Pacific Tigers football
Pacific university athletics old logo.png
First season1895
Last season1995
Athletic directorBob Lee
Head coachChuck Shelton
StadiumStagg Memorial Stadium
(capacity: 28,000)
Field surfaceGrass
LocationStockton, California
NCAA divisionDivision I-A
ConferenceBig West Conference
All-time record346–403–24 (.463)
Bowl record3–2–1 (.583)
Conference titles7 (1 CCC, 5 FWC, 1 CCAA)
RivalriesSan Jose State (Battle for the Victor's Bell)
Fresno State
Santa Clara
Sacramento State
ColorsBlack and orange[1]
   
Fight songTiger Fight Song ("Hungry Tigers")
MascotPowercat

The Pacific Tigers football team represented the University of the Pacific in NCAA Division I-A (now FBS) college football. The team competed in the Big West Conference during their last season in 1995. They played their home games at Stagg Memorial Stadium in Stockton, California. On December 19, 1995, the Board of Regents voted to disband the team in order to save money for the athletic program, which was reported to have gone over $400,000 in debt. All scholarships were honored for current players of the team.[2][3]


The 1943 Pacific Tigers football team was an independent during the 1943 college football season. In their 11th season under head coach Amos Alonzo Stagg, the Tigers compiled a record of 7–2 and finished the season ranked No. 19 in the AP Poll.[4] The Tigers played home games at Baxter Stadium in Stockton. The Tigers beat a strong UCLA Bruins team, the No. 20 ranked Cal Bears and No. 10 ranked Saint Mary's Gaels. This led the 1943 Tigers Defensive Line to be rated 'the strongest in the West.' The team was at one time ranked No. 6 in the nation by the Associated Press The 1943 team produced Pacific's 1st All-Americans in Tackle Al McCaffrey and Running Back John Podesto. Amos Alonzo Stagg was also named "Coach of the Year" by the American Football Coaches Association and the Football Writers Association of America[5]


The 1949 Pacific Tigers football team was an independent during the 1949 college football season. In their third season under head coach Larry Siemering, the Tigers compiled an undefeated and untied 11–0 record, were ranked No. 10 in the final AP Poll, and outscored all opponents by a combined total of 575 to 66. The Tigers' victories included wins over Cincinnati, San Diego State, San Jose State, Fresno State, Nevada, Hawaii, and Utah.

Quarterback Eddie LeBaron was selected by both the Associated Press and International News Service as a first-team player on the 1949 All-Pacific Coast football team.[6][7] Don Campora and Eddie LeBaron were both selected in the following 1950 NFL draft

Conference affiliations

Conference championships

Offensive formation in 1972
Offensive formation in 1972
Coach Chester Caddas (left) during a 1972 game
Coach Chester Caddas (left) during a 1972 game
1976 complete roster
1976 complete roster
Season Conference Coach Overall
Record 		Conference
Record
1923 California Coast Erwin Righter 7–0–0 4–0
1936 Far West Amos Stagg 5–4–1 4–0
1938 Far West Amos Stagg 7–3 4–0
1940 Far West Amos Stagg 4–5 2–0
1941 Far West Amos Stagg 4–7 3–0
1942 Far West Amos Stagg 2–6–1 2–0
1947 California Collegiate Larry Siemering 10–1 5–0

Bowl games

The Pacific Tigers played in 6 bowl games total, but only 3 NCAA-sanctioned bowl games with a record of 2–1.[8]

Season Coach Bowl Opponent Result
1946 Amos Stagg Optimist Bowldagger North Texas L 13–14
1947 Larry Siemering Grape Bowldagger Utah State W 35–21
1947 Larry Siemering Raisin Bowl Wichita State W 26–14
1948 Larry Siemering Grape Bowldagger Hardin–Simmons T 35–35
1951 Ernie Jorge Sun Bowl Texas Tech L 14–25
1952 Ernie Jorge Sun Bowl Southern Miss W 26–7

† Not an NCAA-sanctioned bowl game[8]

Final AP Poll rankings

Season Rank
1943 No. 19
1949 No. 10

Rivalries

San Jose State

Battle for the Victor's Bell

The now defunct, nearly 100 year, rivalry match up between the SJSU Spartans and the Pacific Tigers began in January 1896 and ended in 1995 when Pacific dropped its football program. The 'Spartan-Tiger Football Game' was played 72 times between 1896 and 1995.

Due to the "private vs. public" institutional competitiveness and the close geographical proximity of the two schools, a natural "cross-town" rivalry was born. University of the Pacific was founded in 1851 in Santa Clara, California, and claims to be the first institution of higher education in California.[9] San José State University was founded in 1857 and is California's first public institution of higher education.

In 1949, in a game which drew national attention, the "Victor's Bell" was unveiled.[10] The Victor's Bell would go to the winner of subsequent Tiger-Spartan games. The bell was two feet tall and waist-high on a rolling cart. The bell was half black with an orange "P" for Pacific and half blue with a gold "SJ" for San Jose.[11]

The Spartans led the series 43–23–6 when the rivalry ended at the close of the 1995 season.

National and Conference Award Winner

The Glenn "Pop" Warner Memorial Trophy was awarded annually by the Palo Club to the most valuable senior player on the West Coast. It was awarded from 1949 to 2004.: 113 [12] [13] Notably, all but 5 recipients played for Pac-8/Pac-10 institutions. The award is distinguished from the unaffiliated W. J. Voit Memorial Trophy, presented annually from 1951 to 1978 to the top player on the Pacific Coast regardless of class-year.

Pop Warner Trophy
Year Name Position
1949 Eddie LeBaron QB


National Football Foundation Gold Medal
Year Name Position
1960 Amos Alonzo Stagg Head Coach

The National Football Foundation recognizes individuals who demonstrate outstanding support for promoting the game of amateur football. The NFF Gold Medal is the highest award offered by the National Football Foundation.


AFCA Coach of the Year
Year Name Position
1943 Amos Alonzo Stagg Head Coach


Football Writers Association of America Coach of the Year
Year Name Position
1943 Amos Alonzo Stagg Head Coach


Corbett Award
Year Name Position
2000 Cedric Dempsey Athletic Director
2015 Carl Miller Athletic Director

This honor is awarded annually by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). It is presented "to the collegiate administrator who has most typified Corbett's devotion to intercollegiate athletics and worked unceasingly for its betterment."


NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award
Year Name Position
1979 Bruce Filarsky DL

Individual honors

Retired numbers

Main article: List of NCAA football retired numbers
Dick Bass and Eddie LeBaron, two of the players whose numbers were retired by Pacific
No. Player Pos. Career No. ret. Ref.
22 Dick Bass RB 1955–1958 September 1984 [14]
39 Willard Harrell RB 1971–1974 May 1986 [14]
40 Eddie LeBaron QB 1946–1949 March 1950 [14]
41 Eddie Macon RB 1949–1951 April 2008 [14]

College Football Hall of Fame

College Football Hall of Fame
Name Position Year Inducted
Amos Stagg Coach 1933–1946 1951
Eddie LeBaron QB 1946–1949 1980
Wayne Hardin QB / HB / Coach 1946–1948, 1949, 1952 2013

Pro Football Hall of Fame

Pro Football Hall of Fame
Name Position Year Inducted
Tom Flores QB/ Coach 1957-1958, 1958 2021

All-Americans

Year Player Pos. Team
1943 Art McCaffray DT 1st Team/ UP-2nd Team
1943 John Podesto FB 1st Team/ AP-3rd Team
1943 John Podesto HB 1st Team
1949 Eddie LeBaron QB 1st Team/ UP-2nd Team
1953 Ken Buck DE 1st Team
1958 Dick Bass RB AP-2nd Team/ UPI-2nd Team
1973 Willie Viney G AP-3rd Team
1974 Willard Harrell RB AP-2nd Team
1985 Nick Holt LB Honorable Mention

Notable players and alumni

References

  1. ^ Pacific Tigers Graphic Identity Sheet (PDF). October 18, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  2. ^ "Pacific Decides to Drop Football". Los Angeles Times. 20 December 1995. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  3. ^ Gilbert, Lori. "Ten years ago, the final horn sounded for Pacific". recordnet.com. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  4. ^ Marvin, Joe (May 2001). "Stagg at Pacific (1943-1946)". College Football Historical Society Newsletter. LA84 Foundation. 14 (3): 8–10. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  5. ^ "Pacific Football Reunion and Hall of Fame Weekend".
  6. ^ "Carpenter Draws Most Votes in Winning Position ON Associate Press' 25th All-Coast Selection". The Corvallis Gazette-Times. November 25, 1949. p. 7.
  7. ^ Joe St. Amant (November 22, 1949). "Bears Pace All-Pacific Coast Football Eleven". El Paso Herald-Post. p. 10.
  8. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-05-10. Retrieved 2017-01-08.((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ^ "Pacific's Mission". University of the Pacific. Archived from the original on October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
  10. ^ Mountjoy, Nicole Grady (2021). "The Campus History Series: The University of the Pacific". Arcadia publishing.
  11. ^ "Spear the Spartans".
  12. ^ Pac-12 Conference Mar 3, 2005 (2005-03-03). "J.J. Arrington Wins Pop Warner Award". Pac-12. Retrieved 2017-06-02.
  13. ^ "Shaw receives Warner Trophy". Madera Tribune. 26 January 1955. Retrieved 2022-12-01.
  14. ^ a b c d RETIRED NUMBERS/JERSEYS at Pacifictigers.com

External links

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