Lights, camera, MACtion: Sacramento State to join Mid-American Conference as football-only member

Sacramento State is officially making the leap to major college football. Presidents of the Mid-American Conference have voted to add the Hornets as a football-only member beginning in 2026, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel. A formal announcement is expected in the coming days. The move comes at a significant cost, as Sacramento State is expected to pay an $18 million entrance fee to join the MAC, along with a $5 million transition fee to the NCAA to move from the FCS to the FBS level. The total investment is set to cost $23 million. The addition keeps the MAC at 13 football members. Sacramento State will effectively replace Northern Illinois, which departs for the Mountain West next season. For Sacramento State, the move represents the first West Coast program to jump to college football's highest subdivision since Boise State in 1995. University President Dr. Luke Wood made the institution's ambition clear in the summer of 2025, stating, "We believe our university, our students and the entire Sacramento region deserve major college football." The Hornets have aggressively pursued FBS status. Last year, the NCAA denied Sacramento State's waiver request to compete as an independent, leaving the program in search of a conference invitation. Sacramento State will not be eligible for postseason play during its two-year transition to the FBS level. Still, the program enters the move with recent momentum, having won FCS playoff games in 2022 and 2023. The school hired Arizona assistant Alonzo Carter as its fourth head coach since 2022 in preparation for the transition. The decision also reflects a broader national trend of schools investing heavily to reposition themselves in a rapidly evolving college landscape. In 2023, UCF, Houston and Cincinnati each paid substantial exit fees to leave the American Athletic Conference early and join the Big 12, while BYU accepted a phased-in revenue share upon entering the league. SMU later agreed to forgo nine years of television revenue to secure ACC membership, and Cal and Stanford accepted reduced shares as part of their move. More recently, North Dakota State committed $12.5 million to join the Mountain West, and Northern Illinois paid $2 million for its transition. In the modern realignment era, access to a stronger league increasingly comes with a significant upfront price tag. For the MAC, the influx of entrance fees comes at a time when mid-major conferences face financial pressure amid NIL spending and relaxed transfer rules that have strained competitive balance. Sacramento State's non-football sports will join the Big West beginning in 2026-27.