"Always a bitterly contested
game." - Stylus 1942
Glendale leads the series
40-29-2
Most points scored (team):
51 (Glendale 1991)
Largest margin of victory: 51 (Glendale 1991)
Most consecutive wins: 6 (Glendale 1977-1982)
Most points scored (both teams): 82 (1996)
Games decided by 7 points or less: 31
Games decided by 3 points or less: 7
First year the Big Game was played in the Rose Bowl: 1932
First year the Victory Bell was awarded: 1951
UP FOR GRABS- The Victory Bell was first given to the winner of the Big Game in 1951.
It all started in 1930...
"Before one of the most wildly enthusiastic crowds to ever attend a grid contest, the two teams put up a grim and bitter battle for the football championship of the city that didn't produce a winner until the last half second of play. Howard Bentley, Hoover QB, took the ball over the goal line, about six inches to be exact, and scored a touchdown after Glendale made one of the most heroic goal line stands that a high school team has ever made." - Stylus 1931
(l-r) Frankie Albert kicks, Duane Bickett attacks, and Steve Haas makes it look easy.
Frankie Albert, class of 1937 was considered the best high school player in Southern California his senior year. Frankie was a 3-time All-American at Stanford. He played and coached for the San Francisco 49ers and is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame. Duane Bickett, class of 1981, was all-CIF in football, basketball and track. Duane led the Nitros to the CIF Championship in basketball where he was named CIF co-MVP. He went on to USC where he was an All-America linebacker and was a first-round draft choice in the NFL in 1985. He was the NFL's Rookie of the Year in 1985 and played with the Indianapolis Colts. Duane played 11 years in the NFL. Steve Haas played the best game of his life against Hoover in 1996. He electrified the crowd with 79 and 82 yard runs for TDs. When the dust settled, the super wide receiver had caught 11 passes and raced for a record 241 yards. The final 48-34 score was the highest scoring Big Game in history.
Complete List of Scores
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 No, it's not the W.C.W. A Nitro ball carrier gets physical against Hoover in 1948.  The view of halftime festivities from the winning side at the 1961 Big Game, held in the Rose Bowl.  The "G" on the nearby foothill is seen through the goal posts in 1977. Because of Fire Dept. regulations, lighting the "G" with Christmas Tree lights has since been stopped.  A jubilant 1986 Nitro squad celebrates a win over Hoover.  Stephen Smiles shows off the spoils of victory in 1997. |
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Glendale High School
1440 E. Broadway
Glendale, CA 91205