Hawaii Warriors Football - Timeline

Timeline

• 1909 - The College of Hawaii "Fighting Deans" played and won its game against McKinley High School by a score of 95–5 at Punahou School.
• 1920 - The College of Hawaii becomes the University of Hawaiʻi and the football team plays its first intercollegiate game against Nevada, losing 14–0 on Christmas Day.
• 1922 - Hawaii defeats its first collegiate opponent, beating Pomona 25–6 on Christmas Day.
• 1923 - A rainbow appears over Moiliili Field after Hawaii upsets Oregon State, 7–0. Local reporters begin calling UH athletic teams the "Rainbows."
• 1924–25 - The Rainbows, under the guidance of coach Otto Klum, complete back-to-back undefeated seasons. The Rainbows outscore their opponents 606–29 in 18 games. Among the schools defeated during this time are Colorado, Colorado State and Washington State. These Rainbow teams become known as the "Wonder Teams" due to their outstanding play.
• 1926 - The Rainbows play their first game at their newly-constructed home field, Honolulu Stadium. The Rainbows fall to the Town Team by a score of 14–7 in front of 12,000 fans on Armistice Day.
• 1935 - Rainbow running back and future coach Thomas Kaulukukui becomes Hawaiʻi's first All-American player. Kaulukukui starred on Hawaiʻi's 1934 undefeated team and set a school record in 1935 with a 103-yard kick return touchdown during a 19–6 loss to UCLA in Los Angeles. Kaulukukui's number 32 is later retired by the University and remains the only number to be retired in Hawai'iʻin football history.
• 1942 - Following the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States' entry into World War II, Hawaiʻi cancels the 1942, 1943, 1944 and 1945 football seasons.
• 1946 - Hawaiʻi resumes football play after a four-year hiatus as a member of the NCAA. Hawaiʻi enters as a College Division Independent. The Rainbows continue to play local teams on occasion but the bulk of their schedules are made up of collegiate teams.
• 1955 - A year after suffering a 50–0 blowout loss to Nebraska in Honolulu, the Rainbows go up to Lincoln the following season and upset the Huskers 6–0. The win is considered one of the school's all-time biggest upsets.
• 1961 - The UH Board of Athletic Control votes to abolish the football program due to a lack of finances. The program would return to intercollegiate competition the following year behind the urgings of new athletics director Young Suk Ko.
• 1965 - Larry Price performed in his third Hula Bowl as a College All-Star after a stint in the U.S. Army where he performed twice for the Hawai'i All-Stars.
• 1966 - Hawaiʻi completes its first all-collegiate schedule.
• 1968 - Head coach Dave Holmes begins what would be the most successful coaching tenure at Hawaiʻi. From 1968–1974, UH won 67 percent of its games and never suffered a losing season. Holmes still ranks as the all-time leader at Hawaiʻi in winning percentage (.718). Drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the 16th round, Larry Cole becomes the first UH Warrior to be drafted by an NFL team. Cole was a one-year transfer from the United States Air Force Academy and later graduated from the University of Houston.
• 1971 - Larry Cole becomes the first former Warrior to represent UH in world championship competition in Super Bowl V for the Dallas Cowboys.
• 1972 - Larry Cole becomes the first former Warrior to start for a world champion football team with the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl VI.
• 1973 - The Rainbows record what is widely considered to be the biggest upset in school history, defeating Washington 10–7 in front of 52,500 in Seattle. The Huskies were favored to beat Hawaiʻi by as many as 50 points.
• 1974 - Hawaiʻi becomes an NCAA Division I member. The team's new nickname becomes the "Bow's." They play their final year at Honolulu Stadium. Larry Price becomes Hawaiʻi's first Division I head football coach.
• 1975 - 50,000-seat Aloha Stadium becomes the new home of Hawaiʻi football. Hawaiʻi loses its first game in the new stadium, falling to Texas A&I by a score of 43–9 in front of a crowd of 32,247.
• 1976 - The NCAA reclassifies its divisions and drops Hawaiʻi to Division I-AA (now FCS). Athletic Director Ray Nagel appeals the decision and the next month the NCAA reinstitutes Hawaiʻi to Division I-A (now FBS) status.
• 1979 - Hawaiʻi becomes a member of the Western Athletic Conference.

• 1982 - Dan Audick becomes the first Warrior to have graduated from the university and to have started for a Super Bowl champion. Audick played for the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XVI.
• 1986 - Defensive end Al Noga becomes the first Hawaiʻi player to be named a first-team All-American by the Associated Press. He also was tabbed as the school's first Heisman Trophy candidate.
• 1989 - Hawaiʻi plays in the program's first major bowl game — the Jeep Eagle Aloha Bowl. Hawaii falls to Michigan State, 33–13, before a sellout crowd at Aloha Stadium.
• 1990 - The Rainbow rout BYU, 59–28, on December 1. Earlier that day, BYU quarterback Ty Detmer won the Heisman Trophy.
• 1992 - Hawaiʻi wins a share of its first-ever WAC championship and posts its first bowl game victory, a 27–17 defeat of Illinois in the Thrifty Car Rental Holiday Bowl. Hawaiʻi would finish the season ranked 20th in the nation and post a team-record 11 victories.
• 1996 - Rich Ellerson extends coaching tree for former UH Warriors by being named as Head Football Coach for Southern Utah. In his single season, Ellerson accrued a 4-7 record.
• 1998 - Hawaiʻi suffers through the program's first-ever winless season, going 0–12 under head coach Fred von Appen. Von Appen coached the Rainbow Warriors. to a 5–31 record in his three years at Hawaiʻi. He would be fired after the season.
• 1999 - June Jones becomes the new head coach at Hawaiʻi and guides the Rainbow Warriors to the best single-season turnaround in NCAA history, winning nine games and a share of the WAC championship. Hawaii would go on to defeat Oregon State in the Jeep Oʻahu Bowl, 23–17.
• 2001 - Hawaiʻi changes its nickname from "Rainbow Warriors" to simply "Warriors." Wide receiver Ashley Lelie becomes the highest draft pick in program history as the Denver Broncos select him with the 19th pick in the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft. Rich Ellerson extends coaching tree for former UH Warriors by being named as head coach for Cal Poly. During his eight-year tenure, Ellerson led Cal Poly to a 52–38 record.
• 2002 - Hawaiʻi is invited to play in the inaugural ConAgra Foods Hawaiʻi Bowl. The Warriors would fall to Tulane, 36–28.
• 2003 - Hawaiʻi returns to the Hawaiʻi Bowl and defeats Houston in a wild 54–48 triple-overtime game.
• 2004 - Hawaiʻi returns for a third-straight season to the Hawaii Bowl and triumphs over UAB, 59-40. Hawaii quarterback Timmy Chang would also become the NCAA's all-time leader in passing yards with 17,072 over the course of his career, eclipsing the old mark (15,031) set by former BYU quarterback Ty Detmer.

• 2005 - Hawaiʻi finishes 5–7 and misses out on playing in a bowl game for the first time since 2001, despite a breakout year for quarterback Colt Brennan.
• 2006 - Quarterback Colt Brennan sets NCAA single-season records for touchdown passes (58) and passer efficiency rating (252.96), on his way to a sixth-place finish in the Heisman Trophy voting. The Warriors return to the Hawaiʻi Bowl and defeat Arizona State, 41–24. Hawaiʻi head coach June Jones passes Dick Tomey to become the winningest head coach in school history.
• 2007 - Brennan adds to his collection of NCAA records, breaking Detmer's career records for TD passes and total TDs passing, rushing and receiving. He and wide receiver Davone Bess also tied an NCAA record for most career TDs by a quarterback-receiver combination. The Warriors are unbeaten, with a breakthrough win against Boise State, giving the Warriors their first win ever over the Broncos as a WAC member and their first outright WAC title ever. A 35–28 win over Washington in the season finale on December 1 resulted in them finishing #12 in the BCS rankings and earning a berth in the Sugar Bowl. This is the first regular season Hawaii has ever gone undefeated. Hawaii was also the sole undefeated college football team for the season. Hawaiʻi then played Georgia on Jan. 1, 2008 in New Orleans, losing 41–10. Ken Niumatalolo extends coaching tree for former UH Warriors by being named as Head Football Coach for Navy. Quarterback Colt Brennan was selected for the second year in a row as a Heisman Finalists, this time finishing in third place behind Tim Tebow and Darren McFadden.
• 2008 - Head coach June Jones resigns shortly after the 2007 season, ending his nine-year coaching run to become the new head coach at Southern Methodist University. On January 15, Greg McMackin, formerly the Defensive Coordinator under June Jones, accepted the position of Head Coach. Rich Ellerson extends coaching tree for former UH Warriors by being named as head coach for Army.
• 2009 - Jim Mills becomes the first UH Warrior to be inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame for his play as an offensive tackle in the Canadian Football League.
• 2010 - Hawaii wins their 4th WAC Championship by becoming co-champions with Nevada and Boise State. University of Hawaii received and accepted an invitation to join the Mountain West Conference for football-only and Big West Conference for all other sports. The Warriors bolted from Western Athletic Conference to join the Mountain West Conference along with rivals; Boise State, Fresno State and Nevada. Boise State started playing in the MWC starting in 2011, while Hawaiʻi along with Fresno State and Nevada will make their MWC debuts in 2012.
• 2011 - Coach Greg McMackin resigns as head coach citing "being forced out under pressure" from the past season's record. Utah offensive coordinator Norm Chow was chosen to succeed McMackin.
• 2012 After 13 years of Run-and-Shoot Offense scheme that was installed by former Head Coach June Jones, as a new Head Coach, Norm Chow will change and implement the Pro Style Offense scheme.