Notable alumni include Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees Marshall Faulk, John Madden, and Joe Gibbs.San Diego State University was originally two separate schools.

Purple and gold were adopted for the 1922–23 term, however, problems arose due to the colors similarity to San Diego's St. Augustine High School.

This was followed by two days of voting the following month where students were to decide between Scarlet and Black and the previous color scheme, Purple and Gold.

San Diego State was a charter member of the Pacific Coast Athletic Association, which was founded on July 1, 1969 and later became the Big West Conference.

Wide receivers who went on to the NFL include Isaac Curtis, Gary Garrison, Ken Burrow, and Haven Moses.

Faulk left San Diego State with many of the school's offensive records, among them 5,562 all-purpose yards and 62 career touchdowns, the 8th most in NCAA history.

The team was scheduled to become a football-only member of the Big East Conference in July 2013, but on January 17, the Mountain West's board of directors voted to reinstate the university.

Hoke signed a five-year contract with a guaranteed payment of $3.525 million, plus incentives for hitting revenue marks and bowl berths.

It was later expanded to 34,000 capacity and served as the home stadium for the San Diego Chargers of the American Football League (AFL) from 1961 to 1966.

Given the growth of the college and its fan base, the Aztecs found themselves in need of a larger venue, but the previously proposed expansion to 45,000 seats was delayed until 1966.

Formerly listed on the National Register of Historic Places, a portion of Aztec Bowl remains visible on the north side of Viejas Arena.

Playing in a professional sports facility provided some benefits including improved concessions, luxury suites, "jumbo-tron" screens and other amenities for Aztecs fans.

However, the increasing capacity of the stadium (from 52,596 in 1967 to 70,561 in 2015) created a mismatch for a college football program that drew an average of 29,065 fans to home games in 2015—during an 11–3 MW Championship season, which was their best performance since joining Division I in 1969.

In their final years in the facility, the Aztecs tarped off significant sections of the upper seating bowl for their games, creating a reduced capacity of 54,000.

However, in 2020, the season was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and all home games were played behind closed doors, thus rendering the location of the stadium a moot point for the fans.

In 2015, the San Diego Chargers stepped up their efforts to relocate to Los Angeles, pending a vote of National Football League owners and a partnership with the Oakland Raiders or St. Louis Rams.

The second plan, entitled Soccer City, would use the land solely to build a new stadium housing both San Diego State athletics and an MLS team.

[12] The first Aztec Warrior figure associated with the university initially appeared at a San Diego State athletic event over six decades ago.

The character, affectionately known as "Monty" to generations of SDSU alumni, evolved through the years to become emblematic of San Diego State's athletic teams.

The new mascot made his first public appearance February 23, 2004 to reveal some costume changes and the modified moniker, "Aztec Warrior."

For all but a few years from the early 1990s through 2006, Carlos Gutierrez took over the role of mascot, raising the position's profile and expanding public appearances throughout the San Diego community.

With Fresno State joining the Mountain West Conference in 2012 and the addition of the divisional format, the Aztecs and the Bulldogs will compete on an annual basis once again.

The fog was so thick that the Aztec radio announcer at the time Al Couppee couldn't see the plays, so he went down to the field and into the huddle to give the play-by-play.

"The oil can likely came from a time when Aztec and Bulldog fans traveled to football games between the two schools via the old, twisting, precipitous Grapevine section of Highway 99 over Tejon Pass", said Jacquelyn K. Glasener, executive director of the Fresno State Alumni Association.

"Cars in those days carried extra oil and water to be sure they could make it through difficult trips", added Jim Herrick, executive director of the San Diego State Alumni Association.

Fresno State assumed a 4–2 lead in the trophy series with their 27–3 victory over the Aztecs on October 21, 2017 at SDCCU (formerly Qualcomm) Stadium.

A common storyline in sports, is that of the San Francisco Bay Area vs. Southern California rivalry, such as the Giants and the Dodgers in the MLB, and the Sharks and Kings in the NHL.

This SJSU and SDSU rivalry benefits from that sort of bragging rights perspective that both teams undoubtedly look to hold onto each year.

The criteria for the award are "success, leadership, public service, integrity, and commitment to American heritage and Walter Camp's philosophy."

Sam Baugh Trophy This honor is given by the Touchdown Club of Columbus, awarded annually to the nation's top collegiate passer.