FRISCO, Texas — Ohio takes on San Diego State on Wednesday night in the DXL Frisco Bowl. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. EST and can be watched on ESPN.
But SDSU has more than just a football team, so here are five fun facts about SDSU:
1. Starting off elementary
San Diego State was founded on March 13, 1897 as the San Diego Normal School, a training facility for elementary school teachers. The curriculums was limited with only English, history and mathematics.
Not until the 1920s, when the college started to outgrow its Park Boulevard location, San Diegans launched a campaign to build a new campus on the city’s eastern boarder. In February 1931, students, faculty and staff moved into seven Mission Revival-style buildings surrounding a common area still known today as the Main Quad.
2. Tony Gwynn, the headliner
With over 400,000 in their alumni family, the Aztecs have a lot of people to be proud of. The list is headlined by Tony Gwynn, a MLB Hall of Famer who played for the San Diego Padres for 20 years. He finished with a .338 career batting average, and never hit below .309 in any full season.
The list of alums also includes NFL Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk, MLB all star pitcher Stephen Strasburg, NBA all star Kawhi Leonard, former Mayor of San Diego Jerry Sanders and astronaut Ellen Ocha.
3. Getting around campus
The San Diego trolley is an affordable way to get from SDSU to all of the popular sports around San Diego, which includes Old Town San Diego and San Diego County Credit Union Stadium.
4. Leading the nation
SDSU researchers continue to impress the nation. Increasingly recognized for innovative research, SDSU is Carnegie classified as a R2 doctoral university with higher research activity. Students pursue real-world challenges under the guidance of internationally recognized mentors in labs, entrepreneurship centers and business incubators.
5. The Aztec wasn’t always red and black
In its beginning, SDSU’s traditional colors were purple and gold. The change was because the local high school had the same colors and much confusion was taking place.
