Things haven’t gone nearly as Sacramento State had hoped in the 2024 football season. The Hornets have underachieved on almost every metric and in almost every game.

Sacramento State entered the season as one of the favorites to advance to the FCS playoffs and possibly have a shot at winning the Big Sky Conference title. The Hornets 3-peated the first three league titles in program history in 2019, 2021 and 2022. Last season, Sac did not win the league title, but did advance to the FCS playoffs and won a playoff game.

That success seems like a distant memory after a somewhat promising start was followed by losses in four of five conference games. Sac State comes to Bozeman this weekend to take on No. 2 Montana State after losing in overtime to Idaho State before being swept 58-38 last week by Portland State in Sacramento State.

The result leaves the Hornets with a 1-4 league mark and a 3-6 overall record, all but guaranteeing they won’t make the 24-team field for the FCS playoffs. They are coming off a resounding 58-38 loss to Portland State, previously one win. Before that, they played back-to-back overtime games, with Weber State and Idaho State beating WSU in double overtime and losing to ISU.

“It was definitely a challenge,” Hornets head coach Andy Thompson said. “I think that’s the word I would use. Many things have happened. We started the season with four of the five games scheduled. I think there has been some frustration trying to get over the hump. Proud of the boys who fight every week. I was there at half-time, but I couldn’t get over the threshold in the second half.”

Thompson realizes that sports can be tough and sometimes you’re on the right side of it, and other times it’s not so good.

“In 2022 we had five games until the last stage,” Thompson said. “We were on the right side of that (Sac State went 8-0). This year we played three-four games that way and it didn’t end well.”

He also realizes that the task ahead is difficult. The Hornets must travel to Montana to take on undefeated No. 2 MSU.

“MSU has had its way with everyone,” Thompson said. They’ve done a good job of getting people and really dominating their opponents this year.

“(MSU is) really good football in all three phases. They are at 7.6 yards per play. The defense has done a good job and the special teams are number one in the country. Any time you can run the ball like they do and stop the run like they do, you’ll do well. They’ve kept their playmakers healthy, so you see the same guys there and they’ve been rolling.

“We have to tackle well and eliminate explosive actions. Their home games feature explosive runs and explosive passes. You have to make sure that when you have the ball, you move the sticks. You also have to not only deal with the atmosphere, but also get it fundamentally right. Start fast and finish strong in the fourth quarter.”

The Hornets have dealt with their fair share of injuries and issues. Montana State head coach Brent Vigen said the film showed a defensive unit completely filled with new faces compared to the defense MSU fielded last year.

“Started in fall camp,” Thompson said. “Sometimes football is like that and I’m sure the (San Francisco) 49ers say the same thing. At university you feel like you have a lot of depth. Sometimes yes, but sometimes younger players play with older players and you have to adjust your game plan to make sure they play where you want them to.

“Every coach and every player who has been around the game for a while has had to deal with it.”

Thompson, like every coach the Bobcats face, is well aware of the effect MSU quarterback Tommy Mellott has on the game.

“(Mellott) takes care of the football,” Thompson said. “He only has one interception and he’s responsible for 31 touchdowns. He is very productive and knows where he wants to go with the football. If you give him one look, he’ll respond with where he wants to go. He is extremely accurate and makes good decisions.”

The Hornets continue to break in freshman quarterback Carson Conklin. A year ago, the Bobcats took on dual-threat quarterback Kaiden Bennett, who got the Hornets off to a good start, but his pick-6 of MSU cornerback Jon Johnson got the Bobcats back into the game.

“He’s done a lot of good things,” Thompson said of Conklin. “He’s got a lot more reps. He has been able to get the ball to a number of different playmakers. Each week he seems to become more comfortable with the different defenses he has faced. Gets the opportunity to improve compared to the week before.”

Conklin has a lot of weapons at his disposal, especially running back Elijah Tau-Toliver, who can stay on the field the entire game with his great skills.

“Tau-Tolliver has had a good year and taken the ball,” Thompson said. “The biggest thing they did is allow us to establish the line of scrimmage so we don’t have to be one-dimensional.”

The Hornets and Bobcats will kick off MSU’s Military Appreciation Day tomorrow at 1 p.m. at Bobcat Stadium.