Sacramento State’s home football opener against Mississippi Valley State was still underway on the evening of Saturday, September 5, 2026, when university police reported shots fired near Parking Structure 3, a garage across from Hornet Stadium. No injuries were reported, the game continued without a stoppage, and by the next day police had walked back their own earlier account of a suspect being held. No shooter has been identified, and no arrests or charges have been announced.
Key facts
- When: About 7:15 p.m. Pacific on Saturday, September 5, 2026
- Where: Parking Structure 3, a garage across from Hornet Stadium
- What happened: University police reported shots fired during Sacramento State’s home season opener against Mississippi Valley State
- Injuries: None reported
- Game: Continued without a stoppage and finished as scheduled
- Shelter-in-place: Lasted about an hour, lifted between roughly 8:10 p.m. and 8:28 p.m. (accounts vary by outlet)
- Suspect: None in custody; people questioned near the scene were released
- Arrests or charges: None announced; investigation remains open
Police alert and shelter-in-place
Sacramento State University Police said the report came in at about 7:15 p.m. Pacific time. The department posted the alert on its @sacstatepolice social media account, telling people to stay away from the garage and placing the stadium under shelter-in-place: “Dangerous situation! Shots fired. Police responding. Avoid Parking Structure 3. Stadium shelter in place until all clear is given.” Thousands of fans were still in the stands when the order went out.
Gunfire reportedly hit parked vehicles
An officer on the field told CBS Sacramento that vehicles parked in the structure had been struck by gunfire. That account has not been backed up by a written police report, so how many shots were fired or how many vehicles were hit isn’t established.
Timeline
- About 7:15 p.m., Saturday, September 5 — University police reported shots fired near Parking Structure 3; the stadium was placed under shelter-in-place.
- About 8:10-8:28 p.m. — The shelter-in-place was lifted. CBS Sacramento put the lift time at about 8:10 p.m. Pacific; the Folsom Times account put it about 8:28 p.m. Either way, police said there was no ongoing threat once it was lifted, and the football game continued through the alert and finished as scheduled.
- The next day — Sacramento State corrected its earlier account: people who were stopped and questioned near the scene were found not to have been involved in the shooting and were released.
No suspect in custody
What changed overnight was the account of who, if anyone, had been caught. Police initially said a suspect had been detained. By the next day, the university had corrected that: people who were stopped and questioned near the scene were found not to have been involved in the shooting and were released. A Sacramento State spokesperson said multiple people were questioned but that none were tied to the shooting, and did not say whether investigators were pursuing anyone else. No one has been arrested or charged in connection with the shots-fired report, and as of the most recent reporting, the investigation was still open.
Reaction in the stands
One student who was in the stands during the alert said the reaction inside the stadium underwhelmed her, telling a reporter: “It should have been a way more bigger deal that it was.”
What happens next
Sacramento State has not said whether it plans to change security screening, police presence, or access to Parking Structure 3 for future home games; its public statements so far have addressed only what happened Saturday night, not what comes next for fans headed to the next one.