San Diego State back on Hawai'i's schedule

By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer

The University of Hawai'i and San Diego State have reached an agreement to revive their football rivalry.

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2001 SCHEDULE Sept. 8 Montana at Maui Sept. 15 at Nevada Sept. 29 Rice Oct. 6 at So. Methodist Oct. 13 Texas-El Paso Oct. 20 at Tulsa Oct. 26 Fresno State Nov. 3 San Jose State Nov. 10 Boise State Nov. 17 Miami (Ohio) Nov. 24 Air Force Dec. 1 Brigham Young 2002 SCHEDULE TBA San Diego State TBA vs. Boise State TBA vs. Nevada TBA vs. Rice TBA vs. SMU TBA vs. Texas-El Paso TBA vs. Fresno State TBA vs. Tulsa TBA vs. San Jose State TBA Nevada-Las Vegas Nov. 23 Cincinnati Nov. 30 Washington State Note: UH does not play new WAC member Louisiana Tech this season or next.

"It's a good game for us," Yoshida said in a telephone interview from San Francisco, where he is attending meetings.

San Diego State will replace Arizona on UH's 2002 schedule. A recent legislative mandate compelled Arizona to play Northern Arizona, forcing the Wildcats to cancel their trip to the Islands.

During last month's UH-hosted Paradise in the Pacific golf tournament, UH associate athletic director Jim Donovan approached San Diego State officials. Soon after, an agreement in principle was reached.

For most of the 1990s, UH and San Diego State were fierce rivals on the field and in recruiting. While the Aztecs dominated the series, winning the last nine meetings, the Warriors found a measure of redemption by representing the Western Athletic Conference in the 1992 Holiday Bowl in San Diego. The Warriors practiced at San Diego State and used the Aztecs' locker room in the week leading to the bowl game.

The rivalry appeared to end when eight schools, including San Diego State, seceded from the WAC in 1999 to form the Mountain West Conference.

But Yoshida said the Aztecs are an attractive opponent because of "the identity they've created here." In turn, UH coach June Jones has ties to that area, having served as the interim head coach of the San Diego Chargers before accepting the UH job in December 1998.

Yoshida said he is not worried about the Aztecs using the game as a tool to recruit Isle players. "Whoever we bring in will recruit here," Yoshida said. "There's a whole lot of talented athletes in Hawai'i."

The Paradise in the Pacific golf tournament, created to build associations among Western schools, helped UH schedule football games with Nevada-Las Vegas last year, Brigham Young this season and Southern California three times in the next decade.