SAN JOSE STATE FOOTBALL
Hometown Games Rule!

A pair of ESPN nationally televised home games and a road contest at the University of Nebraska highlight the 2008 San Jose State University football schedule.

"We have 12 tough games on the schedule, but what I'm most pleased about is playing in the Bay Area seven times. That gives our fans plenty of opportunities to see us live," said head coach Dick Tomey, who has 42 returning letter winners, including 13 starters, back from last year's squad. "Having the two games on television is also great exposure for our program."

San Jose State has been one of the toughest teams in California on its home turf the last two-plus seasons. The Spartans are 12-2 in Spartan Stadium since November 2005. Only the University of Southern California, 13-1 in the Los Angeles Coliseum, is better over the same time span.

San Jose State opens the season at home, Sat., Aug. 30, against UC Davis, followed by a Sept. 6 trip to Lincoln, Neb., where the Spartans will face the Cornhuskers and new head coach Bo Pellini. The visit to Nebraska is the second for the Spartans. San Jose State opened the 2000 season in Lincoln and went on to a 7-5 win-loss record.

Unlike the 2007 season, when the Spartans opened with four consecutive road games, San Jose State has just one extended stretch on the road, with a Sept. 20 contest at Stanford and a Sept. 27 tilt against defending Western Athletic Conference champion Hawaii to open league action.

For the fourth straight year under Tomey, and sixth consecutive season, the Spartans will appear on a major television network, ESPN2, with a pair of Friday-night games.

On Oct. 24, San Jose State hosts Boise State in a nationally televised contest set for a 6 p.m. kickoff at Spartan Stadium. The Spartans close the regular season at home with their second ESPN2 contest, this one is against longtime rival Fresno State.

Other home games include Mountain West Conference member San Diego State on Sept. 13, Utah State on Oct. 11 and Louisiana Tech on Nov. 8.