Dick Tomey Legacy Game
| Sport | American football |
|---|---|
| Type | Collegiate |
| First meeting | December 11, 1936 San Jose State, 13–8 |
| Latest meeting | November 1, 2025 San Jose State, 45–38 |
| Next meeting | October 3, 2026 |
| Stadiums | CEFCU and Clarence T. C. Ching |
| Trophy | Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy |
| Statistics | |
| Total meetings | 47 |
All-time series | San Jose State leads, 24–22–1 |
| Trophy series | San Jose State leads, 5–1 |
Largest victory | San Jose State, 48–6 (1960) |
Longest win streak | Hawaii, 7 wins (2001–2007) |
Current win streak | San Jose State, 5 wins (2020–Present) |
The Dick Tomey Legacy Game is the name given to the Hawaii–San Jose State football rivalry. It is a college football rivalry between the Hawaiʻi Rainbow Warriors football team of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the San José State Spartans football team of San José State University. Since 1936, the two teams have played each other 47 times. Beginning in 2019 the winner of the game receives the Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy. As of 2025, San Jose State leads, 24–22–1.
Historical overview
The series between San Jose State and Hawaii began in 1936 with a game in Honolulu, which San Jose State won 13–8. Two years later in 1938, Hawaiʻi won their first game of the series, a 13–12 victory in Honolulu.
In 1941, the San Jose State Spartans football team served unexpectedly with the Honolulu Police Department during World War II. The team had just arrived in Hawaii to play a series of postseason bowl games, known as the Shrine Bowl, against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors and the Willamette University Bearcats when the U.S. Navy base at Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941. The team was stranded on the islands for a number of weeks following the attack, and players were employed by the local police department to help improve island defenses against a possible Japanese amphibious assault and as guards for military bases on the island.[1][2] They were rescued on December 19 aboard the SS President Coolidge.[3]
In 1996, San José State joined the Western Athletic Conference, making the pair conference rivals. In 2007, Hawaiʻi had their seventh consecutive win, the longest win-streak of the series. In 2012, Hawaiʻi moved their football team to the Mountain West Conference,[4] they were followed by San José State the following year,[5] allowing the teams to continue to be conference rivals.
In 2019, after the death of Dick Tomey, a former head coach for both schools, the near-annual game was renamed to the Dick Tomey Legacy Game, the winner of which would receive the Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy.[6][7]
Statistics
|
Source:[8] |
San José State | Hawaiʻi |
|---|---|---|
| Games played | 47 | |
| Wins | 24 | 22 |
| Ties | 1 | |
| Home wins | 8 | 13 |
| Road wins | 16 | 9 |
| Consecutive wins | 5 | 7 |
| Most total points in a game | 105 (2000) | |
| Most points in a win | 57 (2000) | 62 (1999) |
| Most points in a loss | 41 (1999, 2018) | 48 (2000) |
| Fewest total points in a game | 12 (1957) | |
| Largest margin of victory | 42 (1960) | 37 (2006) |
| Smallest margin of victory | 1 (1937, 2011) | 1 (1938) |
| Total points scored in series | 1,242 | 1,107 |
| Shut-outs of opposing team | 4 (1955, 1957, 1962, 2023) | 2 (1956, 2014) |
Game results
| San Jose State victories | Hawaii victories | Tie games |
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See also
References
- ↑ San Jose State Football Record Book (Offerpad Arizona Bowl ed.). San Jose State University. 2022. p. 59.
- ↑ "Seventy years ago, teams from San Jose State and Willamette were in Hawaii for fun and football". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. December 7, 2011. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ↑ "State of Oregon: World War II – Shock and Resolve: Oregon Reacts to Pearl Harbor". sos.oregon.gov. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
- ↑ E, Dave. "Hawaii Warriors Football To Join Mountain West: What Move Is Next for MWC?". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ↑ Walker, Dave. "Rest in Peace, WAC Football: Utah State and San Jose State Leaving". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ↑ "Spartans & Hawai'i Unveil Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy". SJSU Athletics. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ↑ "Dick Tomey Legacy Trophy". University of Hawai'i at Manoa Athletics. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ↑ "Winsipedia – San Jose State Spartans vs. Hawaii Warriors football series history". Winsipedia. Retrieved March 9, 2023.