The Pineapple Bowl, also known as the New Years Classic and Poi Bowl, was a college football bowl game played on or around New Year's Day from 1934 to 1952 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Primarily inviting teams from the West Coast, the game featured the University of Hawaii. The game was not sanctioned by the NCAA and many of the schools who participated in the game do not list it in their bowl histories. The reason for this is that Hawaii was not a member of the NCAA until 1946. Due to its isolation, Hawaii had traditionally played, high schools, town teams and military teams.
The first bowl game was played in 1934 between Santa Clara University and Hawaii. It was known as the New Year's Classic and was also played in 1935. In 1936, the name was changed to the Poi Classic or Poi Bowl. The game was sometimes referred to by the press and college newspapers and yearbooks as the "Pineapple Bowl" during these years. The game was not played from 1942 through 1944 due to Pearl Harbor and WWII in the Pacific. The 1937 game featured the University of Hawaii and the Honolulu All-Stars and the 1945 game matched service teams. After the resumption of the game in 1947, it was officially called the Pineapple Bowl.
Although it was not sanctioned by the NCAA, it hosted some big name teams through the years, such as USC, UCLA, the University of Washington and the University of Utah.
New Year's Classic, Poi, Pineapple Bowl
Additional Game Summaries
Santa Clara 26-Hawaii 7
HONOLULU (T. H.), Jan. 2- The Santa Clara University football team registered a 26-to-7 victory over the University of Hawaii eleven in closing a successful invasion of the Hawaiian Islands yesterday.
Salatino, visiting quarterback, featured the deceptive attack the invaders unleashed to come from behind to score their second win over Island teams. The Santa Clara array defeated the Kamehameha Alumni here Christmas Day.
In the first quarter, Santa Clara's Joe Salatino dashed eighty-five yards in returning a punt for the first touchdown. Hawaii went ahead in the second period on a short touchdown run by Masao Sone to cap a 59-yard drive and a successful conversion by Maynard Piltz. The visitors came right back with a 52-yard march of their own with Salatino scoring from the one yard mark. This time, Bob Bosshardt, fullback, converted the extra point.
The Santa Clarans, coached by Maurice (Clipper) Smith formerly of Notre Dame, dominated the second half. Frank Sobrero, halfback, scored in the third period with Bob Bosshardt converting and Ike Britschgi, sub-quarterback, tallied the last touchdown in the closing minute of play.
Although Santa Clara came here with a renowned passing attack, the Hawaiians outplayed them in the aerial department. Santa Clara completed only four passes in fourteen attempts to gain sixty-eight yards while the Island collegians made good on nine passes in nineteen tried to gain 101 yards. The visitors, however, had a total yardage of 454 while the Hawaiians had 311.
Attendance- 14,000
Hawaii 14-California 0
HONOLULU, T. H, Jan. 2.- (UP) University of Hawaii won its most important intersectional game yesterday by defeating the hapless University of California gridders by a I4-0 score.
Hawaii scored twice in swift thrusts in the first half and then staved off two desperate touchdown drives to make good their victory.
The first touchdown represented a 41-yard march, covered by two passes, one from Richard Furtado to Maynard Piltz for 17 yards, and the other from Furtardo to Gonsales for the touchdown. Piltz converted.
After he teams changed sides for the second period, Archer of California fumbled on his own 15-yard line and Hawaii got the ball. On the first play, Ahuna, Rainbow halfback, crossed the California defense on a reverse play and ran unmolested across the goal line. Piltz again made good on the try for extra point.
With Capt. Arleigh Williams leading the drive, the visitors marched to the Hawaiian two-yard line in the second period hut a stout defense repulsed them. Again in the final period the Golden Bears drove 40 yards to the one-yard mark only to be turned back. The Bears had 11 first downs to five for Hawaii.
The defeat was the second for California on Hawaiian soil as the Honolulu "Townies" defeated them, 26-13, on Christmas day. California, playing under a new head coach, Stub Allison, was hampered by injuries to key men, and by the tropical heat of the holiday period.
Coach Stub Allison and the Cal Bears on the ship bound for Honolulu.
Southern California 38-Hawaii 6
USC arrived before Christmas for a match with Kamehameha Alumni to be held on Christmas Day, 1935. USC won this one easily, 33-7. In the days preceding the Poi Bowl, Hawaii’s Coach Otto Klum relocated his players to the suburbs to get them away from the much favored Southern Cal squad and the media. This was a reaction to USC’s route of the All-Stars who were expected to put up a good fight by the locals. Hawaii was led by small and quick back, Tommy Kaulukukui, who led a razzle dazzle, exciting offense. Coach Howard Jones’ USC Trojans were led by little quarterback Davy Davis. The prediction at game time was for heavy rain. A capacity crowd of 12,000 showed up for the game.
USC had little problem with Hawaii on New Year’s Day. The outcome was actually a surprise to the Los Angeles Times. It had been a frustrating season for the Trojans. They entered the game with a 3-7 record.
A pass from Davy Davis to Jim Sutherland brought U.S.C.'s first score in the opening period. Sutherland converted the extra point. The Trojans, backed to their own fifteen-yard line, tallied again when Bill Gaisford went seventy-four yards with a pass from Davis. The extra point was no good.
Davis marked up the third touchdown with a six-yard run. Max Belko converted on a run. Following a Hawaii fumble, recovered by Gaisford on the Rainbows’ thirty-five, Nick Pappas eluded six tacklers and romped for the touchdown. The extra point was missed.
Passes and trick plays were featured in a fourth period Hawaii touchdown drive, which began on their own six. Maynard Piltz had two long receptions on the drive and an eight-yard pass from Richard Furtado to George Aki gave the Rainbows their only touchdown. The conversion was missed. Pappas tallied Troy's final margin when he crashed across from the three. The placement was again no good.
U. S. C. made fourteen first downs, 231 yards from scrimmage and completed eleven passes for 275 yards. Hawaii made ten first downs, ninety yards from scrimmage and made 180 yards on fourteen passes completed in thirty eight attempts.
Halftime show and game action from the 1936 New Years Day Classic.
Attendance: 12,000
Hawaii 18-Honolulu All-Stars (HI) 12
Washington 53-Hawaii 13
Washington,
5–2–2 in coach James Phelan’s eighth season, crushed the host University
of Hawaii, rolling to a 53–0 lead before the Husky reserves allowed the
Islanders two meaningless touchdowns late in the final period, in front
of 13,500 spectators at the Pineapple Bowl.
Washington scored four times in the opening quarter, ignited by the open-field running of left halfback Jimmy Johnston. The Huskies’ first score featured Johnston running 15 yards before lateraling to center Bud Ericksen, who carried 32 yards for a touchdown. Tackle Vic Markov kicked the extra point. After stopping Hawaii, Johnston threw a 35-yard pass to end Merle Miller for the second Husky score in as many possessions.
Minutes later, Johnston returned a Hawaii punt 70 yards to the Islander two, and Miller went through the center of the line for the third Dawg touchdown. Johnston rambled for another 30-yard gain, stopped this time on the 1-yard line. Reserve fullback Don Jones notched the score on a plunge through the line. Dick Johnson’s kick gave Washington a 26–0 lead at the end of the first quarter while Hawaii had yet to manage a first down.
The second quarter saw a continuation of the Husky onslaught. Despite having pulled most of its starting players, Washington continued to man-handle the smaller Hawaiian line. Everett Austin, a Husky halfback, rambled 41 yards for a touchdown. Washington kicked off, and held the Islanders, forcing a punt. Washington halfback Joe Dubsky took the punt on the fly and returned it 39 yards before lateraling it to tackle Rich Worthington, who carried it the final 11 yards for a touchdown. Dubsky’s conversion gave the Huskies a 39–0 lead which they took into the half.
The Huskies scored single touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters. In the third, Lloyd Phelps broke loose for a 53-yard touchdown run. The final Husky points were tallied by Jones on a 20-yard run in the fourth quarter.
The Islanders scored on two short plunges by fullback Vernon Akee Choy and added one Joe Kaulukukui PAT kick to avoid the shutout. For the day, Washington outgained Hawaii 370 yards to 95. The Huskies were 3-of-7 passing for 60 yards. Hawaii was 10-of-28 for 160 yards.
Washington team and staff in Hawaii.
Attendance: 13,500
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
UW- Ericksen 32 run (Markov Kick)
UW- Miller 35 yard pass from Johnston (Kick failed)
UW- Miller 2 run (Kick failed)
UW- Jones 1 run (Johnson kick)
Second Quarter
UW- Austin 41 run (Kick failed)
UW- Worthington 11 yard punt return (following Dubsky 39 yard return and lateral), (Dubsky kick)
Third Quarter
UW- Phelps 53 run (Dubsky kick)
Fourth Quarter
UW- Jones 20 run (Dubsky kick)
UH- Choy 1 run (Kick failed)
UH- Choy 2 yard run (Kaulukukui kick)
Information
taken from: John Weakland Husky Football Page
http://home.avvanta.com/~weakland/husky.htm
UCLA 32-Hawaii 7
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Oregon St. 39-Hawaii 6
Until the 2000 squad of
Dennis Erickson became the greatest team in school history, with an 11-1
finish and a No. 4 national ranking, the title of best of all time
belonged to Lon Stiner's 1939 club that finished that year with a
stellar 9-1-1 record. OSU's (known as Oregon State College at the time)
only loss that year came on Nov. 4 in Portland as the No. 11 Beavers
faced off against the No. 7 USC Trojans, with the Men of Troy prevailing
in a hard-fought defensive struggle, 19-7. The tie was turned in against
No. 13-ranked UCLA, 13-13, in a game played in Los Angeles. The season
culminated with an invite to the Pineapple Bowl in Honolulu to face the
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors.
Upon their arrival on the Islands, the Beavers squared off against the
Hawaii All Stars, a Healani town team, in an exhibition contest on
Christmas Day. They won easily, 28-0. The first bowl game in OSU history
took place on New Year’ Day. OSU was anchored by All-Americans Vic Sears
at left tackle and Quentin Greenough at center.
Bob Olson, Morrie Kohler, Ken Dow and George Peters scored a touchdown
by power drives in the first five minutes of play, with Olson passing to
Peters for the final six yards. A few minutes later, Bob Dethman
returned a Hawaii punt 12 yards to the 29-yard line, from where Dethman
cracked center for 18 yards and Jim Kisselburgh ambled 11 yards through
tackle to score. Vic Kohler intercepted one of Roy Strohlin’s passes in
the same period, lateralled to John Tsoutsouvas who was down on the
Oregon State 49. Hackenbruck made 18 on an end-around. Kohler added five
at the line, and then Joe Tomich passed to Hackenbruck in the end zone.
Hawaii drove to Oregon State’s 12-yard line early in the second quarter
before the
Beavers held, but Kisselburg’s kick was short and Hawaii scored on two
plays, with Strohlin passing from Oregon State’s 47 to Cal Campbell on
the 19 and then to Nolle Smith in the end zone. Oregon State battled
down to the Hawaii 1-yard line where Dow fumbled as the half ended.
The second half belonged to the Beavers as they scored a touchdown in
the third period and two more in the fourth. Oregon State chalked up 452
yards in total offense to 177 for the Rainbows. The 39-6 thrashing was
aided by the fact that showers late in the game handicapped Hawaii’s
passing attack. The game was finished under arc lights.
Dedication for 1940 Pineapple Bowl with King Pineapple.
Attendance: 13,000
Fresno St. (CA) 3-Hawaii 0
HONOLULU - The Bulldogs traveled to Honolulu to play before 22,000 wind-blown and rowdy spectators in the Pineapple Bowl. Matching up against the Hawai'i Rainbows, the Bulldogs found the needed three-point difference early in the fourth quarter to seal the Fresno State victory.
The 'Dogs produced the three-point game spread off a Dale Mickelwait 18-yard field goal held by Lloyd Leest. The Pineapple Bowl game-winner marked the second time Micklewait booted the Bulldogs to victory this season. He secured the extra point conversion against Nevada to push the Bulldogs to a 7-6 triumph.
The 3-0 score is a misleading summary of the game considering both teams had several empty scoring attempts and the Bulldogs and Rainbows gained at least 200 yards apiece. Both teams found themselves with penalty problems - Hawai'i lost 40 yards and the Bulldogs dropped 55, but fumble action was fairly clean as Hawai'i created the game's one and only loose ball. Hawai'i held the Bulldogs twice within their five-yard line before Fresno State broke the three-quarter scoreless streak.
Attendance: 22,000
Scoring Summary
Fourth Quarter
FS - Dale Mickelwait, 18 FG
In 1941, Utah was slated to play Hawaii in the Pineapple Bowl, but the game was canceled after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Hawaii had no team during these years.
Navy Team 14-Army Air Force 0
(Poi Classic)
This
game was called the Poi Classic. The 1945 game was allowed
as a military game between service teams. The game was dubbed as the
Pacific Ocean Area Football Championship between the Navy and the Army
Air Force. It was held on Sunday, January 7, 1945. The following quote
was taken from the game program and reflects the attitude of the era
toward holding the the 1945 classic:
King football graciously bows his head today amid pageantry and color. Into Furlong Field he leads a galaxy of All-America stars, now members of our Armed Forces in the greatest competition in world’s history….That spirit which has shown itself so conclusively in the past on the American football fields will prevail over the enemy….let us make certain that our next generation will be cavorting in the colorful uniforms of the cheerleaders and musicians and the shoulder pads of the football players – not in the war togs stained by the blood and grime of the battle field – ON WITH THE GAME!
Among the notables in this game was Harold Newman, the former Alabama player and Randolph Field co-captain from their undefeated and 3rd ranked season of 1944. The Navy downed the Army Air Force, 14-0.
Hawaii 19-Utah 16
The Utah Utes closed the 1946 season with January 1, 1947 bowl loss to Hawaii on the Islands. Utah drew first blood, when quarterback Cannon Parkinson found Ralph Olsen for a 24-yard touchdown play in the first quarter. But Hawaii bounced back in the final three stanzas to claim a 19-16 win in the Pineapple Bowl.
Utah entered the game as the nation’s top rushing team, but the game soon shaped up as a passing duel between Hawaii’s Sol Kaulukukui and Utah’s quarterback combo of Milton Smith and Parkinson.
After falling behind 19-6, late in the fourth quarter, the “Redskins” closed the gap with a TD run by Smith and an extra point kick. Hawaii, holding a slim 19-14 lead and backed up against its own goal line, then opted for a safety, narrowing the gap to 19-16. But, Utah would come no closer, with Melvin Abreu knocking a pass away from Utah’s Morris Ficklin in the end zone as the gun sounded.
Utah's all-time bowl record of 9-3 (according to official NCAA records that do not count the 1947 Pineapple Bowl loss). Utah's official bowl record will changed from 9-4 to 9-3 to reflect the official NCAA records in 2006. Hawaii had never included the victory in their bowl record.
Attendance: 22,000
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
UU–Olsen 24 yard pass from Parkinson (Peterson kick)
Second Quarter
UH- Bessette 14 yard pass from Kaulukukui (Kick failed)
Third Quarter
UH- Abreau 3 run (Kick failed)
Fourth Quarter
UH Bessette pass from Kaulukukui (Abreau kick)
UU Smith run (Peterson kick)
UU- Safety (Abreau tackled by Jones)
Hawaii 33-Redlands (CA) 32
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Oregon St. 47-Hawaii 27
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Stanford 74-Hawaii 20
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Hawaii 28-Denver (CO) 27
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San Diego State 34-Hawaii 13
HONOLULU-
Despite the heat and humidity that slowed down a potent San Diego State
offense in the first half of the 1952 Pineapple Bowl in Honolulu, the
Aztecs pulled away in the second half to take a 34-13 victory over
Hawai'i.
After a 14-6 SDSU lead at intermission, the Aztecs took advantage of cooler temperatures in the second half with three quick touchdowns by Art Preston, Preston Robinson and Don Jurk.
It would be all the offense they would need as the SDSU defense stopped the Rainbows' running back Jimmy Asato and their dangerous single-wing attack. Most of the Aztec squad suffered from a bout of food poisoning following the game, but completely recovered in time for the flight back to the mainland.
Attendance: 10,000
