As college football teams complete their spring practices, many questions remain unanswered before training camp begins in August.

Such is the case at Sacramento State, where the Hornets concluded 14 days of spring training with the annual Spring Game at Hornet Stadium on Saturday afternoon. This much seems certain: Sacramento State brings enough talented players and is supported by an outstanding coaching staff to compete for the program’s fourth Big Sky Conference championship since 2019. The season opener is Aug. 29 at San Jose State.

The green team defeated the white Hornets team 24-12. Afterward, the coaches met with the players in groups, and then there was an autograph signing and meet-and-greet with the fans. Head coach Andy Thompson was beaming afterward. More than 100 former Hornets football players from the 1960s were in attendance, as well as about 200 high school football freshmen from across Northern California.

“Spring is about improving and getting to know a lot of different people, and I think we’ve gotten to know a lot of people,” Thompson said. “We still have a lot of work to do, but we’re encouraged.”

Here are three questions that will define the Hornets this summer:

Who will play QB?

The Hornets have been rocked in recent weeks by injuries to last season’s opening starter Kaiden Bennett and backup Carson Camp, both of whom missed most of spring ball with leg injuries

Camp suffered a knee injury. Bennett suffered a broken lower leg, but the Folsom High School senior said he will be ready to play in a few weeks. Carson Conklin shined in games last season as a true freshman from Los Angeles County and looked good throughout the spring and in parts of Saturday’s game, throwing for 142 yards and two touchdowns.

The trio of Bennett, Conklin and Camp threw for 3,155 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2023. Joey Cook, a redshirt freshman from Novato, was used a lot this spring.

The Hornets said goodbye to their top runner Marcus Fulcher, but runners Zeke Burnett, Ezra Moleni and Elijah Tau-Tolliver and coaches got a look at redshirt freshman Curron Borders from Antelope High.

What is in front?

The offensive line under position coach Kris Richardson has been the foundation of the team since the Hornets’ rapid rise in 2019.

Sacramento State will continue to be strong in the trenches with four returning starters, including Jackson Slater, who started 34 games at guard in his career. He will be joined this fall by center Nathan Mejia, who started 27 games at guard in his career, guard Kenndell Riley of Rocklin High (seven career games) and tackle Aidan Meeks (nine career games at tackle).

Who will put pressure on the passer?

The Hornets have been one of the best defensive teams in the Big Sky and the FCS landscape since early 2019 under coach Thompson, the team’s defensive coordinator, but three of the 2023 starting defensive linemen have left the team.

The only returning starter is defensive end DeShawn Lynch of Folsom High, who had 34 tackles last season, including 6½ for loss.

Josh Cashiola and Ben Ahip both played defensive tackle and are expected to settle into their starting positions soon. Brandon Knott of Inderkum High will return after missing the spring season with an injury. The returning sack leader is Mason Brosseau, who recorded three sacks.