On September 15, 1967, the San
Diego State University football
team first stepped onto the turf
of what Sports Illustrated would
later call the finest
multi-purpose stadium in America
- San Diego Stadium. That night,
the Aztecs, led by Head Coach
Don Coryell and players like
Haven Moses, Fred Dryer, Tom
Nettles and Nate Wright,
defeated Tennessee State 16-8 in
front of 45,822 fans.
In an effort to prepare the
Stadium for the next century, a
$66.4 million renovation project
was undertaken in 1997 which
increased seating to 71,400;
added 31 luxury suites; created
7,600 club seats; and added a
second Sony Jumbotron video
board in the West end.
To help in financing of the
renovation project, Qualcomm, a
local communications company,
agreed to provide $18 million
for the naming rights of the
Stadium for the next 20 years.
The Stadium is now known as
Qualcomm Stadium. Qualcomm
Stadium is located at the
intersection of Interstates 8
and 15 in Mission Valley, less
than five miles from the
university. Indeed, San Diego
State is one of the facility's
two charter tenants, the other
being the San Diego Chargers of
the National Football League. In
the 30 years since that opening
night, some of the greatest
names in Aztec football history
have displayed their talents
there - Dennis Shaw, Brian Sipe,
Isaac Curtis, Willie Buchanon,
Todd Santos, Webster Slaughter,
Rob Awalt, Don Warren, Dan
McGwire, Henry Allison, Claudie
Minor, Jesse Freitas, Craig
Penrose, David "Deacon" Turner,
Darnay Scott and Marshall Faulk
to name a few.
In addition to the Aztecs and
Chargers, the San Diego County
Credit Union Poinsetta Bowl and
the Holiday Bowl have come to
call it home. The Stadium has
been the site of such renowned
events as the Super Bowl, the
World Series and baseball's All
Star Game.
Constructed at a cost of $27
million, San Diego Stadium
opened August 20, 1967, with an
exhibition game between the
Chargers and Detroit Lions.
Since that game, the facility
has been the stage for some of
the most memorable events in San
Diego State football history. A
then-record attendance of 53,611
was on hand November 8, 1975,
when the unbeaten Aztecs
entertained and in one of the
most dramatic games ever played
in San Diego, the Arizona
Wildcats prevailed 31-24.
In 1975, average attendance
for six home games was 42,040.
In '77 a crowd of 50,453 saw the
Aztecs hammer 15th-ranked
Florida State, 41-16. On January
6, 1981, the name of the
facility was changed officially
to San Diego Jack Murphy
Stadium. Murphy, a
nationally-known columnist and
the sports editor of the San
Diego Union Tribune, had led the
campaign to have the stadium
constructed. He had died in
1980.
In 1984, 49,220 fans nearly
carried SDSU to an upset of
UCLA, as the Bruins hung on to
an 18-15 victory. The Aztecs
clinched their first Western
Athletic Conference championship
and a berth in the Holiday Bowl
with a 10-3 victory over Brigham
Young on November 29, 1986 in
front of a Stadium crowd of
45,062. SDSU then played host to
Iowa in one of the most
memorable Holiday Bowls ever.
The hometown Aztecs fought
the perennial Big Ten power to a
standstill before losing 39-38
on a last second Hawkeye field
goal. 59,473 people were in the
stands on that December 30 night
in 1986 - the largest crowd ever
to see SDSU in San Diego Jack
Murphy Stadium. State's large
and vocal crowds have had much
to cheer about through the
years. As they await the 2010
season, the Aztecs' all time
record in Mission Valley is
170-92-6 (.634).
The stadium underwent a major
facelift in 1985. Built
initially to seat 52,675 for
football, the expansion project
pushed capacity to 60,409, and
current capacity is 70,561.
Largely as a result, the
National Football League voted
to hold the 1988 Super Bowl game
in San Diego where the
Washington Redskins defeated the
Denver Broncos 42-10. That
national spectacle returned in
1998 to witness the Denver
Broncos defeat the Green Bay
Packers 31-24. The most recent
Super Bowl hosted by the Q was
2003, when the Tampa Bay
Buccaneer's routed the Oakland
Raiders 48-21.
Prior to the stadium's
opening, the Aztecs played their
games in Aztec Bowl - a
13,000-seat facility on campus -
and the 34,500-seat Balboa
Stadium downtown. The team's
record crowd had been the 35,342
fans who jammed Balboa Stadium
to see the Aztecs meet North
Dakota State in 1966. North
Dakota State was the No. 1 small
college team in the nation at
the time, but the Aztecs won the
game 36-0. The victory served as
a springboard for San Diego
State's national small college
championships in 1966, '67 and
'68 and a move to Division I-A
following the end of the 1968
season.
San Diego State moved to what
now is Qualcomm Stadium in 1967
and has accumulated an overall
record of 167-89-6 (.637) there.
From 1936-66, the Aztecs played
most of their home games in
Aztec Bowl on campus, where they
had a record of 77-44-5 (.636).
From 1921-35, the team's home
field alternated between Balboa
Stadium (38-42-4) and Lane Field
(12-12-4) with an occasional
game played on the old Normal
School campus at College Field
(9-3-1). Two games were also
played at Aztec Field, the old
track and field stadium which
was located north of the Aztec
Center. Since 1973, nearly 75%
of all Aztec football games have
been played at night. The Aztecs
played their first and San
Diego's first night football
game on September 25, 1930 at
Lane Field against the San Diego
Marine JVs.
| Qualcomm Facts |
| Football Capacity |
70,561 |
| Turf |
Natural Turf |
| Average Attendance (`08) |
31,675 |
| Location |
9449 Friars Road |
| First Game |
August 20, 1967, Chargers and Detroit Lions |
| Teams |
Chargers and Aztecs |
| Highest Home Game Attendance |
59,473, v (16) Iowa (Dec. 30, 1986) |
| Aztec Record at Qualcomm |
170-92-6 |
| Aztec All-Time Record |
475-384-32 |
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