page_title: Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Aloha Stadium, Hawaii
context_page_description: The Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors football team represents the University of Hawaii at Manoa in NCAA Division I FBS college football. It was part of the Western Athletic Conference until July 2012, when the team joined the Mountain West Conference.
  From 2000 until July 1, 2013, the football team was renamed to simply Warriors, until a 2013 decision to standardize all of the school's athletic team names took effect, and the team was once again known as the Rainbow Warriors.
  The Hawaiʻi Warriors were the third team from a non automatic qualifier conference to play in a BCS bowl game. They played Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on January 1, 2008 in New Orleans, and lost 41-10.
context_section_description: 1909 – The College of Hawaii "Fighting Deans" played and won its game against McKinley High School by a score of 95–5 at Punahou School.
  1920 – The College of Hawaii becomes the University of Hawaiʻi and the football team plays its first intercollegiate game against Nevada, losing 14–0 on Christmas Day.
  1922 – Hawaiʻi defeats its first collegiate opponent, beating Pomona 25–6 on Christmas Day.
  1923 – A rainbow appears over Moiliili Field after Hawaiʻi upsets Oregon State, 7–0. Local reporters begin calling UH athletic teams the "Rainbows."
  1924–25 – The Rainbows, under the guidance of coach Otto Klum, complete back-to-back undefeated seasons. The Rainbows outscore their opponents 606–29 in 18 games. Among the schools defeated during this time are Colorado, Colorado State and Washington State. These Rainbow teams become known as the "Wonder Teams" due to their outstanding play.
  1926 – The Rainbows play their first game at their newly constructed home field, Honolulu Stadium. The Rainbows fall to the Town Team by a score of 14–7 in front of 12,000 fans on Armistice Day.
  1935 – Rainbow running back and future coach Tom Kaulukukui becomes Hawaiʻi's first All-American player. Kaulukukui starred on Hawaiʻi's 1934 undefeated team and set a school record in 1935 with a 103-yard kick return touchdown during a 19–6 loss to UCLA in Los Angeles. Kaulukukui's number 32 is later retired by the University and remains the only number to be retired in Hawai'iʻin football history.
  1942 – Following the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States' entry into World War II, Hawaiʻi cancels the 1942, 1943, 1944, and 1945 football seasons.
  1946 – Hawaiʻi resumes football play after a four-year hiatus as a member of the NCAA. Hawaiʻi enters as a College Division Independent. The Rainbows continue to play local teams on occasion but the bulk of their schedules are made up of collegiate teams.
  1955 – A year after suffering a 50–0 blowout loss to Nebraska in Honolulu, the Rainbows go up to Lincoln the following season and upset the Huskers 6–0. The win is considered one of the school's all-time biggest upsets.
  1961 – The UH Board of Athletic Control votes to abolish the football program due to a lack of finances. The program would return to intercollegiate competition the following year behind the urgings of new athletics director Young Suk Ko.
  1965 – Larry Price performed in his third Hula Bowl as a College All-Star after a stint in the U.S. Army where he performed twice for the Hawai'i All-Stars. Legendary coach Clark Shaughnessy takes over for one season but the Rainbows flounder through a 1–8–1 season.
  1966 – Phil Sarboe, after 15 seasons as head coach at Humboldt State, guides the team to a 4–6 record playing its first all-collegiate schedule. He resigns for "personal reasons" after the season.
  1967 – Don King, an assistant under Sarboe, becomes head coach and the much-improved Rainbows post a 6–4 record. Significantly, large crowds (18,000 to 20,000) flock to Honolulu Stadium to watch the Rainbows for the first time in many years, setting the stage for a major gridiron revival in future years.
  1968 – Head coach Dave Holmes begins what would be the most successful coaching tenure at Hawaiʻi. From 1968–1974, UH won 67 percent of its games and never suffered a losing season. Holmes still ranks as the all-time leader at Hawaiʻi in winning percentage (.718). Drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the 16th round, Larry Cole becomes the first UH Warrior to be drafted by an NFL team. Cole was a one-year transfer from the United States Air Force Academy and later graduated from the University of Houston.
  1971 – Larry Cole becomes the first former Warrior to represent UH in world championship competition in Super Bowl V for the Dallas Cowboys.
  1972 – Larry Cole becomes the first former Warrior to start for a world champion football team with the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl VI.
  1973 – The Rainbows record what is widely considered to be the biggest upset in school history, defeating Washington 10–7 in front of 52,500 in Seattle. The Huskies were favored to b
caption: Game between Boise State and Hawaiʻi in 2007. Hawaiʻi won 39–27.
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