The History of Pi Kappa Alpha at Sacramento State
Founded on October 26, 1980, the Theta Tau Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha at Sacramento State built a decades-long legacy of brotherhood, leadership, philanthropy, campus involvement, and lifelong alumni connections that continues through generations of Sac St
The Beginning of Pi Kappa Alpha
Pi Kappa Alpha was founded on March 1, 1868, in Room 47 of the West Range at the University of Virginia. Its six founders were Frederick Southgate Taylor, Littleton Waller Tazewell, James Benjamin Sclater Jr., Robertson Howard, Julian Edward Wood, and William Alexander. The fraternity was founded around a simple idea: creating lasting friendship, brotherly love, and mutual advancement among its members. From those six men in Virginia, PIKE eventually expanded across North America and established hundreds of chapters. Nearly 112 years after PIKE's founding, that brotherhood arrived at Sacramento State.
PIKE Comes to Sacramento State
The man credited with playing a central role in bringing Pi Kappa Alpha to Sacramento State was Fred "Pappy" McNally, an alumnus of PIKE's Gamma Omega Chapter at Miami University. McNally helped establish PIKE at Sacramento State and became Theta Tau's first chapter advisor. Decades later, the chapter and its alumni continued honoring him for the role he played in creating the organization that generations of Sac State Pikes would eventually call home. Theta Tau was officially chartered at Sacramento State on October 26, 1980. PIKE historical publications commemorated October 26, 2020 as the chapter's 40th anniversary. A separate historical summary of PIKE's westward expansion lists Sacramento State's Theta Tau among the fraternity's early-1980s expansion into the western United States. From there, the Sac State Pikes began building their own identity.
Early Success
Theta Tau did not take long to establish itself within Pi Kappa Alpha. With Fred McNally serving as the chapter's first advisor, Theta Tau earned one of PIKE's most significant chapter distinctions, a Robert Adger Smythe Award, in 1983. Pi Kappa Alpha's historical account specifically credits McNally with being instrumental in helping Theta Tau earn the award. The chapter was also visible in Sacramento State athletics during its early years. A 1984 edition of Shield & Diamond highlighted several Theta Tau brothers playing for the Sacramento State football team, including Tim Korte, Darren Arbet, and Jeff Hoffman. What had begun only a few years earlier was becoming an established fraternity at Sacramento State.
Growing the Brotherhood
Over the following decade, Theta Tau continued to grow. By the 1992-93 academic year, PIKE records listed Theta Tau with 66 active members, 28 pledges during the year, and 369 total members in the chapter's history Theta Tau was also becoming part of PIKE's expansion throughout Northern California. When PIKE established new chapters in the region, Sac State brothers helped welcome those men into the fraternity. Theta Tau participated in the installation of PIKE's Iota Beta Chapter at Fresno State in the 1980s. In April 1996, brothers from Sacramento State's Theta Tau Chapter joined PIKE brothers from Santa Clara University and UC Davis to initiate 50 founding fathers of the new Kappa Nu Chapter at the University of the Pacific. Sac State PIKE was no longer simply a chapter benefiting from the fraternity's expansion. Its members were helping PIKE grow throughout California.
Brotherhood Across Generations
As the chapter matured, the connection between undergraduate brothers and alumni became an increasingly important part of Theta Tau. The Theta Tau Alumni Association developed into an organization dedicated to keeping Sacramento-area PIKE alumni connected while supporting undergraduate members. That relationship reflects one of the central ideas behind fraternity membership: graduation doesn't have to mark the end of the experience. In 2015, the Alumni Association described its mission as building relationships among alumni, increasing alumni participation, supporting the undergraduate chapter, and providing academic scholarships. By that point, the association reported having provided more than $5,000 in support, including grants to undergraduate members with exceptional GPAs. The chapter's alumni network also created traditions of its own.
The Fred "Pappy" McNally Memorial Golf Classic
One of Theta Tau's longest-running traditions became the Fred "Pappy" McNally Memorial Golf Classic, named in honor of the man who helped bring PIKE to Sacramento State. By 2020, Sacramento-area PIKE alumni were celebrating the 25th annual tournament. The event provided generations of Theta Tau brothers an opportunity to reconnect and maintain relationships long after their undergraduate years ended. The tradition continued into the following years, with the Theta Tau Alumni Association promoting the tournament alongside Sacramento State football gatherings and other alumni activities. Pappy's influence therefore continued decades beyond the chapter's founding.
A Strong Chapter in the 2010s
Theta Tau remained a substantial undergraduate organization decades after its founding.
In 2011, Pi Kappa Alpha reported 66 active Theta Tau members and 20 pledges. The following year, the fraternity reported 65 undergraduate members and 19 pledges, with several Sac State Pikes attending PIKE leadership-development programs. The chapter also developed a strong philanthropic presence. One example was the PIKE Fireman's Challenge, which raised money for the Firefighters Burn Institute. A 2017 fundraising campaign stated that previous Fireman's Challenge events had raised more than $10,000 and that proceeds supported burn treatment, survivor recovery programs, prevention education, professional education, and research. Those events became another way Theta Tau connected the fraternity experience with the greater Sacramento community.
Celebrating 40 Years
October 26, 2020 represented an important milestone: 40 years of Theta Tau at Sacramento State. Even during the unusual circumstances surrounding 2020, alumni gathered to recognize four decades of brotherhood and held the 25th Fred "Pappy" McNally Memorial Golf Classic. The Alumni Association was also raising money for the Theta Tau Chapter Endowment Fund, designed to provide educational opportunities for undergraduate brothers, including participation in PIKE University leadership programs. By 2021, the Alumni Association announced that it had reached its initial $10,000 Chapter Endowment Fund goal and established a new goal of $30,000. Alumni also continued gathering at Sacramento State football games and the annual Pappy McNally golf tournament. It demonstrated something that had become increasingly important to Theta Tau's identity: the chapter was bigger than any single undergraduate class.
More Than Four Decades of Sac State Pikes
Theta Tau's history hasn't been without difficult periods. Public chapter listings indicate that the undergraduate chapter became inactive in 2022, and Sacramento State's current Interfraternity Council organization list does not include Pi Kappa Alpha among its recognized IFC fraternities. But an undergraduate chapter's active status represents only one part of a fraternity's history. The Theta Tau story includes the young men who established PIKE at Sacramento State in 1980, the early leadership of Fred "Pappy" McNally, a Smythe Award in 1983, hundreds of initiated brothers, decades of undergraduate classes, philanthropy benefiting the Sacramento community, alumni scholarships, chapter traditions, and an alumni organization that has continued bringing brothers together. It includes Pikes who helped establish other PIKE chapters throughout California and generations of alumni who continued supporting the fraternity years after leaving Sacramento State. Most importantly, it includes the friendships created along the way.
Once a Pike, Always a Pike
When Theta Tau celebrated its milestones, one phrase repeatedly captured the relationship between its undergraduate chapter and alumni:
Once a Pike, Always a Pike.
More than four decades after PIKE first arrived at Sacramento State, Theta Tau's history lives through the generations of men who wore the letters. From the founding members of 1980 to the brothers who followed them, each generation added something to the chapter that the next generation inherited.
Different decades.
Different pledge classes.
Different chapter houses.
Different experiences.
But the same letters.
ΠΚΑ
And the same brotherhood.
Theta Tau Chapter
Pi Kappa Alpha
California State University, Sacramento
Established October 26, 1980