In 1954, former California All-America Rod Franz was hired to serve as the first head coach of the Riverside program.
[7] Wayne Howard was hired in 1972, and prior to his resignation in December 1973 to become the head coach at Long Beach State, led the Highlanders to a record of seventeen wins and three losses (17–3).
[8] Under Howard, the 1972 squad finished the season with a record of nine wins and one loss (9–1) to capture a share of the first conference championship for the Highlanders.
[10] As head coach, Toledo led the Highlanders to an overall record of fifteen wins and six losses (15–6) and consecutive conference championships in 1974 and 1975.
[11][12] Then-UCR chancellor Ivan Hinderaker noted that football used more than half of the athletic department's total $305,000 budget and averaged 3,869 fans in attendance for the four home games during the final season, unable to fill the 5,500-seat stadium.