# Battle for the Valley

The Fresno State–San Jose State football rivalry, also known as the Battle for the Valley is a college football rivalry between the Fresno State Bulldogs football team of California State University, Fresno and the San Jose State Spartans football team of San José State University. The two teams currently play annual, regularly scheduled contests as Mountain West Conference (West Division) opponents.
Since 1921, Fresno State and San Jose State have shared conference affiliation in numerous athletics conferences including the California Coast Conference, Far Western Conference, California Collegiate Athletic Association, Big West Conference, and the Western Athletic Conference.
The rivalry is likely rooted in the two schools' relatively close proximity to one another in the state of California. The city of Fresno is located approximately 150 miles southeast of San Jose. Both institutions are also members of the California State University system.
Additionally, Fresno State and San Jose State are both located in geographical valleys. Fresno is located in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley while San Jose is located in the Santa Clara Valley, which is now more widely known as Silicon Valley. The locations of the two schools account for the names Valley Cup, Valley Bowl and the Battle for the Valley.
As of 2024, Fresno State leads the series 45–39–3.

## Historical overview

San Jose State led the series from 1949 to 2001, but Fresno State tied it at 32–32–3 with a victory in 2002 and recaptured the lead in 2003. The Bulldogs and Spartans first played each other in 1921, making the rivalry series the second oldest in the Mountain West Conference, behind only Colorado State–Wyoming.
The rivalry took a one-year break in 2012 after conference realignment temporarily separated the two schools, with Fresno State moving to the Mountain West Conference while San Jose State stayed in the Western Athletic Conference. It resumed as a conference rivalry in 2013 when San Jose State joined the Mountain West and is assured of being an annual matchup since both schools are in the West Division. Beginning in 2013, the winner of the game is awarded the Valley Trophy. The trophy features a silver letter V, with an electrical transistor pattern down one side, and a grape vine pattern down the other, representing each school's representative geographic region.
In 2026, Fresno State will join the revamped Pac-12 Conference. However, in February 2025, the two schools reached a contract to extend their series past 2025, now as a non conference matchup.

## Statistics

| | Fresno State | San Jose State |
| Games played | 87 | 87 |
| Wins | 45 | 39 |
| Ties | 3 | 3 |
| Home wins | 23 | 22 |
| Road wins | 22 | 17 |
| Consecutive wins | 12 | 7 |
| Most total points in a game | 114 | 114 |
| Most points in a win | 63 | 65 |
| Most points in a loss | 52 | 30 |
| Fewest total points in a game | 0 | 0 |
| Largest margin of victory | 50 | 42 |
| Smallest margin of victory | 1 | 1 |
| Total points scored in series | 1,953 | 1,894 |
| Shutouts of opposing team | 4 | 2 |
| Source: |||

## Game results

| Fresno State victories | San Jose State victories | Tie games |
| No. | Date | Location | Winner | Score |
| 1 | November 18, 1921 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 14–2 |
| 2 | October 24, 1925 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 23–7 |
| 3 | November 6, 1926 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 34–0 |
| 4 | November 5, 1927 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 10–7 |
| 5 | November 16, 1929 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 26–14 |
| 6 | November 15, 1930 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 27–12 |
| 7 | October 17, 1931 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 32–0 |
| 8 | October 21, 1932 | San Jose, CA | Tie | 0–0 |
| 9 | November 18, 1933 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 18–0 |
| 10 | November 3, 1934 | San Jose, CA | Tie | 7–7 |
| 11 | November 24, 1939 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 42–7 |
| 12 | November 16, 1940 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 14–7 |
| 13 | November 15, 1941 | San Jose, CA | Tie | 0–0 |
| 14 | November 26, 1942 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 6–0 |
| 15 | November 22, 1946 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 13–2 |
| 16 | November 27, 1947 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 21–20 |
| 17 | November 19, 1948 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 41–6 |
| 18 | November 24, 1949 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 43–7 |
| 19 | November 3, 1950 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 33–7 |
| 20 | October 6, 1951 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 32–6 |
| 21 | October 10, 1952 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 40–6 |
| 22 | October 3, 1953 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 27–21 |
| 23 | November 19, 1954 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 28–0 |
| 24 | November 18, 1955 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 19–13 |
| 25 | November 22, 1956 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 30–14 |
| 26 | November 16, 1957 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 13–6 |
| 27 | November 15, 1958 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 48–6 |
| 28 | October 17, 1959 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 40–14 |
| 29 | November 11, 1960 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 27–12 |
| 30 | November 18, 1961 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 36–27 |
| 31 | November 10, 1962 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 20–14 |
| 32 | November 16, 1963 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 56–27 |
| 33 | November 21, 1964 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 26–14 |
| 34 | November 20, 1965 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 24–18 |
| 35 | November 19, 1966 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 15–13 |
| 36 | November 18, 1967 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 35–30 |
| 37 | September 28, 1968 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 25–21 |
| 38 | November 21, 1970 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 27–19 |
| 39 | September 18, 1971 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 14–7 |
| 40 | September 30, 1972 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 23–21 |
| 41 | September 15, 1973 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 24–6 |
| 42 | September 14, 1974 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 28–7 |
| 43 | November 1, 1975 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 21–7 |
| 44 | October 23, 1976 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 21–7 |
| No. | Date | Location | Winner | Score |
| 45 | October 22, 1977 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 45–24 |
| 46 | October 21, 1978 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 26–16 |
| 47 | October 13, 1979 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 35–22 |
| 48 | October 11, 1980 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 26–14 |
| 49 | October 3, 1981 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 65–33 |
| 50 | October 23, 1982 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 39–27 |
| 51 | October 8, 1983 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 41–23 |
| 52 | October 27, 1984 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 18–17 |
| 53 | October 12, 1985 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 37–17 |
| 54 | October 4, 1986 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 45–41 |
| 55 | October 17, 1987 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 20–16 |
| 56 | October 29, 1988 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 17–15 |
| 57 | November 4, 1989 | Fresno, CA | #25 Fresno State | 31–30 |
| 58 | November 17, 1990 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 42–7 |
| 59 | November 23, 1991 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 31–28 |
| 60 | September 3, 1994 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 45–13 |
| 61 | October 12, 1996 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 28–18 |
| 62 | November 1, 1997 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 53–12 |
| 63 | November 21, 1998 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 24–21 |
| 64 | November 20, 1999 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 63–12 |
| 65 | November 25, 2000 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 37–6 |
| 66 | November 23, 2001 | Fresno, CA | #23 Fresno State | 40–21 |
| 67 | November 23, 2002 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 19–16 |
| 68 | November 15, 2003 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 41–7 |
| 69 | November 27, 2004 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 62–28 |
| 70 | November 5, 2005 | Fresno, CA | #21 Fresno State | 45–7 |
| 71 | December 2, 2006 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 24–14 |
| 72 | October 20, 2007 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 30–0 |
| 73 | November 21, 2008 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 24–10 |
| 74 | October 17, 2009 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 41–21 |
| 75 | October 23, 2010 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 33–18 |
| 76 | November 26, 2011 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 27–24 |
| 77 | November 29, 2013 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 62–52 |
| 78 | November 8, 2014 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 38–24 |
| 79 | September 26, 2015 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 49–23 |
| 80 | November 26, 2016 | Fresno, CA | San Jose State | 16–14 |
| 81 | October 7, 2017 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 27–10 |
| 82 | November 24, 2018 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 31–13 |
| 83 | November 30, 2019 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 17–16 |
| 84 | November 25, 2021 | San Jose, CA | Fresno State | 40–9 |
| 85 | October 15, 2022 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 17–10 |
| 86 | November 11, 2023 | San Jose, CA | San Jose State | 42–18 |
| 87 | October 26, 2024 | Fresno, CA | Fresno State | 33–10 |
| Series: Fresno State leads 45–39–3 |||||