SAN DIEGO -- This stop on the farewell tour is the most special for Hawaii. Remembering better
times in San DiegoSix years ago, the Rainbows' football team came together like no other. Picked to finish eighth in the Western Athletic Conference, they went on to a Holiday Bowl victory over Illinois.
The improbable 11-win campaign culminated in San Diego just weeks before Stan Sheriff's death. No one in that winning locker room will forget the joy that spread across the beet-red face of the former athletic director as he hugged Bob Wagner, the most successful coach in the school's 19-year Division I history.
Sheriff's death the day he returned from the NCAA convention in Dallas in January of 1993 set in motion a downward spiral that has left this once promising program a breath or two away from going under.
The Rainbows won't play in the Holiday Bowl again -- unless they win the breakaway eight championship, finish second in the Pac-10 or third in the Big 12. That's about as likely as the Rainbows remaining in the WAC beyond 2001, which could result in the wrong kind of odyssey for Hawaii.
THESE harsh realities highlight how far the once-mighty 'Bows have fallen entering tonight's final game with WAC partner San Diego State. Not only has the Holiday Bowl been removed from the landscape, but from this popular destination as well.
Many Rainbow fans from the island chain and Southern California marked today's date on the calendar. Granted, the Rainbows haven't had a lot of success here, losing the last four by an average of 24 points. But there have been many memorable moments.
Who can forget how San Diego State and quarterback Dan Mc-Gwire offset a furious rally by Hawaii counterpart Garrett Gabriel to win, 44-38, in 1990. Or how about that incredible evening in 1992, when Aztecs running back Marshall Faulk rushed for 300 yards on 43 carries?
The Rainbows hung around for a half that week, prompting UH offensive coordinator Paul Johnson to say, ''We were like the little engine that could. We just wore out in the second half.''
San Diego State won the battle, 52-28, but lost the war. The following weekend, Fresno State cleared the way for Hawaii's only WAC title by stunning San Diego State, 45-41. Quarterback Trent Dilfer threw a touchdown pass on the last play of the game that afternoon and Hawaii crushed Wyoming that night to win the title
Current San Diego State head coach Ted Tollner slipped onto the scene in 1994. Thanks in part to receivers Will Blackwell and Az Hakim, the Aztecs wore the colors out of the Rainbows once again, 38-23.
UH head coach Fred vonAppen also got a piece of history. He was on the sideline for Hawaii's most lopsided loss to the Aztecs since UH joined the league in 1979.
THAT 56-8 shellacking in 1996 is a microcosm of recent encounters. For some reason, the Rainbows bring out the best in the Aztecs. Tollner hasn't lost in four tries against UH, winning by an average of 35.3 points.
With that in mind, removing Hawaii from its schedule seems detrimental for San Diego State. And it isn't good for Hawaii, either. Despite losing every game to the Aztecs this decade, it's still a venue for Rainbow players who call Southern California home.
Many of those players' parents can't afford to see their kids play in Hawaii. This was one game where they could pack up the car and go see their children compete in person. It doesn't take a football coach to see this set of circumstances could hurt recruiting.
What would Sheriff say if he could see all this now? How would he react to the news that San Diego State was summarily dismissed by the UH powers that be?
Beet-red comes to mind. But it wouldn't have anything to do with the happiness he felt six years ago.
Paul Arnett has been covering sports
for the Star-Bulletin since 1990.