Coordinates	35°27′″N139°38′″N
Name	San Diego
Official name	City of San Diego
Settlement type	City
Nickname	America's Finest City
Motto	''Semper Vigilans'' (Latin for "Ever Vigilant")
Image seal	Seal Of San Diego, California.svg
Map caption	Location of San Diego within San Diego County
Pushpin map	USA2
Pushpin map caption	Location in the United States
Coordinates display	inline,title
Coordinates region	US-CA
Subdivision type	Country
Subdivision name	United States
Subdivision type1	State
Subdivision name1	California
Subdivision type2	County
Subdivision name2	San Diego
Established title	Founded
Established date	July 16, 1769
Established title2	Incorporated
Established date2	March 27, 1850
Government type	Mayor-council
Governing body	San Diego City Council
Leader title	Mayor
Leader title1	City Attorney
Leader title2	City Council members
Leader name	Jerry Sanders
Leader name1	Jan Goldsmith
Leader name2
unit pref	US
area footnotes
area total sq mi	372.398
area land sq mi	325.188
area water sq mi	47.210
area total km2	964.506
area land km2	842.233
area water km2	122.273
area water percent	12.68
Population as of	Census 2010
Population total	1301617
Population rank	1st in San Diego County2nd in California8th in the United States
Population metro	3,095,313
Population density km2	auto
Population demonym	San Diegan
Timezone	PST
Utc offset	-8
Timezone dst	PDT
Utc offset dst	-7
Postal code type	ZIP code
Postal code	92101-92117, 92119-92124, 92126-92140, 92142, 92145, 92147, 92149-92155, 92158-92172, 92174-92177, 92179, 92182, 92184, 92186, 92187, 92190-92199
Area code	619, 858
Demononym	San Diegan, San Diegoan
Elevation ft	72–400
Elevation m	22
Website	www.sandiego.gov
Blank name	FIPS code
Blank info	66000
Blank1 name	GNIS feature ID
Blank1 info	1661377
Footnotes	}}

San Diego () is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round climate, its natural deep-water harbor, and its long association with the U.S. Navy. The population was 1,301,617 at the 2010 census.

Historically home to the Kumeyaay people, San Diego was the first site visited by Europeans on what is now the West Coast of the United States. Upon landing in San Diego Bay in 1542, Juan Cabrillo claimed the entire area for Spain, forming the basis for the settlement of Alta California 200 years later. The Presidio and Mission of San Diego, founded in 1769, were the first European settlement in what is now California. In 1821, San Diego became part of newly independent Mexico, and in 1850, became part of the United States following the Mexican-American War and the admission of California to the union.

The city is the county seat of San Diego County and is the economic center of the San Diego–Carlsbad–San Marcos metropolitan area as well as the San Diego–Tijuana metropolitan area. San Diego's main economic engines are military and defense-related activities, tourism, international trade, and manufacturing. The presence of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), with the affiliated UCSD Medical Center, has helped make the area a center of research in biotechnology.

History

The area of San Diego has been inhabited for more than 10,000 years by the Kumeyaay people. The first European to visit the region was Portuguese-born explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo sailing under the flag of Castile. Sailing his flagship ''San Salvador'' from Navidad, New Spain, Cabrillo claimed the bay for the Spanish Empire in 1542 and named the site 'San Miguel'. In November 1602, Sebastián Vizcaíno was sent to map the California coast. Arriving on his flagship ''San Diego'', Vizcaíno surveyed the harbor and what are now Mission Bay and Point Loma and named the area for the Catholic Saint Didacus, a Spaniard more commonly known as ''San Diego de Alcalá''. On November 12, 1602, the first Christian religious service of record in Alta California was conducted by Friar Antonio de la Ascensión, a member of Vizcaíno's expedition, to celebrate the feast day of San Diego.

In May 1769, Gaspar de Portolà established the Fort Presidio of San Diego on a hill near the San Diego River. In July of the same year, Mission San Diego de Alcalá was founded by Franciscan friars under Father Junípero Serra. By 1797, the mission boasted the largest native population in Alta California, with over 1,400 neophytes living in and around the mission proper. Mission San Diego was the southern anchor in California of the historic mission trail El Camino Real. Both the Presidio and the Mission are National Historic Landmarks.

In 1821, Mexico won its independence from Spain, and San Diego became part of the Mexican state of Alta California. The fort on Presidio Hill was gradually abandoned, while the town of San Diego grew up on the level land below Presidio Hill. The Mission was secularized by the Mexican government, and most of the Mission lands were distributed to wealthy Californio settlers.

As a result of the Mexican-American War of 1846–1848, the territory of Alta California, including San Diego, was ceded to the United States by Mexico. The Battle of San Pasqual, a battle of the Mexican-American War, was fought in 1846 in the San Pasqual Valley which is now part of the city of San Diego. The state of California was admitted to the United States in 1850. That same year San Diego was designated the seat of the newly established San Diego County and was incorporated as a city. The initial city charter was established in 1889 and today's city charter was adopted in 1931.

The original town of San Diego was located at the foot of Presidio Hill, in the area which is now Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. The location was not ideal, being several miles away from navigable water. In the late 1860s, Alonzo Horton promoted a move to "New Town", several miles south of the original settlement, in the area which became Downtown San Diego. People and businesses flocked to New Town because of its location on San Diego Bay convenient to shipping. New Town quickly eclipsed the original settlement, known to this day as Old Town, and became the economic and governmental heart of the city.

In the early part of the 20th century, San Diego hosted two World's Fairs: the Panama-California Exposition in 1915 and the California Pacific International Exposition in 1935. Both expositions were held in Balboa Park, and many of the Spanish/Baroque-style buildings that were built for those expositions remain to this day as central features of the park. The buildings were intended to be temporary structures, but most remained in continuous use until they progressively fell into disrepair. Most were eventually rebuilt, using castings of the original facades to retain the architectural style. The menagerie of exotic animals featured at the 1915 exposition provided the basis for the San Diego Zoo.

Significant U.S. Navy presence began in 1901 with the establishment of the Navy Coaling Station in Point Loma, and expanded greatly during the 1920s. By 1930 the city was host to Naval Base San Diego, Naval Training Center San Diego, San Diego Naval Hospital, Camp Matthews, and Camp Kearny (now Marine Corps Air Station Miramar). The city was also an early center for aviation: as early as World War I San Diego was proclaiming itself "The Air Capital of the West." The city was home to important airplane developers and manufacturers like Ryan Airlines (later Ryan Aeronautical), founded in 1925, and Consolidated Aircraft (later Convair), founded in 1923. Charles A. Lindbergh's plane The Spirit of St. Louis was built in San Diego in 1927 by Ryan Airlines.

During World War II, San Diego became a major hub of military and defense activity, due to the presence of so many military installations and defense manufacturers. The city's population grew rapidly during and after World War II, more than doubling between 1930 (147,995) and 1950 (333,865). After World War II, the military continued to play a major role in the local economy, but post-Cold War cutbacks took a heavy toll on the local defense and aerospace industries. The resulting downturn led San Diego leaders to seek to diversify the city's economy by focusing on research and science, as well as tourism.

Downtown San Diego was in decline in the 1960s and 1970s but experienced some urban renewal since the early 1980s, including the opening of Horton Plaza, the revival of the Gaslamp Quarter, and the construction of the San Diego Convention Center; Petco Park opened in 2004.

Geography

The city of San Diego lies on deep canyons and hills separating its mesas, creating small pockets of natural parkland scattered throughout the city and giving it a hilly geography. Traditionally, San Diegans have built their homes and businesses on the mesas, while leaving the canyons relatively wild. Thus, the canyons give parts of the city a segmented feel, creating gaps between otherwise proximate neighborhoods and contributing to a low-density, car-centered environment. The San Diego River runs through the middle of San Diego from east to west, creating a river valley which serves to divide the city into northern and southern segments. Several reservoirs and Mission Trails Regional Park also lie between and separate developed areas of the city.

Notable peaks within the city limits include Cowles Mountain, the highest point in the city at ; Black Mountain at ; and Mount Soledad at . The Cuyamaca Mountains and Laguna Mountains rise to the east of the city, and beyond the mountains are desert areas. The Cleveland National Forest is a half-hour drive from downtown San Diego. Numerous farms are found in the valleys northeast and southeast of the city.

Communities and neighborhoods

The city of San Diego recognizes 52 individual areas as Community Planning Areas. Within a given planning area there may be several distinct neighborhoods. Altogether the city contains more than 100 identified neighborhoods.

Downtown San Diego is located on San Diego Bay. Balboa Park encompasses several mesas and canyons to the northeast, surrounded by older, dense urban communities including Hillcrest and North Park. To the east and southeast lie City Heights, the College Area, and Southeast San Diego. To the north lies Mission Valley and Interstate 8. The communities north of the valley and freeway, and south of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, include Clairemont, Kearny Mesa, Tierrasanta, and Navajo. Stretching north from Miramar are the northern suburbs of Mira Mesa, Scripps Ranch, Rancho Peñasquitos, and Rancho Bernardo. The far northeast portion of the city encompasses Lake Hodges and the San Pasqual Valley, which holds an agricultural preserve. Carmel Valley and Del Mar Heights occupy the northwest corner of the city. To their south are Torrey Pines State Reserve and the business center of the Golden Triangle. Further south are the beach and coastal communities of La Jolla, Pacific Beach, and Ocean Beach. Point Loma occupies the peninsula across San Diego Bay from downtown. The communities of South San Diego, such as San Ysidro and Otay Mesa, are located next to the Mexican border, and are physically separated from the rest of the city by the cities of National City and Chula Vista; a narrow strip of land at the bottom of San Diego Bay connects these southern neighborhoods with the rest of the city.

Unlike some areas of Southern California, where neighborhoods and even cities may run into each other without a clear demarcation, San Diego neighborhood boundaries tend to be clearly understood by their residents based on geographical boundaries like canyons and street patterns. The city recognized the importance of its neighborhoods when it organized its 2008 General Plan around the concept of a "City of Villages".

Cityscape

San Diego was originally centered in the Old Town district, but by the late 1860s the center of focus had relocated to the bayfront in the belief that this new location would increase trade. As the "New Town" – present-day Downtown – waterfront location quickly developed, it eclipsed Old Town as the center of San Diego.

The development of skyscrapers over in San Diego is attributed to the construction of the El Cortez Apartment Hotel in 1927, the tallest building in the city from 1927 to 1963. As time went on multiple buildings claimed the title of San Diego's tallest skyscraper, including the Union Bank of California Building and Symphony Towers. Currently the tallest building in San Diego is One America Plaza, standing 500 feet (150 m) tall, which was completed in 1991. The downtown skyline contains no super-talls, as a regulation put in place by the Federal Aviation Administration in the 1970s set a limit on the height of buildings due to the proximity of San Diego International Airport. An iconic description of the skyline includes its skyscrapers being compared to the tools of a toolbox. Within the city limits are multiple skylines composed of high-rises and mid-rises, including University City, Rancho Bernardo, Centre City, Carmel Valley and La Jolla Village.

Climate

San Diego is one of the top-ten best climates in the ''Farmer's Almanac'' and is one of the two best summer climates in America as scored by The Weather Channel. Under the Köppen climate classification system, the San Diego area straddles areas of Mediterranean climate (CSa) to the north and Semi-arid climate (BSh) to the south and east. As a result, it is often described as "arid Mediterranean" and "Semi-arid Steppe". San Diego's climate is characterized by warm, dry summers and mild winters with most of the annual precipitation falling between December and March. The city has mild, mostly dry weather, with an average of 201 days above and low rainfall ( annually).

The climate in the San Diego area, like much of California, often varies significantly over short geographical distances resulting in microclimates. In San Diego's case this is mainly due to the city's topography (the Bay, and the numerous hills, mountains, and canyons). Frequently, particularly during the "May gray/June gloom" period, a thick "marine layer" cloud cover will keep the air cool and damp within a few miles of the coast, but will yield to bright cloudless sunshine approximately inland. Sometimes the June gloom can last into July, causing cloudy skies over most of San Diego for the entire day. Even in the absence of June gloom, inland areas tend to experience much more significant temperature variations than coastal areas, where the ocean serves as a moderating influence. Thus, for example, downtown San Diego averages January lows of and August highs of . The city of El Cajon, just inland from downtown San Diego, averages January lows of and August highs of .

A sign of global warming, scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography say the average surface temperature of the water at Scripps Pier in the California Current has increased by almost 3 degrees since 1950.

Rainfall along the coast averages about of precipitation annually. The average (mean) rainfall is and the median is . Most of the rainfall occurs during the cooler months. The months of December through March supply most of the rain, with February the only month averaging or more of rain. The months of May through September tend to be almost completely dry. Though there are few wet days per month during the rainy period, rainfall can be heavy when it does fall. Rainfall is usually greater in the higher elevations of San Diego; some of the higher elevation areas of San Diego can receive of rain a year.

Snow in the city is so rare that it has been observed only five times in the century-and-a-half that records have been kept. In 1949 and 1967, snow stayed on the ground for a few hours in higher locations like Point Loma and La Jolla. The other three occasions, in 1882, 1946, and 1987, involved flurries but no accumulation.

Official temperature record-keeping began in San Diego in 1872, although other weather records go back further. The city's first official weather station was located at Mission San Diego from 1849 to 1858. From August 1858 until 1940, the official weather station was located at a series of downtown buildings, and the station has been at Lindbergh Field since February 1940.

Ecology

Like most of southern California, the majority of San Diego's current area was originally occupied by chaparral, a plant community made up mostly of drought-resistant shrubs. The endangered Torrey Pine has the bulk of its population in San Diego in a stretch of protected chaparral along the coast. The steep and varied topography and proximity to the ocean create a number of different habitats within the city limits, including tidal marsh and canyons. The chaparral and coastal sage scrub habitats in low elevations along the coast are prone to wildfire, and the rates of fire have increased in the 20th century, due primarily to fires starting near the borders of urban and wild areas.

San Diego's broad city limits encompass a number of large nature preserves, including Torrey Pines State Reserve, Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve, and Mission Trails Regional Park. Torrey Pines State Reserve and a coastal strip continuing to the north constitute the only location where the rare species of Torrey Pine, ''P. torreyana torreyana'', is found.thumb|right|alt=San Diego against Witch Creek Fire smoke|San Diego viewed against the Witch Creek Fire smoke Due to the steep topography that prevents or discourages building, along with some efforts for preservation, there are also a large number of canyons within the city limits that serve as nature preserves, including Switzer Canyon, Tecolote Canyon Natural Park, and Marian Bear Memorial Park in the San Clemente Canyon, as well as a number of small parks and preserves.

San Diego County has one of the highest counts of animal and plant species that appear on the endangered species list among counties in the United States. Because of its diversity of habitat and its position on the Pacific Flyway, San Diego County has recorded the presence of 492 bird species, more than any other region in the country. San Diego always scores very high in the number of bird species observed in the annual Christmas Bird Count, sponsored by the Audubon Society, and it is known as one of the "birdiest" areas in the United States.

San Diego and its backcountry are subject to periodic wildfires. In October 2003, San Diego was the site of the Cedar Fire, which has been called the largest wildfire in California over the past century. The fire burned , killed 15 people, and destroyed more than 2,200 homes. In addition to damage caused by the fire, smoke resulted in a significant increase in emergency room visits due to asthma, respiratory problems, eye irritation, and smoke inhalation; the poor air quality caused San Diego County schools to close for a week. Wildfires four years later destroyed some areas, particularly within the communities of Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Santa Fe, and Ramona.

Demographics

The city had a population of 1,307,402 in 2010, according to the census that year, on a land area of . The urban area of San Diego extends beyond the administrative city limits and had a total 2010 population of 2,880,000, making it the third-largest urban area in California.

As of the Census of 2010, there were 1,307,402 people living in the city of San Diego. That represents a population increase of just under 7% from the 1,223,400 people, 450,691 households, and 271,315 families reported in 2000. The estimated city population in 2009 was 1,306,300. The population density was 3,771.9 people per square mile (1,456.4/km²). The racial makeup of San Diego was 58.9% White, 6.7% African American, 0.6% Native American, 15.9% Asian (5.9% Filipino, 2.7% Chinese, 2.5% Vietnamese, 1.3% Indian, 1.0% Korean, 0.7% Japanese, 0.4% Laotian, 0.3% Cambodian, 0.1% Thai). 0.5% Pacific Islander, 12.3% from other races, and 5.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 28.8%. Among the Hispanic population, 24.9% are Mexican, and 0.6% are Puerto Rican.

As of January 1, 2008 estimates by the San Diego Association of Governments revealed that the household median income for San Diego rose to $66,715, up from $45,733, and that the city population rose to 1,336,865, up 9.3% from 2000. The population was 45.3% non-Hispanic whites, 27.7% Hispanics, 15.6% Asians/Pacific Islanders, 7.1% blacks, 0.4% American Indians, and 3.9% from other races. Median age of Hispanics was 27.5 years, compared to 35.1 years overall and 41.6 years among non-Hispanic whites; Hispanics were the largest group in all ages under 18, and non-Hispanic whites constituted 63.1% of population 55 and older.

In 2000 there were 451,126 households out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% were non-families. Households made up of individuals account for 28.0% and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.30.

The U.S. Census Bureau reported that in 2000, 24.0% of San Diego residents were under 18, and 10.5% were 65 and over. The median age was 32; two-thirds of the population was under 35. The San Diego County regional planning agency, SANDAG, provides tables and graphs breaking down the city population into 5-year age groups. In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $45,733, and the median income for a family was $53,060. Males had a median income of $36,984 versus $31,076 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,609. According to ''Forbes'' in 2005, San Diego was the fifth wealthiest U.S. city but about 10.6% of families and 14.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.0% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over. Nonetheless, San Diego was rated the fifth-best place to live in the United States in 2006 by ''Money'' magazine.

Crime

According to ''Forbes'' magazine, San Diego was the ninth-safest city in the top 10 list of safest cities in the U.S. in 2010. Like most major cities, San Diego had a declining crime rate from 1990 to 2000. Crime slightly increased in the early 2000s. In 2004, San Diego had the sixth lowest crime rate of any U.S. city with over half a million residents. From 2002 to 2006, the crime rate overall dropped 0.8%, though not evenly by category. While violent crime decreased 12.4% during this period, property crime increased 1.1%. Total property crimes per 100,000 people were lower than the national average in 2008.

Economy

The largest sectors of San Diego's economy are defense/military, tourism, international trade, and research/manufacturing, respectively.

Defense and military

The economy of San Diego is influenced by its deepwater port, which includes the only major submarine and shipbuilding yards on the West Coast. Several major national defense contractors were started and are headquartered in San Diego, including General Atomics, Cubic, and NASSCO.

San Diego hosts the largest naval fleet in the world: it was in 2008 was home to 53 ships, over 120 tenant commands, and more than 35,000 sailors, soldiers, Department of Defense civilian employees and contractors. About 5 percent of all civilian jobs in the county are military-related, and 15,000 businesses in San Diego County rely on Department of Defense contracts.

Military bases in San Diego include US Navy facilities, Marine Corps bases, and Coast Guard stations. Marine Corps institutions in the city of San Diego include Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego. The Navy has several institutions in the city, including Naval Base Point Loma, Naval Base San Diego (also known as the 32nd Street Naval Station), Bob Wilson Naval Hospital, the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center San Diego and Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command. Also near San Diego but not within the city limits are Naval Amphibious Base Coronado and Naval Air Station North Island (which operates Naval Auxiliary Landing Facility San Clemente Island, Silver Strand Training Complex, and the Outlying Field Imperial Beach). San Diego is known as the "birthplace of naval aviation".

The city is "home to the majority of the U.S. Pacific Fleet's surface combatants, all of the Navy's West Coast amphibious ships and a variety of Coast Guard and Military Sealift Command vessels". One Nimitz class supercarrier, (the USS ''Carl Vinson''), five amphibious assault ships, several ''Los Angeles''-class "fast attack" submarines, the Hospital Ship USNS ''Mercy'', carrier and submarine tenders, destroyers, cruisers, frigates, and many smaller ships are home-ported there. Four Navy vessels have been named USS ''San Diego''.

Tourism

Tourism is a major industry owing to the city's climate, its beaches, and numerous tourist attractions such as Balboa Park, Belmont amusement park, San Diego Zoo, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and SeaWorld San Diego. San Diego's Spanish and Mexican heritage is reflected in the many historic sites across the city, such as Mission San Diego de Alcala and Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. Annual events in San Diego include Comic-Con, the Farmers Insurance Open golf tournament, the San Diego Black Film Festival, and Street Scene Music Festival. Transient Occupancy Taxes (TOT) create funding for the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture.

San Diego County hosted more than 30 million visitors in 2009, of whom approximately half stayed overnight and half were day visitors; collectively they spent an estimated $15 billion locally. The San Diego Convention Center hosted 68 out-of-town conventions and trade shows in 2009, attracting more than 600,000 visitors.

San Diego's cruise ship industry is the second largest in California; each cruise ship call injects an estimated $2 million (from the purchase of food, fuel, supplies, and maintenance services) into the local economy. Numerous cruise lines, including Celebrity, Crystal and Princess, operate out of San Diego. However, cruise ship business has been in steady decline since peaking in 2008, when the Port hosted over 250 ship calls and more than 900,000 passengers. By 2011 the number of ship calls had fallen to 103 (estimated).

International trade

San Diego's commercial port and its location on the United States-Mexico border make international trade an important factor in the city's economy. The city is authorized by the United States government to operate as a Foreign Trade Zone.

The city shares a border with Mexico that includes two border crossings. San Diego hosts the busiest international border crossing in the world, in the San Ysidro neighborhood at the San Ysidro Port of Entry. A second, primarily commercial border crossing operates in the Otay Mesa area; it is the largest commercial crossing on the California-Baja California border and handles the third highest volume of trucks and dollar value of trade among all United States-Mexico land crossings.

One of the Port of San Diego's two cargo facilities is located in Downtown San Diego at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal. This terminal has facilities for containers, bulk cargo, and refrigerated and frozen storage, so that it can handle the import and export of perishables (including 33 million bananas every month) as well as fertilizer, cement, forest products, and other commodities. In 2009 the Port of San Diego handled 1,137,054 short tons of total trade; foreign trade accounted for 956,637 short tons while domestic trade amounted to 180,417 short tons.

Manufacturing and research

In 2010, former Governor Schwarzenegger’s Office of Economic Development designated San Diego as an iHub Innovation Center for collaboration potentially between wireless and life sciences, citing the area's wireless business, pharmaceutical research and start-ups for medical devices and diagnostics.

San Diego hosts several major producers of wireless cellular technology. Qualcomm was founded and is headquartered in San Diego, and still is the largest private-sector technology employer (excluding hospitals) in San Diego County. Other wireless industry manufacturers headquartered here include LG Electronics, Kyocera International., and Novatel Wireless. According to the ''San Diego Business Journal'', the largest software company in San Diego is security software company Websense Inc. San Diego also has the U.S. headquarters for the Slovakian security company ESET.

The presence of the University of California, San Diego and other research institutions has helped to fuel biotechnology growth. In June 2004, San Diego was ranked the top biotech cluster in the United States by the Milken Institute. There are more than 400 biotechnology companies in the area. In particular, the La Jolla and nearby Sorrento Valley areas are home to offices and research facilities for numerous biotechnology companies. Major biotechnology companies like Neurocrine Biosciences and Nventa Biopharmaceuticals are headquartered in San Diego, while many biotech and pharmaceutical companies, such as BD Biosciences, Biogen Idec, Integrated DNA Technologies, Merck, Pfizer, Élan, Celgene, and Vertex, have offices or research facilities in San Diego. There are also several non-profit biotech and health care institutes, such as the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, the Scripps Research Institute, the West Wireless Health Institute and the Sanford-Burnham Institute. San Diego is also home to more than 140 contract research organizations (CROs) that provide a variety of contract services for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

Real estate

Prior to 2006, San Diego experienced a dramatic growth of real estate prices, to the extent that the situation was sometimes described as a "housing affordability crisis". Median house prices more than tripled between 1998 and 2007. According to the California Association of Realtors, in May 2007, a median house in San Diego cost $612,370. Growth of real estate prices has not been accompanied by comparable growth of household incomes: Housing Affordability Index (percentage of households that can afford to buy a median-priced house) fell below 20 percent in the early 2000s. The San Diego metropolitan area had the second worst median multiple (ratio of median house price to median household income) of all metropolitan areas in the United States. As a consequence, San Diego had experienced negative net migration since 2004, with significant numbers of people moving to Baja California and Riverside County, with many residents commuting daily from Tijuana, Temecula, and Murrieta, to their jobs in San Diego. Others are leaving the state altogether and moving to more affordable regions.

San Diego home prices peaked in 2005 then declined as part of a nationwide trend. As of December 2010, home prices were 60 percent higher than in 2000, but down 36 percent from the peak in 2005. The median home price declined by more than $200,000 between 2005 and 2010, and sales dropped by 50 percent.

Top employers

According to the City's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

! Employer	! Number of employees
United States Navy	55,300
San Diego Unified School District	21,959
University of California, San Diego	19,435
	17,900
Sharp HealthCare	14,724
City of San Diego	10,799
Kaiser Permanente	7,220
University of San Diego	6,086
Qualcomm	6,000
UCSD Medical Center	5,300

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools in San Diego are operated by independent school districts. The majority of the public schools in the city are served by the San Diego Unified School District, also the second largest school district in California, which includes 11 K-8 schools, 107 elementary schools, 24 middle schools, 13 atypical and alternative schools, 28 high schools, and 45 charter schools. Several adjacent school districts which are headquartered outside the city limits serve some schools within the city; these include the Poway Unified School District, Del Mar Union School District, San Dieguito Union High School District and Sweetwater Union High School District. In addition, there are a number of private schools in the city.

Colleges and universities

According to education rankings released by the U.S. Census Bureau, 40.4 percent of San Diegans ages 25 and older hold bachelor's degrees. The census ranks the city as the ninth most educated city in the United States based on these figures.

Public colleges and universities in the city include San Diego State University (SDSU), University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and the San Diego Community College District, which includes San Diego City College, San Diego Mesa College, and San Diego Miramar College. Private colleges and universities in the city include University of San Diego (USD), Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU), Alliant International University (AIU), National University, California International Business University (CIBU), San Diego Christian College, John Paul the Great Catholic University, California College San Diego, Coleman University, University of Redlands School of Business, Design Institute of San Diego (DISD), Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising's San Diego campus, NewSchool of Architecture and Design, Pacific Oaks College San Diego Campus, Chapman University's San Diego Campus, The Art Institute of California-San Diego, Southern States University (SSU), UEI College, and Woodbury University School of Architecture's satellite campus.

There is one medical school in the city, the UCSD School of Medicine. There are three ABA accredited law schools in the city, which include California Western School of Law, Thomas Jefferson School of Law, and University of San Diego School of Law. There is also one unaccredited law school, Western Sierra Law School.

Libraries

The city-run San Diego Public Library system is headquartered downtown and has 34 branches throughout the city. The libraries have had reduced operating hours since 2003 due to the city's financial problems. In 2006 the city increased spending on libraries by $2.1 million. In the new 2011 budget, the mayor proposed further reducing library hours to 18 hours per week.

In addition to the municipal public library system, there are nearly two dozen libraries open to the public which are run by other governmental agencies and by schools, colleges, and universities. Noteworthy among them are the Malcolm A. Love Library at San Diego State University and the Geisel Library at the University of California, San Diego.

Culture

Many popular museums, such as the San Diego Museum of Art, the San Diego Natural History Museum, the San Diego Museum of Man, and the Museum of Photographic Arts are located in Balboa Park. The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) is located in La Jolla and has a branch located at the Santa Fe Depot downtown. The Columbia district downtown is home to historic ship exhibits belonging to the San Diego Maritime Museum, headlined by the Star of India, as well as the unrelated San Diego Aircraft Carrier Museum featuring the USS Midway aircraft carrier.

The San Diego Symphony at Symphony Towers performs on a regular basis and is directed by Jahja Ling. The San Diego Opera at Civic Center Plaza, directed by Ian Campbell, was ranked by Opera America as one of the top 10 opera companies in the United States. Old Globe Theatre at Balboa Park produces about 15 plays and musicals annually. The La Jolla Playhouse at UCSD is directed by Christopher Ashley. Both the Old Globe Theatre and the La Jolla Playhouse have produced the world premieres of plays and musicals that have gone on to win Tony Awards or nominations on Broadway. The Joan B. Kroc Theatre at Kroc Center's Performing Arts Center is a 600-seat state-of-the-art theatre that hosts music, dance, and theatre performances. The San Diego Repertory Theatre at the Lyceum Theatres in Horton Plaza produces a variety of plays and musicals. Other professional theatrical production companies include the Lyric Opera San Diego and the Starlight Musical Theatre. Hundreds of movies and a dozen TV shows have been filmed in San Diego, a tradition going back as far as 1898.

Sports

The National Football League's San Diego Chargers play in Qualcomm Stadium. Three NFL Super Bowl championships have been held there. Major League Baseball's San Diego Padres play in Petco Park. Parts of the World Baseball Classic were played there in 2006 and 2009.

NCAA Division I San Diego State Aztecs men's and women's basketball games are played at Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl on the campus of San Diego State University. College football and soccer, basketball and volleyball are played at the Torero Stadium and the Jenny Craig Pavilion at USD.

The San Diego State Aztecs (MWC) and the University of San Diego Toreros (WCC) are NCAA Division I teams. The UCSD Tritons (CCAA) are members of NCAA Division II while the Point Loma Nazarene Sea Lions and San Diego Christian College (GSAC) are members of the NAIA.

Qualcomm stadium also houses the NCAA Division I San Diego State Aztecs, as well as local high school football championships, international soccer games, and supercross events. Two of college football's annual bowl games are also held there: the Holiday Bowl and the Poinsettia Bowl. Soccer, American football, and track and field are played in Balboa Stadium, the city's first stadium, constructed in 1914.

Rugby union is a developing sport in the city. The USA Sevens, a major rugby event, was held there from 2007 through 2009. San Diego is one of only 16 cities in the United States included in the Rugby Super League represented by Old Mission Beach Athletic Club RFC, the home club of USA Rugby's Captain Todd Clever who plays rugby professionally for the South African Super 14 team Lions. San Diego will participate in the Western American National Rugby League which starts in 2011.

The San Diego Surf of the American Basketball Association is located in the city. The annual Farmers Insurance Open golf tournament (formerly the Buick Invitational) on the PGA Tour occurs at the municipally owned Torrey Pines Golf Course. This course was also the site of the 2008 U.S. Open Golf Championship. The San Diego Yacht Club hosted the America's Cup yacht races three times during the period 1988 to 1995. The amateur beach sport Over-the-line was invented in San Diego, and the annual world Over-the-line championships are held at Mission Bay every year.

Media

The following are published within the city: the daily newspaper, ''The San Diego Union-Tribune'' and its online portal, ''signonsandiego.com'', and the alternative newsweeklies, the ''San Diego CityBeat'' and ''San Diego Reader''. Another newspaper is the ''North County Times'', which is distributed in San Diego's North County area. ''Voice of San Diego'' is a non-profit online-only news outlet covering government, politics, education, neighborhoods, and the arts. The ''San Diego Daily Transcript'' is a business-oriented daily newspaper.

San Diego led U.S. local markets with 69.6 percent broadband penetration in 2004 according to Nielsen//NetRatings.

San Diego's first television station was KFMB, which began broadcasting on May 16, 1949. Since the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensed seven television stations in Los Angeles, two VHF channels were available for San Diego because of its relative proximity to the larger city. In 1952, however, the FCC began licensing UHF channels, making it possible for cities such as San Diego to acquire more stations. Stations based in Mexico (with ITU prefixes of XE and XH) also serve the San Diego market. Television stations today include XHTJB 3 (Once TV), XETV 6 (CW), KFMB 8 (CBS), KGTV 10 (ABC), XEWT 12 (Televisa Regional), KPBS 15 (PBS), KBNT 17 (Univision), XHTIT 21 (Azteca 7), XHJK 27 (Azteca 13), KSDX-LP 29 (Spanish Independent), XHAS 33 (Telemundo), K35DG 35 (UCSD-TV), KDTF 36 (Telefutura), KNSD 39 (NBC), KZSD-LP 41 (Azteca America), KBOP-CA 43 (Informercials), XHBJ 45 (Canal 5), XHDTV 49 (MNTV), KUSI 51 (Independent), XHUAA 57 (Canal de las Estrellas),and KSWB-TV 69 (Fox). San Diego has an 80.6 percent cable penetration rate.

The radio stations in San Diego include nationwide broadcaster, Clear Channel Communications; CBS Radio, Midwest Television, Lincoln Financial Media, Finest City Broadcasting, and many other smaller stations and networks. Stations include: KOGO AM 600, KFMB AM 760, KCEO AM 1000, KCBQ AM 1170, K-Praise, KLSD AM 1360 ''Air America'', KFSD 1450 AM, KPBS-FM 89.5, Channel 933, Star 94.1, FM 94/9, New Country 95.7, Q96 96.1, KyXy 96.5, Free Radio San Diego (AKA Pirate Radio San Diego) 96.9FM FRSD, KSON 97.3/92.1, KIFM 98.1, Jack-FM 100.7, 101.5 KGB-FM, KPRI 102.1, Rock 105.3, and another ''Pirate Radio'' station at 106.9FM, as well as a number of local Spanish language radio stations.

Government

Local government

The city is governed by a mayor and an 8-member city council. In 2006, the city's form of government changed from a "city manager system" to a "strong mayor system". The change was brought about by a citywide vote in 2004. The mayor is in effect the chief executive officer of the city, while the council is the legislative body.

The members of the city council are each elected from single member districts within the city. The mayor and city attorney are elected directly by the voters of the entire city. The mayor, city attorney, and council members are elected to four-year terms, with a two-term limit. Elections are held on a non-partisan basis per California state law; nevertheless, most officeholders do identify themselves as either Democrats or Republicans.

Although San Diego has a Republican mayor, in 2007, registered Democrats outnumbered Republicans by about 7 to 6 in the city, and Democrats currently hold a 5–3 majority in the City Council.

San Diego is part of San Diego County which is governed by a 5-member Board of Supervisors. The City of San Diego includes all or part of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th supervisorial districts, represented by Republican County Supervisors Greg Cox, Dianne Jacob, Pam Slater-Price and Ron Roberts.

Areas of the city immediately adjacent to San Diego Bay ("tidelands") are administered by the Port of San Diego, a quasi-governmental agency which owns all the property in the tidelands and is responsible for its land use planning, policing, and similar functions. San Diego is a member of the regional planning agency San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG). Public schools within the city are managed and funded by independent school districts (see above).

State and federal

In the state legislature San Diego is located in the 36th, 38th, 39th, and 40th Senate District, represented by Republicans Dennis Hollingsworth and Mark Wyland, and Democrats Christine Kehoe and Denise Moreno Ducheny, and in the 74th, 75th, 76th, 77th, 78th, and 79th Assembly District, represented by Republicans Martin Garrick and George A. Plescia, Democrat Lori Saldaña, Republicans Joel Anderson and Shirley Horton and Democrat Mary Salas, respectively.

Federally, San Diego is located in California's 49th, 50th, 51st, 52nd, and 53rd congressional districts, which have Cook PVIs of R +10, R +5, D +7, R +9, and D +12 respectively and are represented by Republicans Darrell Issa and Brian Bilbray, Democrat Bob Filner, Republican Duncan D. Hunter, and Democrat Susan Davis, respectively.

Major scandals

Then-mayor Roger Hedgecock was forced to resign his post in 1985, after he was found guilty of one count of conspiracy and twelve counts of perjury, related to the alleged failure to report all campaign contributions. After a series of appeals, the twelve perjury counts were dismissed in 1990 based on claims of juror misconduct; the remaining conspiracy count was reduced to a misdemeanor and then dismissed.

A 2002 scheme to underfund pensions for city employees led to the San Diego pension scandal. This resulted in the resignation of newly re-elected Mayor Dick Murphy and the criminal indictment of six pension board members. Those charges were finally dismissed by a federal judge in 2010.

On November 28, 2005, U.S. Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham resigned after being convicted on federal bribery charges. He had represented California's 50th congressional district, which includes much of the northern portion of the city of San Diego. In 2006, Cunningham was sentenced to a 100-month prison sentence.

In 2005 two city council members, Ralph Inzunza and Deputy Mayor Michael Zucchet — who briefly took over as Acting Mayor when Murphy resigned — were convicted of extortion, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud for taking campaign contributions from a strip club owner and his associates, allegedly in exchange for trying to repeal the city's "no touch" laws at strip clubs. Both subsequently resigned. In 2009, a judge acquitted Zucchet on seven out of the nine counts against him, and granted his petition for a new trial on the other two charges; the remaining charges were eventually dropped.

Infrastructure

Utilities

Water is supplied to residents by the Water Department of the City of San Diego. The city receives its water from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

Gas and electric utilities are provided by San Diego Gas & Electric, a division of Sempra Energy.

Transportation

With the automobile being the primary means of transportation for over 80 percent of its residents, San Diego is served by a network of freeways and highways. This includes Interstate 5, which runs south to Tijuana and runs north to Los Angeles; Interstate 8, which runs east to Imperial County and the Arizona Sun Corridor; Interstate 15, which runs northeast through the Inland Empire to Las Vegas; and Interstate 805, which splits from I-5 near the Mexican border and rejoins I-5 at Sorrento Valley.

Major state highways include SR 94, which connects downtown with I-805, I-15 and East County; SR 163, which connects downtown with the northeast part of the city, intersects I-805 and merges with I-15 at Miramar; SR 52, which connects La Jolla with East County through Santee and SR 125; SR 56, which connects I-5 with I-15 through Carmel Valley and Rancho Peñasquitos; SR 75, which spans San Diego Bay as the San Diego-Coronado Bridge, and also passes through South San Diego as Palm Avenue; and SR 905, which connects I-5 and I-805 to the Otay Mesa Port of Entry.

The stretch of SR 163 that passes through Balboa Park is San Diego's oldest freeway, and has been called one of America's most beautiful parkways.

San Diego's roadway system provides an extensive network of routes for travel by bicycle. The dry and mild climate of San Diego makes cycling a convenient and pleasant year-round option. At the same time, the city's hilly, canyon-like terrain and significantly long average trip distances—brought about by strict low-density zoning laws—somewhat restrict cycling for utilitarian purposes. Older and denser neighborhoods around the downtown tend to be utility cycling oriented. This is partly because of the grid street patterns now absent in newer developments farther from the urban core, where suburban style arterial roads are much more common. As a result, a vast majority of cycling-related activities are recreational. Testament to San Diego's cycling efforts, in 2006, San Diego was rated as the best city for cycling for U.S. cities with a population over 1 million.

San Diego is served by the trolley, bus, Sprinter, Coaster, and Amtrak. The trolley primarily serves downtown and surrounding urban communities, Mission Valley, east county, and coastal south bay. A planned Mid-Coast line will operate from Old Town to University City along the 5 Freeway. The Amtrak and Coaster trains currently run along the coastline and connect San Diego with Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura via Metrolink. There are two Amtrak stations in San Diego, in Old Town and Downtown. San Diego transit information about public transportation and commuting is available on the Web and by dialing "511" from any phone in the area.

The city's primary commercial airport is the San Diego International Airport (SAN), also known as Lindbergh Field. It is the busiest single-runway airport in the United States, that served over 17 million passengers in 2005, and is dealing with an increasingly larger number every year. It is located on San Diego Bay three miles (4.8 km) from downtown. San Diego International Airport maintains scheduled flights to the rest of the United States including Hawaii, as well as to Mexico and Canada. It is operated by an independent agency, the San Diego Regional Airport Authority. In addition, the city itself operates two general-aviation airports, Montgomery Field (MYF) and Brown Field (SDM).

Several regional transportation projects have been undertaken in recent years to deal with congestion in San Diego. Notable efforts are on San Diego freeways, San Diego Airport, and the cruise terminal of the port. Freeway projects include expansion of Interstates 5 and 805 around "The Merge," a rush-hour spot where the two freeways meet. Also, an expansion of Interstate 15 through the North County is underway with the addition of high-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) "managed lanes". There is a tollway (The South Bay Expressway) connecting SR 54 and Otay Mesa, near the Mexican border. According to a 2007 assessment, 37 percent of streets in San Diego were in acceptable driving condition. The proposed budget fell $84.6 million short of bringing the city's streets to an acceptable level. Port expansions included a second cruise terminal on Broadway Pier which opened in 2010. Airport projects include expansion of Terminal 2, currently under construction and slated for completion in 2013.

Walkability

A 2011 study by Walk Score ranked San Diego the eighteenth most walkable of fifty largest cities in the United States.

Sister cities

San Diego has fifteen sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International: Alcalá de Henares, Spain Campinas, Brazil Cavite, Philippines Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom Jalalabad, Afghanistan Jeonju, South Korea León, Mexico Perth, Australia Taichung City, Taiwan (Republic of China) Tema, Ghana Tijuana, Mexico Vladivostok, Russia Warsaw, Poland Yantai, People's Republic of China Yokohama, Japan

See also

1858 San Diego hurricane

List of notable San Diegans

List of California public officials charged with crimes, San Diego

:Category:Visitor attractions in San Diego County, California

Category: Museums in San Diego County

References

External links

City of San Diego Official Website

City of San Diego Redevelopment Agency Website

Centre City Development Corporation Website

Southeastern Economic Development Corporation Website

SANDAG, San Diego's Regional Planning Agency

Demographic Fact Sheet from Census Bureau

History of San Diego from San Diego Historical Society

San Diego Unified School District

San Diego Public Library

San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau

San Diego Wiki

Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:San Diego County, California Category:San Diego metropolitan area Category:County seats in California Category:Populated places established in 1769 Category:Cities in San Diego County, California Category:Cities in Southern California Category:Populated coastal places in California Category:Incorporated cities and towns in California

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The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The club began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League, and spent its first season in Los Angeles, California before moving to San Diego in 1961. The Chargers play their home games at Qualcomm Stadium. Ever since the Rams and the Raiders left Los Angeles in 1994; the Chargers were the only professional football team based in Southern California.

The Chargers are the only team to start a season 0–4 and make the playoffs (1992), and the only team to start a season 4–8 and make the playoffs (2008). In addition, they are one of only 5 NFL teams since 1970 to rank first in overall offense and defense in the same season (2010), but the only team to achieve that feat without making the playoffs. Since the 2004 NFL season, they are also one of only four teams in the NFL to not have a losing record (Indianapolis, New England, and Pittsburgh are the other three), but the only one of the four that has failed to reach the Super Bowl; the other three have won at least one Super Bowl title.

The Chargers won one AFL title in 1963 and reached the AFL playoffs five times and the AFL Championship four times before joining the NFL () as part of the AFL-NFL Merger. In the 34 years since then, the Chargers have made ten trips to the playoffs and four appearances in the AFC Championship game. At the end of the 1994 season, the Chargers faced the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XXIX and fell 49–26. The Chargers have six players and one coach enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio: wide receiver Lance Alworth (1962–1970), defensive end Fred Dean (–), quarterback Dan Fouts (–), head coach/general manager Sid Gillman (1960–1969, ), wide receiver Charlie Joiner (–), offensive lineman Ron Mix (1960–1969) and tight end Kellen Winslow (-1987).

Franchise history

1970–1978: Post-merger

In 1970 the San Diego Chargers were placed into the AFC West division after the NFL merger with the AFL. But by then, the Chargers fell on hard times; Gillman, who had returned as general manager, stepped down in 1971, and many of the Charger players from the 1960s had already either retired or had been traded. The Chargers acquired veteran players like Deacon Jones and Johnny Unitas, however it was at the later stages of their careers and the team struggled, placing third or fourth in the AFC West each year from 1970 to .

1978

1978 was marked by the "Holy Roller" game, or as Chargers fans call it the "Immaculate Deception". It was a game-winning play executed by the Oakland Raiders against the Chargers on September 10, in San Diego at Jack Murphy Stadium. With 10 seconds left in the game, the Raiders had possession of the ball at the Chargers' 14-yard line, trailing 20–14. Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler took the snap and found himself about to be sacked by Chargers linebacker Woodrow Lowe on the 24-yard line. Stabler fumbled the ball forward, and it rolled forward towards the San Diego goal line. Running back Pete Banaszak tried to recover the ball on the 12-yard line, but could not keep his footing, and the ball was pushed even closer to the end zone. Raiders tight end Dave Casper was the next player to reach the ball but he also could not get a hand on it. He batted and kicked the ball into the end zone, where he fell on it for the game-tying touchdown as time ran out. With the ensuing extra point by placekicker Errol Mann, the Raiders won, 21–20. What many Charger fans believed should have been called an incomplete pass (and possibly intentional grounding) was seen as a fumble and the rest of the play involved batting of the ball forward towards the end zone where the Raiders ultimately recovered it for a touchdown. As a result of this play, NFL rules were changed so that, in the last two minutes of a half or game, the only offensive player allowed to advance a fumbled ball is the player who originally fumbled. If any other offensive player recovers the fumble and advances the ball, after the play the line of scrimmage is the spot of the original fumble.

1979–1988: Fouts and Air Coryell

1979 marked a turning point for the Chargers franchise as The Sporting News named team general manager John Sanders NFL Executive of the Year after balloting of other NFL executives. Fouts set an NFL record with his fourth consecutive 300-yard passing game, in a game in which he threw for 303 yards against the Raiders. Coached by Don Coryell (with an offense nicknamed "Air Coryell"), featuring Fouts throwing to tight end Kellen Winslow and wide receivers John Jefferson and Charlie Joiner, they clinched their first playoff berth in 14 years with a 35–0 victory against the New Orleans Saints. On December 17, the Chargers defeated the Denver Broncos 17–7 for their first AFC West division title since the AFL-NFL merger before a national Monday Night Football television audience and their home crowd. Their time in the playoffs was short as they would lose to the Houston Oilers 17–14 loss in the divisional round. Ron Mix became the second AFL player and second Charger to be named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, during halftime of the AFC-NFC Pro Bowl.

The team saw the team trade for running back Chuck Muncie, and Fouts set a club record with 444 yards passing in the Chargers' 44–7 victory over the New York Giants. Kellen Winslow caught 10 passes for 171 yards and Chargers clinched their second straight AFC West title by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers 26–17 and finished the regular season with an 11–5 record. Jefferson (1,340), Winslow (1,290), and Joiner (1,132) became the first trio on the same team to have 1,000 yards receiving in a season. The Chargers' defense led the NFL in sacks (60) spearheaded by the frontline of 1975 Chargers' draftees Dean, Gary "Big Hands" Johnson and Louie Kelcher. The trio, along with Leroy Jones formed a defensive frontline that was locally nicknamed The Bruise Brothers, coined from a popular act at the time, The Blues Brothers. In the playoffs, they won the divisional round 20–14 over the Buffalo Bills. However, they fell one game shy of Super Bowl XV in a 34–27 loss to the eventual-champion Raiders.

In , the Chargers won their third straight AFC West title with a 10–6 season. After the division titles of the 1979 and 1980 seasons, contract disputes arose and owner Klein would refuse to renegotiate players' contracts. They traded wide receiver John Jefferson to the Green Bay Packers after he held out for an increase in salary but replaced him with Wes Chandler. Defensive end Dean also became involved in a hold out and was traded to the 49ers. Dean contends he was making the same amount of money as his brother-in-law who was a truck driver. Dean would win UPI NFC Defensive Player of the Year (while playing in only 11 games) that same year en route to a Super Bowl victory and help the 49ers to another Super Bowl title two years later. Dean's loss was particularly damaging to the Chargers' Super Bowl chances as the defense weakened afterwards, surrendering the most passing yards in the NFL in both 1981 and 1982.

In the 1981 playoffs, the Chargers managed to outlast the Miami Dolphins in the divisional round, 41–38, in a game that became known as The Epic in Miami. The game was voted as the best game in NFL history by a panel of ESPN journalists. The temperature was 85°F with high humidity (29.4°C) at the Miami Orange Bowl, but it did not stop either team's offense. The Chargers were led by quarterback Dan Fouts who made the Pro Bowl for the third year in a row, setting an NFL single season record at that point and time of 4,802 yards and 33 touchdowns. The Dolphins were led by head coach Don Shula and featured a defense that gave up the fifth-fewest points in the NFL in the regular season.

This game set playoff records for the most points scored in a playoff game (79), the most total yards by both teams (1,036), and most passing yards by both teams (809). Chargers placekicker Rolf Benirschke eventually kicked the winning 29-yard field goal after 13:52 of overtime to help San Diego beat Miami, 41–38. The image of an exhausted tight end Kellen Winslow, who finished the game with 13 receptions for 166 yards and a touchdown and one blocked field goal, being helped off the field by two of his Chargers teammates has been replayed countless times. Kellen Winslow was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995.

However, the eventual-AFC Champion Cincinnati Bengals, playing in their first AFC Championship Game, defeated the Chargers 27–7 in what became known as the Freezer Bowl. The temperature of nine degrees below zero with a wind-chill factor of minus 59 made this the coldest weather conditions for a title game in the history of the NFL. Chargers owner Eugene Klein tried to get the NFL and Bengals to postpone the game but he was turned down.

"I can't say how much it affected us, because we did make it to the AFC championship game," said Johnson on the loss of fellow lineman Dean. "But I could say if we had more pass rush from the corner, it might've been different. "

During the strike shortened 1982 season, Fouts averaged what is still a record of 320 yards passing per game. Highlights that season included back-to-back victories against the 1981 Super Bowl teams San Francisco (41–37) and Cincinnati (50–34) in which Fouts threw for over 400 yards in each game to lead the Chargers to shootout victories. The December 20th, 1982 Cincinnati game was a rematch of the 1981 American Football Conference Championship Game. The Chargers would generate a total offensive yardage record of 661 (501 yards passing, 175 yards rushing) that still stands as the most in team history in defeating Cincinnati. Also during the year, Chandler, set the record of 129 yards receiving per game that is still an NFL record. The Chargers made it back to the playoffs, but after beating the Steelers in the first round, they lost to the Dolphins 34–13 in a rematch of their playoff game from the previous season. That loss began a slide for the Chargers, who from to failed to make the National Football League playoffs every season.

In Klein cut salary in preparation of selling the team, sending defensive linemen Johnson and Kelcher to San Francisco, where they would join Dean and offensive tackle Billy Shields for another 49ers championship in Super Bowl XXIV. Alex Spanos purchased a majority interest in San Diego from Klein on August 1. Alex G. Spanos still owns 97% of the team and George Pernicano owns the other 3%. Benirschke was named "Miller Man of the Year" and Joiner set an NFL record with his 650th pass reception in the fourth quarter of the game at Pittsburgh. In guard Ed White set an NFL record by playing in 241 NFL games, most all-time among offensive linemen. Lionel "Little Train" James, a mere 5'6" and 171 pound running back, set NFL record of 2,535 all-purpose yards while also setting a record of 1,027 receiving yards by a running back. Al Saunders was named the seventh head coach in Chargers history in 1986 following the resignation of Coryell. In 1987 Joiner retired to become receivers coach of the Chargers. The Chargers finished with an 8—7 record, their first winning record since 1982, despite winding up with six straight losses. In Fouts retired after a 15-year career in which he set seven NFL records and 42 club records, and became the NFL's second most prolific passer of all-time with 43,040 yards. Fouts's jersey number (14) was retired at halftime of "Dan Fouts Day" game in San Diego.

1989–1995: Super Bowl bound

In Dan Henning, a former Chargers quarterback, Washington Redskins assistant, and Atlanta Falcons head coach, was named the eighth head coach in Chargers history. Marion Butts set a club record with 39 carries and a team rookie record with 176 yards in Chargers' 20–13 win in Kansas City. After a three-year stint as Director of Football Operations, Steve Ortmayer was released after the season and replaced by Bobby Beathard.

Henning's tenure with the Chargers lasted three seasons as Bobby Ross was hired as head coach in and the Chargers acquired quarterback Stan Humphries in a trade with Redskins. The Chargers would lose their first four games of the season and come back to become the first 0–4 team to make the playoffs as they won 11 of the last 12 games and clinched the AFC West title. Ross was named NFL Coach of the Year for the Chargers' dramatic turnaround by Pro Football Weekly. In the first round of the playoffs, the Chargers shut out the Kansas City Chiefs 17–0, but the Dolphins shut out the Chargers in the divisional playoffs to eliminate the Chargers. In , the Chargers finished 8–8 (fourth in their division).

In the 1994 season, the Chargers made their first and, so far, only Super Bowl appearance, against the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIX. They got to the Super Bowl by winning their first six regular season games, the only NFL team to do so in 1994, and finished the season 11–5. Quarterback Stan Humphries and wide receiver Tony Martin combined on a 99-yard touchdown completion to tie an NFL record during a defeat of the Seattle Seahawks, 27–10. They would become the 1994 AFC West Division champions behind a defense led by linebacker Junior Seau, defensive tackles Reuben Davis and Shawn Lee, defensive end Leslie O'Neal and an offense keyed by running back Natrone Means, Humphries and Martin. The Chargers had upset victories over the Dolphins and Steelers in the AFC playoffs. Despite those two close triumphs (22–21 against the Dolphins in the Divisional Round, and 17–13 against the Steelers in the AFC Championship Game), the Chargers lost Super Bowl XXIX to the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 49–26, who were led by quarterback Steve Young (Super Bowl MVP) and wide receiver Jerry Rice.

Despite the lopsided loss in the Super Bowl, Beathard, who traded for or drafted the bulk of the Chargers roster, and who hired coach Ross, was named the NFL's smartest man by Sports Illustrated, and became the only general manager to lead three different teams to the Super Bowl (Chargers, Dolphins, Redskins).

The Chargers follow-up year in did not bring the same success of the previous season, but the team still managed to get into the playoffs with a five-game winning streak to end the season at 9–7. However, in the first round, the Chargers were eliminated by the Indianapolis Colts in a 35–20 defeat.

1996–2003

In 1996, running back Rodney Culver and his wife, Karen, were killed in the crash of ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 in the Florida Everglades. Culver was the second player in team history to die while on the active roster after David Griggs was killed in a one-car accident in Davie, Florida 11 months earlier. 1997 would find Ross and Beathard at odds with one another and would result in Ross and his staff being released. The Chargers selected Kevin Gilbride to become their new head coach. Gilbride, whose coaching background with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Oilers featured a more open passing attack would mark a major change in offensive style from the ball control ground game of Ross. Beathard drafted quarterback Ryan Leaf after the Indianapolis Colts selected Peyton Manning with the first pick in the 1998 NFL Draft. The Chargers ended up trading several players and draft choices to the Arizona Cardinals in order to move up to the second pick and select Ryan Leaf. The Chargers would see the team struggle in pass protection resulting in Leaf suffering several concussions and his retirement from the game. Gilbride was replaced by interim head coach June Jones, who was on the Chargers' staff before the hire. Jones would leave the team at the end of the season to coach at the University of Hawaii and the Chargers would name former Oregon State University head coach Mike Riley as their new head coach. Leaf wound up having a disappointing career with the Chargers after a great deal of controversy with both the Charger management as well as the press and his teammates. His failure to be the player the team envisioned was seen as a black mark on the franchise and will be remembered by some as one of the worst draft/trades in the history of pro football. Quarterback Jim Harbaugh, who was acquired in a trade with the Baltimore Ravens for a conditional draft choice in 2000, became the Chargers starting quarterback. Beathard retired in April 2000 and was replaced January 2001 by John Butler, former general manager of the Bills. From to , the Chargers had eight-straight seasons where they were .500 or worse.

2001 saw Norv Turner, the former head coach of the Redskins, named offensive coordinator by Riley. Turner would go on to install the offense that he coached with the Dallas Cowboys under Jimmy Johnson. Turner learned the offense from Ernie Zampese, former offense coordinator during the Coryell era, while the two were on the Los Angeles Rams coaching staff. The Chargers signed Heisman Trophy winner free agent quarterback Doug Flutie, formerly with the Bills and traded the team's first overall selection in the 2001 NFL Draft to the Atlanta Falcons for the first round selection (fifth overall) and third-round selection in the same draft. In addition the Chargers obtained wide receiver/kick returner Tim Dwight and the Falcons' second-round draft selection in the 2002 NFL Draft. The Chargers used those selections in the 2001 draft to select Texas Christian University running back LaDainian Tomlinson and Purdue University quarterback Drew Brees .

Hired as a replacement to Riley, Marty Schottenheimer's Chargers squad opened the 2002 season with four straight victories making him the only coach in team history to win his first four games. Butler would succumb to cancer after a nine-month struggle in April 2003. Replacing Butler was A. J. Smith, who was named Executive Vice President-General Manager, replacing his close friend. Smith and Butler had worked together with the Bills playing key roles with Buffalo's Super Bowl teams. In 2003, the Chargers traded Seau to the Dolphins for a draft pick in 2004 NFL Draft. Seau was selected to 2003 Pro Bowl, his 12th Pro Bowl selection of his career, and in his final season with the Chargers, he was chosen by teammates as the recipient of the Emil Karas Award as the team’s Most Inspirational Player. Also in 2003, Tomlinson accumalated 195 total yards from scrimmage in a late season game against the Packers to raise his season total to 2,011 and became the first player in team history and the eighth player in NFL history to record consecutive 2,000-yard seasons. Tomlinson also became the first player in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards and catch 100 passes in the same season .

2004–2008

Although the Chargers were tied with three other teams for the worst record of the 2003 NFL season, the league’s tie-breaking system gave San Diego the number one pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. With this pick, the Chargers selected Quarterback Eli Manning from the University of Mississippi despite Manning's stated desire to play elsewhere. New York Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi, who had been in trade negotiations for several weeks before the draft with the Chargers, selected quarterback Philip Rivers fourth and traded him along with additional draft picks to the Chargers. Rivers was expected to compete for the starting quarterback job, but he held out of training camp in a contract dispute. Drew Brees, who received the majority of snaps at quarterback during Rivers' hold out, would retain the starting quarterback position. The team earned a trip back to the post-season in by capturing the AFC West division title with a 12–4 regular season record. The Chargers entered the first round of the playoffs but were eliminated by the New York Jets, who won in overtime 20–17. Rookie kicker Nate Kaeding missed a 40-yard field goal that would have advanced San Diego into the next round, thus opening the door for a Jets victory. Despite an abrupt ending to their season, Head Coach Marty Schottenheimer was named NFL Coach of the Year for the season, and Brees was named NFL Comeback Player of the Year.

During the 2005 NFL Draft, the Chargers drafted linebacker Shawne Merriman with a draft pick acquired from the Giants in the Eli Manning trade, who would go on to become a selection to the 2006 Pro Bowl and the 2005 Defensive NFL Rookie of the Year Award recipient. The team then used their second first round selection on defensive tackle Luis Castillo.The Chargers started the season without tight end Antonio Gates as he was suspended two games by Smith for holding out in training camp. The 2005 season saw LaDainian Tomlinson's 18-game touchdown scoring streak end as Kaeding had a field goal blocked and returned for a touchdown in a 20–17 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on the road. Facing the 13–0 Colts on the road, the Chargers took a 16–0 lead into the third quarter of the game, but the Colts responded with 17 points of their own to take a 1-point lead in the fourth quarter. The Chargers would retake the lead on a field goal by Kaeding then scored again on an 83-yard touchdown run by Michael Turner. However a week later, the Chargers lost on the road to the Chiefs as an injured Tomlinson rushed for only 47 yards. The Chargers would go on to lose their season finale to the Broncos, with Brees suffering a dislocated shoulder to end the Chargers' 9–7 season. Brees, whose contract expired at the end of that season, left the team and would sign with the New Orleans Saints.

The 2006 campaign would see the Chargers set the team's single-season record for wins with 14, while Tomlinson would enjoy the finest statistical season of his career, leading the league with 1,815 rushing yards and setting an NFL single-season record by scoring 31 touchdowns. However, the team would come up short in the playoffs again, blowing a fourth quarter lead at home in a 24–21 loss to the New England Patriots. In the ensuing offseason, massive changes occurred to the coaching staff, as offensive coordinator Cam Cameron left to become the head coach of the Miami Dolphins, while defensive coordinator Wade Phillips would fill the head coaching vacancy with the Dallas Cowboys. After a brief struggle for control over filling these vacancies, General Manager AJ Smith fired Schottenheimer, replacing him with Norv Turner, who had been a head coach with two other NFL teams and had previously served the Chargers as offensive coordinator.

The 2007 San Diego Chargers season began with the team trying to equal their 2006 regular season success (14–2) and avoid another early departure in the playoffs. After a disappointing start under new head coach Norv Turner (1–3), they finished the regular season strong, with six straight wins, an overall record of 11–5, and the AFC West title. More importantly, they went further in the playoffs than the previous year, but fell again to the New England Patriots, this time in the AFC Championship game.

After winning their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday December 21, 2008, the Chargers stood at 7–8, one game behind the Denver Broncos. Denver's loss to the Buffalo Bills later that same day created a primetime showdown between Denver and San Diego in San Diego for the AFC West Championship, as well as the fourth seed in the playoffs. The Chargers won the 2008 AFC West championship in convincing fashion by beating Denver in a 52–21 blowout. On January 3, 2009, the San Diego Chargers defeated the Indianapolis Colts 23–17 in overtime to advance to the AFC Divisional Playoff round. On January 11, 2009 the Chargers were defeated by the Pittsburgh Steelers 35–24 in the AFC Divisional Game ending the 2008 San Diego Chargers season.

2009–present

The Chargers started the 2009 campaign slowly, with a 2–3 record, a trend under current coach Norv Turner (1–3 in 2007 & 2–3 in 2008). By that time, the Broncos were 6–0, and had a 3 game lead over the Chargers. Most pundits said the AFC West was already decided & SD would have to play for the wildcard. Most fans wanted the coach to be fired, especially after a lackluster performance at Oakland & Pittsburgh. But then, like all of their seasons under Turner, they played their best football at the end of the regular season. This was a season of the continual improvement of Philip Rivers & the passing game, and LaDainian Tomlinson no longer being the focus of the offense. Rivers threw for 4,254 yards (8th), 28 TD's (tied-6th), 8.8 yards per passing attempt (1st), 64 completions of 20+ yards (1st), only 9 INT's (4th with a minimum 400 pass attempts), and a 104.4 passer rating (3rd – only beaten by Drew Brees & Brett Favre). They would go on to win the AFC West, (their 4th straight division title, only Oakland with 5 straight 1972–1976 is better), along the way blowing out Denver with a convincing 32–3 victory at Denver & defeating every NFC East team. They finished the regular season with 11 straight wins (tying the 1961 team record & is also tied for the 5th longest win streak entering the playoffs), finished with an impressive 13–3 record, (including 4–0 in December, extending their NFL record with 18 straight wins in December, & also tying the Dolphins 1970–1974 in November for the longest winning streak in any month). They locked up the #2 seed as well as a first round bye but this served them no advantage in the playoffs as they lost at home to NYJ 17–14 (the only home team with a bye to lose in the divisional round). This was due to an overly conservative offense settling for FG's & the kicker, Nate Kaeding, missing all 3 attempts.

2010 was the 1st season without LaDainian Tomlinson since 2000 (let go by management due to an over-sized contract relative to production and other issues, he went on to lead the Jets in rushing with 914 yards & tied for 3rd in receptions with 52). The 2010 campaign started off slowly again, this time 2–5 (including losses to some of the worst teams in football at the time – KC, OAK, SEA & STL). The losses were due to turnovers & mental mistakes by young players on special teams allowing blocked punts & kick/punt return TD's. The loss to OAK ended their 13 game winning streak against the Raiders since their last loss on September 28, 2003. The Chargers then went on another 2nd half run with 4 straight wins but this time instead of keeping the streak going the entire 2nd half they had a big let down losing at home to the Raiders again, this time 28–13 (ending their shared NFL record, with the Dolphins, of 18 straight wins in December). Despite the loss, they still had a chance to win their 5th straight AFC West title, tying the Raiders, but they had another bad loss at the Bengals 34–20 ending their chances. The Chargers beat DEN to end the season with a 9–7 record & out of the playoffs for the first time since 2005. They finished the season as the 8th team in NFL history to rank #1 in overall offense (395.6 yards/game), and overall defense (271.6 yards/game), and became only the 2nd of those teams to not make the playoffs (1953 Eagles 7–4–1). They were 2nd to the Colts in passing yards per game (282.4), 2nd to the Patriots in points scored per game (27.6), 1st in passing yards allowed per game (177.8), 4th in rushing yards allowed per game (93.8), and tied for 2nd in sacks (47). On the negative stat sheet, they gave up the most punt return yards per game (18.9) & had 29 turnovers. Philip Rivers had another great season with a career-high 4,710 yards (#1 in the NFL), 294 yards passing per game (tied for 1st with Manning), 66% completion pct. (#3 to Brees & Manning), 30 TD's, only 13 INT's & a 101.8 passer rating (#2 to Brady). Mike Tolbert 11 rushing TD's & Antonio Gates 10 receiving TD's were among the league leaders in TD's scored. On defense, Shaun Phillips' 11 sacks were in the top 10.

Rival history

The San Diego chargers are longtime rivals of the Oakland Raiders. They also have a history against both the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Seattle Seahawks. All but Seattle play in the AFC West.

According to the Official Site of the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Barron Hilton agreed after his general manager, Frank Ready picked the Chargers name when he purchased an AFL franchise for Los Angeles. The Chargers played in Los Angeles in 1960 and moved to San Diego in 1961. “I liked it because they were yelling ‘charge’ and sounding the bugle at Dodgers Stadium and at USC games.”

The Chargers only spent one season in Los Angeles before moving to San Diego in 1961. The early AFL years of the San Diego Chargers were highlighted by the outstanding play of wide receiver Lance Alworth with 543 receptions for 10,266 yards in his 11-AFL/NFL-season career. In addition he set the pro football record of consecutive games with a reception (96) during his career.

Their only coach for the ten year life of the AFL was Sid Gillman, a Hall of Famer. who was considered the foremost authority on the forward passing offense of his era. With players such as Alworth, Paul Lowe, Keith Lincoln and John Hadl, the high-scoring Chargers won divisional crowns five of the league’s first six seasons and the AFL title in 1963 with a 51–10 victory over the Boston Patriots. They also played defense, as indicated by their professional football record 49 pass interceptions in 1961, and featured AFL Rookie of the Year defensive end Earl Faison. The Chargers were the originators of the term "Fearsome Foursome" to describe their all-star defensive line, anchored by Faison and Ernie Ladd (the latter also excelled in professional wrestling). The phrase was later appropriated by the Los Angeles Rams. Hilton sold the Chargers to a group headed by Eugene Klein and Sam Schulman in August 1966. The following year the Chargers began "head to head" competition with the older NFL with a preseason loss to the Detroit Lions. The Chargers defeated the defending Super Bowl III champion New York Jets 34–27 before a record San Diego Stadium crowd of 54,042 on September 29, 1969. Alworth once again led the team in receptions with 64 and 1,003 yards with 4 touchdowns. The team also saw Gillman step down due to health and offensive backfield coach Charlie Waller promoted to head coach after the completion of the regular season. Gillman did remain with the club as the general manager.

Logo and uniforms

Except for color changes, the Chargers have basically used the logo of an arc-shaped lightning bolt since the team debuted in 1960. During its period in the AFL, the club also used a shield logo that featured a horsehead, a lightning bolt, and the word "Chargers".

From 1960 to 1973, the colors consisted of either Electric blue ("sky" or "powder" blue, but technically called Collegiate blue) or white jerseys, both with gold lightning bolts on the shoulders. The helmets were white and had both the arc-shaped lightning bolt logo, in gold, and the player's number. At first, the team wore white pants before switching to gold in 1966.

In 1974, the sky blue was changed to dark royal blue. The helmet was also changed to dark blue and the players' numbers were removed. From 1978 through 1983, the Chargers wore their white jerseys at home, coinciding with the hiring of coach Don Coryell – when Joe Gibbs, a Coryell assistant in 1979–80, became head coach of the Washington Redskins in 1981, he did the same, and white at home has become a Redskins staple ever since – but Coryell switched the Chargers to their blue jerseys at home starting in 1984. With the exception of the 1991 season and other sporadic home games since, San Diego wears its blue jerseys at home.

In 1985, the Chargers started using navy blue jerseys and returned to wearing white pants. The team's uniform design was next revamped in 1988. It featured an even darker shade of navy blue. The lightning bolts on the jerseys and helmets were white, with navy interior trim and gold outlining. In 1990, the team started to wear navy pants with their white jerseys. From 1988 to 1991, the team displayed stripes down the pants rather than lightning bolts. The Chargers went with all-white combinations in and , only to have the blue pants make a comeback. On October 27, 2003, the Chargers wore their navy pants with their navy jersey for a ''Monday Night Football'' game versus the Miami Dolphins that was played at Sun Devil Stadium, then the home of the Arizona Cardinals, due to wildfires in southern California. This remains the only game in which the Chargers have worn the all-dark combination. thumb|left|200px|Throwback uniforms worn in 1994 (NFL 75th anniversary) and 2009 (AFL 50th anniversary); blue throwback also used in 2000 for Chargers' 40th anniversary and as an alternate jersey from 2002 to 2006..

From the late 1980s to 2000, the Chargers wore white at home during preseason games and dark for regular season games. In 2001, the Chargers started wearing their dark uniforms for preseason games and white uniforms in September home games due to the heat before switching back to dark in October. From 2002 to 2006, the Chargers used the early-1960s powder blue uniforms as alternate jerseys, which many football fans (both of the Chargers and of other teams) clamored for the team to bring back full-time.

In March 2007, the Chargers unveiled their first uniform redesign since 1988, on the team's official website. The team formally unveiled this new uniform set, which mixes old and new styles, in a private team-only event. Navy blue remains the primary color on the home jersey, but the familiar lightning bolt was reverted to gold, and now has navy outlining and Collegiate (powder) blue interior trim. The latter color is a nod to the 1960s uniforms. The redesigned lightning bolt was moved to the sides of the shoulders from the top, and includes a new numbering font and word mark in white, with gold outlining and powder blue interior trim. The pants also have a redesigned lightning bolt in gold, with powder blue trim on a navy stripe. Additionally, the team pays tribute to other uniform features from their history by wearing a metallic white helmet, with a navy face mask, the newly revamped bolt in gold with navy and powder blue trim, and white pants. The road white jerseys with navy pants, as well as the alternate powder blue jerseys with white pants, were also redesigned with the new scheme. The Chargers wear their white jerseys for the first few home games in the first half of the season.

Since 2007, the Chargers have worn the alternate powder blue jerseys a total of nine times, most recently in a December 16, 2010 game vs. the San Francisco 49ers. The alternate powder blue jerseys were worn for a game against the Indianapolis Colts in the 2008 playoffs.

In 2009, in honor of their 50th anniversary as one of the eight original AFL teams, the Chargers wore their 1960 throwback uniforms for three games.

Head-to-head records vs. opponents

Players of note

Current roster

Pro Football Hall of Famers

Lance Alworth

Fred Dean

Dan Fouts

Sid Gillman

Charlie Joiner

Deacon Jones

John Mackey

Ron Mix

Johnny Unitas

Retired numbers

14 Dan Fouts, Quarterback, 1973–87

19 Lance Alworth, Wide receiver, 1962–1970

Chargers Hall of Fame

The Chargers have a team Hall of Fame with the following members:

56 Emil Karas, Linebacker, 1960–66, inducted 1976

55 Frank Buncom, Linebacker, 1962–68, inducted 1976

53 Bob Laraba, Linebacker, 1960–61, inducted 1976

38 Jacque MacKinnon, Tight end, 1961–69, inducted 1976

19 Lance Alworth, Wide receiver, 1962–70, inducted 1977

74 Ron Mix, Offensive tackle, 1960–69, inducted 1978

23 Paul Lowe, Running back, 1960–68, inducted 1979

Barron Hilton, team founder-owner, 1960–66, inducted 1980

22 Keith Lincoln, Running back, 1961–68, inducted 1980

77 Ernie Ladd, Defensive tackle, 1961–65, inducted 1981

78 Walt Sweeney, Guard, 1966–99, inducted 1981

21 John Hadl, Quarterback, 1962–72, inducted 1983

50 Chuck Allen, Linebacker, 1961–69, inducted 1984

27 Gary Garrison, Wide receiver, 1966–76, inducted 1985

Sid Gillman, head coach, 1961–69 & 1971, inducted 1985

86 Earl Faison, Defensive end, 1961–66, inducted 1986

14 Dan Fouts, Quarterback, 1973–87, inducted 1993

18 Charlie Joiner, Wide receiver, 1976–86, inducted 1993

Don Coryell, head coach, 1978–86, inducted 1994

45 Speedy Duncan, Cornerback, 1964–70, inducted 1995

70 Russ Washington, Offensive tackle, 1968–82, inducted 1995

80 Kellen Winslow, Tight end, 1979–87, inducted 1995

George Pernicano, team executive, since 1961, inducted 1996

6 Rolf Benirschke, Kicker, 1978–87, inducted 1997

22 Gill Byrd, Cornerback 1983–92, inducted 1998

79 Gary "Big Hands" Johnson, Defensive tackle, 1975–84, inducted 1999

63 Doug Wilkerson, Guard, 1971–84, inducted 2000

89 Wes Chandler, Wide receiver, 1981–87, inducted 2001

12 Stan Humphries, Quarterback, 1992–97, inducted 2002

Bobby Ross, head coach, 1992–96, inducted 2002

74 Louie Kelcher, Defensive tackle, 1975–83, inducted 2003

62 Don Macek, Center, 1976–89, inducted 2004

67 Ed White, Guard, 1978–85, inducted 2004

71 Fred Dean, Defensive end, 1975–81, inducted 2008

Alworth, Mix, Hadl, Joiner, Coryell, Gillman, Garrison, Fouts, White, Winslow, Faison, Benirschke, Lincoln, Washington, Humphries, Ladd and Wilkerson are also members of the San Diego Hall of Champions, which is open to athletes from the San Diego area as well as those who played for San Diego-based professional and collegiate teams.

50 Greatest Chargers

In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the AFL the Chargers named their top players in the history of the franchise. The 53 players and coaches selected as the Greatest Chargers of all time during the team's 50th Anniversary Season, was announced in 2009.

QB — Dan Fouts, John Hadl, Stan Humphries, Philip Rivers. RB — Keith Lincoln, Paul Lowe, Natrone Means, Chuck Muncie, LaDainian Tomlinson. WR —Lance Alworth, Wes Chandler, Gary Garrison, John Jefferson, Charlie Joiner. TE — Antonio Gates, Kellen Winslow. T — Ron Mix, Russ Washington, Ernie Wright. G — Kris Dielman, Walt Sweeney, Ed White, Doug Wilkerson. C — Nick Hardwick, Don Macek. DE — Fred Dean, Earl Faison, Leslie O'Neal. DT — Gary Johnson, Louie Kelcher, Ernie Ladd, Jamal Williams. LB — Chuck Allen, Woodrow Lowe, Shawne Merriman, Junior Seau, Billy Ray Smith. DB — Willie Buchanon, Gill Byrd, Rodney Harrison, Quentin Jammer, Charlie McNeil. K — Rolf Benirschke, John Carney. KR — Speedy Duncan, Darren Sproles. P — Darren Bennett, Mike Scifres. ST — Hank Bauer, Kassim Osgood. COACHES — Don Coryell, Sid Gillman, Bobby Ross.

Staff

Head coaches

Current staff

Head of players affairs – James Vaughn\Anthony Rowe

Radio and television

The Chargers' flagship station is KIOZ 105.3FM, commonly known as "Rock 1053." Josh Lewin and Hank Bauer comprise the broadcast team. Past Chargers radio broadcasters have included Ralph Lawler, Stu Nahan, Tom Kelly, Lee "Hacksaw" Hamilton, Dan Rowe and Ted Leitner. Most preseason games are televised on KFMB in San Diego and KCBS in Los Angeles. The announcers were Ron Pitts and Billy Ray Smith.

Since the Los Angeles market is within the Chargers' 75-mile radius (which prohibits broadcasts of Charger games on national radio during the regular season), the Chargers Radio Network has a secondary flagship station for Los Angeles: KLAC AM-570, in Los Angeles and Orange County. The previous Los Angeles flagship was KSPN AM-710 and before that, KMPC AM-1540 for several years.

Dennis Packer, the public address announcer of all USC football games at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, serves as the P.A. announcer of all Charger home games at Qualcomm Stadium. Packer replaced legendary PA announcer Bruce Binkowski, who went on to become the executive director of the Holiday and Poinsettia Bowl games.

Theme song

The Chargers are also well-known for their famous disco theme song, "San Diego Super Chargers." The theme song was recorded in 1978 at the height of the team's success with Air Coryell, and has a distinctly disco sound. The team still proudly plays this song at home games after field goals in celebration. From time to time during highlights of NFL PrimeTime, ESPN's Chris Berman and Tom Jackson would briefly sing the first line of the song's chorus.

References

External links

Category:Sports clubs established in 1960 Category:American Football League teams Category:National Football League teams Category:American football teams in California Category:American football teams in Los Angeles, California Category:American football teams in San Diego, California

bg:Сан Диего Чарджърс ca:San Diego Chargers da:San Diego Chargers de:San Diego Chargers es:San Diego Chargers fa:سن دییگو چارجرز fr:Chargers de San Diego gl:San Diego Chargers hi:सैन डिएगो चारजर्स id:San Diego Chargers it:San Diego Chargers he:סן דייגו צ'רג'רס hu:San Diego Chargers nl:San Diego Chargers ja:サンディエゴ・チャージャーズ no:San Diego Chargers pa:ਸੇਨ ਡਿਆਗੋ ਚਾਰਜਰਜ਼ pl:San Diego Chargers pt:San Diego Chargers ru:Сан-Диего Чарджерс simple:San Diego Chargers sr:Сан Дијего чарџерси fi:San Diego Chargers sv:San Diego Chargers uk:Сан-Дієго Чарджерс zh:圣地牙哥电光

Holy Roller is a term in American English used to describe Pentecostal Christian churchgoers. The term is commonly used derisively, as if to describe people literally rolling on the floor or speaking in tongues in an uncontrolled manner.

It is generally considered pejorative, but some have reclaimed it as a badge of honor, William Branham wrote: "And what the world calls today holy-roller, that's the way I worship Jesus Christ." Gospel singer Andrae Crouch stated, "They call us holy rollers, and what they say is true. But if they knew what we were rollin' about, they'd be rollin' too."

History

Merriam-Webster traces the word to 1841. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' cites an 1893 memoir by Charles Godfrey Leland, in which he says "When the Holy Spirit seized them ... the Holy Rollers ... rolled over and over on the floor."

Similar disparaging terms directed at outspoken Christians but later embraced by them include Jesus freaks or, from former centuries, Shakers and Quakers.

Usage

Gifford Pinchot in 1919: "Apparently no meeting for any purpose is to be tolerated except the Holy Roller meetings themselves. These theoretically and in fact ... The Holy Roller church in this community, as elsewhere, in its total influence promotes immorality. ..." ''The New York Times'' on May 2, 1923: "Bound Brook Mob Raids Klan Meeting: Thousand Hostile Citizens Surround Church and Lock In 100 Holy Rollers. ... Until the arrival of eight State troopers to reinforce the local police here at 1 o'clock this morning about one hundred members of the Holy Rollers were ..."

''Time'' on March 4, 1929: "In the village of New Hampshire, Ohio, the Rev. Ray Dotson, 'Holy Roller' Methodist, so wailed and shrieked, so frothed and grovelled, that he got Fred Conrad, a 200-lb. traction worker, all worked up."

''Time'' on October 12, 1936: "When Jesus Christ first appeared to His assembled disciples after His resurrection, He told them that believers 'shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents' (Mark: 16:17, 18). To many a U. S. religionist of the Pentecostal or "Holy Roller" variety, the 'gift of tongues' has long been vivid reality."

See also

Bible thumper

Evangelicalism

Fundamentalist Christianity

Happy-clappy

References

Category:Charismatic and Pentecostal Christianity Category:Pejorative terms for people Category:Ethnic and religious slurs

Coordinates	35°27′″N139°38′″N
Position	Quarterback
Number	14
Birth date	June 10, 1951San Francisco, California
Debutyear	1973
Debutteam	San Diego Chargers
Finalyear	1987
Finalteam	San Diego Chargers
Draftyear	1973
Draftround	3
Draftpick	64
College	Oregon
Teams	San Diego Chargers (1973-1987)
Stat1label	TD-INT
Stat1value	254-242
Stat2label	Yards
Stat2value	43,040
Stat3label	QB Rating
Stat3value	80.2
Nfl	FOU692150
Highlights	3× First-team All-Pro selection (1979, 1982, 1985) 1× Second-team All-Pro (1980) 6× Pro Bowl selection (1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985) NFL 1980s All-Decade Team 1982 NEA NFL MVP 2× PFWA NFL MVP (1979, 1982) 1982 NFL Offensive Player of the Year 2× UPI AFL-AFC Player of the Year (1979, 1982) 1983 Pro Bowl MVP San Diego Chargers #14 retired
Hof	71 }}

Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is a retired Hall of Fame American football quarterback in the National Football League. Fouts played his whole career with the San Diego Chargers from 1973 through 1987. He is one of the most prolific passing quarterbacks during the Golden Age of the 70s and 80s, but the Chargers were unable to make it to the Super Bowl during his fifteen year career. He is currently a color commentator for NFL games on CBS. Dan is the son of Bay Area Radio Hall of Famer Bob Fouts.

High school and college career

Fouts went to Marin Catholic High School, which is located just north of San Francisco in Kentfield, CA for his two first years of High School, and was starting for the varsity team by his sophomore year. He decided to transfer to St. Ignatius College Preparatory (San Francisco, CA) for his final two years of high school.

Fouts was somewhat of an unknown when he accepted the scholarship offer from the University of Oregon. Things were quite different after the All-Pac 8 quarterback's career where he set 19 school records, including those for career passing yardage (5,995) and total offense (5,871). He was inducted into the University of Oregon Hall of Fame in 1992.

Pro football career

Drafted in the third round out of the University of Oregon in 1973, Fouts helped lead the Chargers to the playoffs from 1979 to 1982 and twice to the AFC title game (1980 and 1981). He led the league four times in passing yards; ending his career with over 40,000, the third player to surpass that landmark. Fouts was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.

Fouts was a 6-time Pro Bowl selection (1979-1983 & 1985) and compiled passer ratings over 90.0 for a 3-year stretch (1981–83). Fouts threw for over 4,000 yards for 3 consecutive seasons (1979–81), led the NFL in passing yards in 4 consecutive seasons(1979–1982) and 6 times eclipsed the 20-touchdown mark with a career high 33 in 1981. His career high of 4,802 passing yards during the 1981 season was an NFL record at the time.

In 1982, a season shortened to 9 games because of a strike, Fouts averaged what is still a record of 320 yards passing per game. Highlights that season included back-to-back victories against the 1981 Super Bowl teams San Francisco (41-37) and Cincinnati (50-34) in which Fouts threw for over 400 yards in each game to lead the Chargers to shootout victories.

Fouts garnered All-Pro selections in both 1979 and 1982, while also being named 2nd Team All-Pro in 1980 and 1985. In addition Fouts was also named 2nd Team All-AFC in 1981 and 1983. However, Fouts and the Chargers lost both AFC Championship Games in which they played.

Fouts's first few years in the league were inauspicious, but with the arrival of Don "Air" Coryell in 1978 the Chargers' fortunes turned. Yet it was actually two years earlier, with the arrival of Joe Gibbs as the Charger's offensive coordinator, that the seeds of success were planted. Under Coryell, the Chargers were known for the deep passing game and the involvement of the tight end as a key receiver. This required a tough, intelligent quarterback with a strong arm. Fouts fit the bill.

Fouts was not a mobile quarterback and the deep passing game led to many hits. Fouts's ability to take punishment and still play at a very high level is unique. Rarely using the shotgun, Fouts would drop back from center and look for one of a bevy of great receivers. Wide receiver Charlie Joiner and tight end Kellen Winslow were the most famous, both now in the Hall of Fame, but John Jefferson and Wes Chandler, among others, were also key. Fouts's passing enabled Winslow to lead the NFL in receptions twice (1980,1981), while Winslow (1982) and Lionel James (1985) led the AFC in receptions on another 2 combined occasions. James, in fact, set the NFL record (since broken) in 1985 for receiving yards by a running back at 1,027. Jefferson became the first receiver to have 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first three seasons in the NFL. Both Jefferson (1980) and Chandler (1982) led the NFL in receiving yards. Chandler's 129 yards receiving per game average in 1982 is still a league record. Both Jefferson (1978, 1980) and Chandler (1982) led the NFL in receiving TDs. In 1980, Winslow, Jefferson and Joiner became the first trio on the same team to have 1,000 yards receiving in a season. When he retired after 1986, Joiner was the NFL's all-time leader in receptions with 750.

Pass protection was also critical for such an offense. The Chargers had an excellent offensive line which protected Fouts well, and included 4 time Pro Bowler Ed White, 5 time Pro Bowler Russ Washington, 3 time Pro Bowler Doug Wilkerson, Billy Shields and Don Macek. The Chargers led the league in passing yards an NFL record 6 consecutive years from 1978–1983 and again in 1985 under Fouts. They also led the league in total yards in offense 1980-1983 and 1985.

Despite going to the playoffs from 1979 through 1982 and playing in 2 AFC Championship Games, the Chargers never went to the Super Bowl under Fouts (although they went 7 years after his retirement). Usually this is attributed to poor defense and their unwillingness to run the ball. In Fouts's prime the defense was not as stellar, but the running game became far better with the addition of Chuck Muncie, traded from New Orleans in 1980, and the drafting of James Brooks from Auburn in 1981. It is believed the defense had little opportunity to improve as the offense often scored quickly, leaving the defense to spend far too much time on the field. It also hurt that Fred Dean, an All-Pro sack specialist, was traded away to the San Francisco 49ers in 1981 in a contract dispute, and Dean would win UPI NFC Defensive Player of the Year (while playing in only 11 games) that year en route to a Super Bowl victory and help the 49ers to another Super Bowl title three years later. Dean would later be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

"I can't say how much it affected us, because we did make it to the AFC championship game," said Chargers' All-Pro defensive lineman Gary "Big Hands" Johnson of the loss of Dean. "But I could say if we had more pass rush from the corner, it might've been different."

Overall, the Chargers achieved three wins against four losses in the playoffs under Fouts, who threw for over 300 yards in all but two of those games. One of their more notable wins was the 1982 playoff game known in NFL Lore as ''The Epic in Miami'', where Fouts led his team to a 41-38 victory by completing 33 of 53 passes for a franchise record 433 yards and 3 touchdowns on the hot and humid day. His completions, attempts, and yards in the game were all NFL postseason records at the time. The following week in the AFC championship game in Cincinnati, there was a 144 °F drop in temperature compared to the previous week in Miami, and the Chargers lost 27-7 in what is known as the Freezer Bowl.

The following season, he threw for 333 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 31-28 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC divisional playoff round.

Honors

Fouts finished his 15 NFL seasons with 3,297 of 5,604 completions for 43,040 yards and 254 touchdowns, with 242 interceptions. He also rushed for 476 yards and 13 touchdowns

Dan Fouts is one of only seven quarterbacks in NFL history who have achieved two consecutive 30-touchdown passing seasons. The others are Steve Bartkowski, Brett Favre, Dan Marino, Jeff Garcia, Peyton Manning, and Y.A. Tittle. He was also the third quarterback in NFL history to pass for 40,000 yards, after fellow Hall of Famers Johnny Unitas and Fran Tarkenton, and the first quarterback ever to throw for over 4,000 yards in back-to-back seasons.

Fouts' jersey number, 14, is one of only two numbers retired by the San Diego Chargers (the other being Lance Alworth's 19).

In 1989, Fouts was also inducted by the San Diego Hall of Champions into the Breitbard Hall of Fame honoring San Diego's finest athletes both on and off the playing surface.

In 1999, he was ranked number 92 on ''The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.

In 1992, he was inducted into the University of Oregon and State of Oregon Sports Halls of Fame.

Fouts was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993, his first year of eligibility.

In 2009, he was picked by the fans as the "Greatest Charger Of All Time" for the Chargers 50th anniversary year.

In 2010, he received the Davey O'Brien Legends Award during Colt McCoy's award ceremony.

After pro football

In 1988 through 1993, Fouts started his career as an analyst on NFL on CBS. He worked with variety of play-by-play announcers including Dick Stockton, James Brown, Verne Lundquist, Brad Nessler, Jim Nantz, Jack Buck, and Tim Ryan.

Fouts's post-NFL career included a well-received commentator role on ABC's ''Monday Night Football,'' alongside famed ''MNF'' anchor Al Michaels and comedian Dennis Miller. He also served as a college football analyst alongside Brent Musburger and Keith Jackson (after Fouts's ''MNF'' departure). He was also a sports anchor for KPIX-TV in his hometown of San Francisco from 1994-1997.

In 1998 Fouts made his big-screen debut, portraying himself in the football comedy "The Waterboy," starring Adam Sandler. Fouts and Musberger appeared late in the film as ESPN's broadcast team for the fictitious New Year's Day "Bourbon Bowl" game.

After Jackson's retirement from ABC in 2006, Fouts became a play-by-play announcer, adding his own commentary on the game at times since he was a former player and analyst. His broadcast partner for 2006 and 2007 was Tim Brant now that Jackson has opted to permanently retire. (Jackson previously said he was going to retire after the 1998 college football season, but elected to stay on to call Pac-10 games for ABC, including the annual Rose Bowl.

On February 11, 2008, ESPN announced they weren't re-signing Fouts or his partner Tim Brant.

It was reported in USA Today on August 20, 2008 that Fouts was returned to CBS for NFL games with a variety of play-by-play announcers including Don Criqui, Bill Macatee, and Dick Enberg.

In 2009, he was moved to partner with Dick Enberg as the #3 broadcasting team for the NFL on CBS. Following Enberg's retirement after the 2009 season, Fouts presently teams with Ian Eagle. He also calls the occasional game for Westwood One radio.

Fouts also did color commentary for the football video game ''NFL GameDay 2004''. He partnered with long-time announcer Dick Enberg.

Games with two 400+ yard quarterbacks

Dan Fouts played in two of the six greatest NFL passing games. Below is a list of every game where two quarterbacks passed for 400 or more yards.

Rank	Quarterback	Date	Game	Attempts	Comp	Yards	TDs	INTs	Rating
1	Ken O'BrienDan Marino	9/21/1986	New York Jets: 51Miami Dolphins: 45	4350	2930	479448	46	12	126.0112.3
Total:			96 Points	93	59	927	10	3
2	Matt SchaubDonovan McNabb	9/19/2010	Houston Texans: 30Washington Redskins: 27	5238	3828	497426	31	10	114.0119.0
Total:			57 Points	90	66	923	4	1
3	Dan MarinoDrew Bledsoe	9/4/1994	Miami Dolphins: 39New England Patriots: 35	4251	2332	473421	54	12	124.396.6
Total:			74 Points	93	55	894	9	3
4		9/13/1992	Buffalo Bills: 34San Francisco 49ers: 31	3337	2226	403449	33	11	126.2127.0
Total:			65 Points	70	48	852	6	2
5		12/20/1982	San Diego Chargers: 50Cincinnati Bengals: 34	4056	2540	435416	12	21	87.097.0
Total:			84 Points	96	65	851	3	3
6	Dan FoutsDon Strock	1/2/1982		5343	3329	433403	34	11	116.2118.7
Total:			79 Points	96	62	836	7	2

List of NFL quarterbacks who have passed for 400 or more yards in a game

See also

Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame

References

External links

''Pro Football Hall of Fame:'' Member profile

''pro-football-reference.com:" Career stats and more

Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:Sportspeople from San Francisco, California Category:National Football League announcers Category:San Francisco, California television anchors Category:American football quarterbacks Category:Players of American football from California Category:Oregon Ducks football players Category:San Diego Chargers players Category:American Conference Pro Bowl players Category:Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees Category:People from Deschutes County, Oregon Category:College football announcers

fr:Dan Fouts th:แดน เฟาท์ส

Coordinates	35°27′″N139°38′″N
Name	Bryan Walters
Currentteam	San Diego Chargers
Currentnumber	13
Currentpositionplain	Wide Receiver
Birthdate	November 04, 1987
Birthplace	Bothell, Washington
Heightft	6
Heightin	0
Weight	190
College	Cornell
Undraftedyear	2010
Pastteams	San Diego Chargers (-present)* :*Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Status	Active
Highlights
Nfl	WAL666831 }}

Bryan Walters (born November 4, 1987) is an American football wide receiver for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League. He played college football at Cornell. Shortly after the 2010 NFL Draft ended, Walters signed with the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent.

Professional Career

San Diego Chargers

Walter signed with the San Diego Chargers on April 25, 2010 after going undrafted in the 2010 NFL Draft.

Walters was released by the Chargers on August 5, 2010 during training camp, due to a hamstring injury, but was re-signed to their practice squad on December 1, 2010. After the 2010 season, Walters signed a future contract with the Charger on January 12, 2011.

References

External links

San Diego Chargers bio

ESPN.com bio

NFL.com bio

Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:American football wide receivers Category:Cornell Big Red football players Category:Undrafted National Football League players Category:San Diego Chargers players