Battle for the Golden Horseshoe
Encyclopedia
The Battle for the Golden Horseshoe is an annual rivalry college football
game played between the UC Davis Aggies
and the Cal Poly SLO Mustangs
. Although the two teams have met on the gridiron since 1939, the rivalry officially began with the 2004 game at Cal Poly SLO. The winner of the game receives the Golden Horseshoe Trophy, which was also created in 2004 for the inaugural game. Due to a misunderstanding, both schools constructed a trophy for the rivalry and brought it to the inaugural game. The teams decided that the rivalry would adopt the trophy created by the winner of that game; UC Davis won 36–33 and was therefore allowed to make its trophy the official one to be exchanged in all subsequent meetings.
Through 2011, UC Davis leads the series 5–3; UC Davis won the trophy in 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010, and 2011, and Cal Poly SLO took it in 2006, 2007 and 2008. Davis leads the all-time series at 19–16–2.
There is also controversy regarding the addition of gems to the trophy after each win. The Mustang Maniacs, the student group who holds the trophy while it is under Cal Poly SLO's control, added blue and green gems to the trophy from 2006 to 2008. But when the Aggie Pack regained control of the trophy in 2009, they removed the gems, wishing to keep the trophy in its original condition.
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
game played between the UC Davis Aggies
University of California, Davis
The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
and the Cal Poly SLO Mustangs
California Polytechnic State University
California Polytechnic State University, or Cal Poly, is a public university located in San Luis Obispo, California, United States. The university is one of two polytechnic campuses in the 23-member California State University system....
. Although the two teams have met on the gridiron since 1939, the rivalry officially began with the 2004 game at Cal Poly SLO. The winner of the game receives the Golden Horseshoe Trophy, which was also created in 2004 for the inaugural game. Due to a misunderstanding, both schools constructed a trophy for the rivalry and brought it to the inaugural game. The teams decided that the rivalry would adopt the trophy created by the winner of that game; UC Davis won 36–33 and was therefore allowed to make its trophy the official one to be exchanged in all subsequent meetings.
Through 2011, UC Davis leads the series 5–3; UC Davis won the trophy in 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010, and 2011, and Cal Poly SLO took it in 2006, 2007 and 2008. Davis leads the all-time series at 19–16–2.
There is also controversy regarding the addition of gems to the trophy after each win. The Mustang Maniacs, the student group who holds the trophy while it is under Cal Poly SLO's control, added blue and green gems to the trophy from 2006 to 2008. But when the Aggie Pack regained control of the trophy in 2009, they removed the gems, wishing to keep the trophy in its original condition.
Results
| Date | Winning Team | Losing Team | | Location | |Series | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | UC Davis | 36 | Cal Poly SLO | 33 | San Luis Obispo | UCD | 1–0 |
| 2005 | UC Davis | 20 | Cal Poly SLO | 13 | Davis | UCD | 2–0 |
| 2006 | Cal Poly SLO | 23 | UC Davis | 17 | San Luis Obispo | UCD | 2–1 |
| 2007 | Cal Poly SLO | 63 | UC Davis | 28 | Davis | — | 2–2 |
| 2008 | Cal Poly SLO | 51 | UC Davis | 28 | San Luis Obispo | CP | 3–2 |
| 2009 | UC Davis | 23 | Cal Poly SLO | 10 | Davis | — | 3–3 |
| 2010 | UC Davis | 22 | Cal Poly SLO | 21 | San Luis Obispo | UCD | 4–3 |
| 2011 | UC Davis | 24 | Cal Poly SLO | 17 | Davis | UCD | 5–3 |