to keep the pedal to the metal.
In racing past Weber State 55-27 in Ogden, Utah — much of the game played in inclement weather — the Hornets produced three 100-yard rushers, churned out 397 yards on the ground and set a program record for the most points scored in a Big Sky Conference road game.
It’s the first time in the 71-year history of the football program that Sac State had three 100-yard rushers in a single game. The 397 rushing yards are the second most on the ground in Hornets history, and the most ever for a road game. The 55 points scored mark a Hornets season high in a season of high expectations.
The Sac State single-game record for rushing yards is 470 against Idaho State in 1999, a game that included a then-NCAA record 409 yards from star running back Charles Roberts.
Hornets quarterback Cardell Williams against Weber State rushed for a collegiate career-best 139 yards, including a 51-yard touchdown burst. Freshman Jaquail Smith scooted for 106 yards, suddenly emerging as a threat in a crowded backfield, and Rodney Hammond Jr. rumbled for 106.
“We have to be able to run the ball to make this offense work,” Marion said.
Hammond Jr. also electrified Weber State with a 99-yard kickoff return touchdown to earn Big Sky Conference Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
Williams transferred from Tulsa, and Smith was initially committed to play on scholarship at Syracuse before Sac State invited him to head west. Hammond Jr. transferred from FBS-level Pittsburgh, where he rushed for 1,546 yards and 14 scores in 36 games. Each had something to prove as three of the program’s 72 newcomers this fall. Each competes with the sense that there is still plenty to prove.
“As a whole, we’ve got the best backfield in the nation,” Hammond Jr. said after the Weber State win. “I can say, honestly, that our offensive line is real solid and stepped their game up. We all came together. We played like a team that we’re supposed to be. We’ve got a lot more to prove, and we just showed what we can do.”
Williams scored three rushing touchdowns at Weber State, and Smith and Hammond Jr. each scored twice.
A foundational offensive line
Williams also raved about the offensive line under position coach Kris Richardson, a unit that proudly goes by “Hammerheads.” The offensive line was the foundation for Big Sky Conference championship teams under head coach Troy Taylor in 2019, 2021 and 2022. The unit was also central to an FCS playoff team under head coach Andy Thompson in 2023, and it’ll have to be the power source to compete for the crown this season, the final Big Sky season for Sacramento State after 30 years in the conference.
The offensive line has allowed just three sacks in the last four games. Six players have taken the majority of the snaps in the trenches this fall, led by three who have started every game: left guard Kenndel Riley, center Dean Abdullah and Aidan Meek, at right tackle and right guard.
Williams, sounding like a leader, said that there is more to accomplish, more defenses to attack, more games to win.
“We just need to get to work,” he said.
Smith is a 5-foot-11, 170-pound first-year player from Orlando. He was rated as a three-star recruit by 247Sports, having rushed for 1,805 yards and 22 scores last fall. He gave a verbal commitment to play at Syracuse but did not sign with the program and wound up in Sacramento.
“We’ve got a deep room,” Smith said of the depth at running back. “Me just watching (the other backs), prepared me.”
Northern Colorado (3-3) at Sacramento State (3-3)
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
On air: ESPN1320 AM, KMAX-31 TV, ESPN+
Of note: The visiting Bears have received FCS national rankings votes for the first time, reflective of some lean seasons … Northern Colorado is coming off of a 49-33 rout of Idaho … Eric Gibson Jr. has emerged as the starting quarterback, having started his career at LSU before transferring to Monterey Peninsula College in California. He has passed for 1,497 yards and six touchdowns … Sac State is 15-2 all-time against Northern Colorado, including winning the last six games … Sac State has won five consecutive Homecoming games.
Related Stories from Sacramento Bee
Joe Davidson
The Sacramento Bee
Joe Davidson has covered sports for The Sacramento Bee since 1989: preps, colleges, Kings and features. He was in early 2024 named the National Sports Media Association Sports Writer of the Year for California and he was in the fall of 2024 inducted into the California High School Football Hall of Fame. He is a 14-time award winner from the California Prep Sports Writer Association. In 2021, he was honored with the CIF Distinguished Service award. He is a member of the California Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Davidson participated in football and track in Oregon.
