The all-time winningest coach in the Naval Academy, Ken Niumatalolo, was named San José State’s 30th head football coach in program history on Jan. 21, 2024.
In his first season at SJSU in 2024, Niumatalolo led the Spartans to a 7-6 record, including wins over Stanford and Oregon State, plus a trip to the Hawai‘i Bowl. He also helped wide receiver Nick Nash become the first unanimous First Team All-American in SJSU history and the first Biletnikoff Award Finalist in SJSU history. Nash was only the fourth player in FBS history to earn the regular season triple crown by leading the country in catches, yards, and touchdowns. The seven regular season wins were the most for an SJSU head coach in their first season since 1992, and 1990 was the last time an SJSU head coach took a team to a bowl game in their first season.
The Spartans finished the 2024 season with 4,183 passing yards, which was good for first in the Mountain West Conference and fifth in the nation, averaging 321.8 yards per game. The 4,183 passing yards are good for third in San José State's single-season history.
In 2024, the Spartans also had 28 takeaways, the most in the Mountain West Conference and fifth in the country.
Out of the 28 takeaways, 21 were from interceptions, which were the second most in the country. The 28 takeaways were the most for the Spartans since 2012. SJSU's defense also had three defensive touchdowns, which was good for first in the Mountain West Conference and 11th in the nation.
In his second season at SJSU, the Spartans produced All-American wide receiver Danny Scudero and helped lead the Spartans to the number two passing offense in the Mountain West Conference, averaging 282.3 yards per game. Scudero finished the regular season as the top wide receiver in the country in receiving yards, averaging 107.6 yards per game and with 1,291 receiving yards on the season. This is the second season in a row the Spartans finished the season with a wide receiver leading the country in multiple categories. Scudero also finished fourth in the country, averaging 7.33 receptions per game.
The Spartans ended the 2025 regular season as the only school in the country to have three different receivers have 100 or more receiving yards in the same game twice during the season.
Quarterback Walker Eget went 275 passing attempts in 2025 without an interception, the third-longest streak in Mountain West history. He finished second in the conference with 3,047 passing yards in only 11 games played and ranked second in passing average (277.0 yards per game). Eget was also one of only two quarterbacks nationwide to throw for 450+ yards twice, including a career-high 473 yards and three touchdowns at Stanford (Sept. 27, 2025). During a dominant seven-game stretch this season, the offense averaged 7.2 yards per play.
At Navy, Niumatalolo won a program-best 109 games, led Navy to 10 bowl games over 15 seasons, and is a three-time American Athletic Conference (AAC) Coach of the Year (2015, '16, '19). He earned the 2019 Stallings Award, presented to the college football head coach who is both a humanitarian and an exceptional head coach.
Niumatalolo started his reign in Annapolis with eight straight wins over Army and 10 overall, which is the most in the history of the rivalry game. Navy won 6-of-10 bowl games during Niumatalolo’s tenure and picked up wins over Pittsburgh and Kansas State after posting a school record 11-2 mark in 2015 and ’19, finishing inside the top 25 for the first time in the last 60 years.
Niumatalolo, 58, helped Navy earn the Lambert Trophy in 2015, awarded to the best team in the East, for the first time since 1963. He led Navy to its first outright division title in 2016, going 7-1 in the AAC, winning the West division, and is the only coach in Navy history to win three-consecutive bowl games. His six bowl wins and six Commander-In-Chief trophies are the most in Navy history.
In 2015, Niumatalolo was one of four coaches to be named a finalist for the Dodd Trophy and the Paul “Bear” Bryant National Coach of the Year Award. In 2016, he was a Dodd Trophy finalist again and was named AFCA Region 1 Coach of the Year. In 2019, he was a Paul “Bear” Bryant National Coach of the Year Award for the second time in his career.
In 2013, Niumatalolo was selected to the inaugural class of the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame and was the second Polynesian head coach in Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) history and the first Samoan collegiate head coach on any level.
The La‘ie, Hawai‘i native played quarterback at Hawai‘i from 1987-89 and was part of their first bowl team in 1989. After he graduated, he then joined head coach Paul Johnson’s staff at Hawai‘i first as a graduate assistant and then eventually as a full-time assistant (1990-94).
In 1995, Niumatalolo followed Johnson to Navy first as the running backs coach and then in 1997 was named the offensive coordinator. His first stint at Navy lasted from 1995-98 before he left to go to UNLV to be tight ends coach/special teams coordinator from 1999-2001. Niumatalolo returned to Navy in 2002 to be assistant head coach under Johnson until taking over head coaching duties in 2007.
Niumatalolo and his wife, Barbara, have three children, Alexcia, Va’a and Ali’i and five granddaughters, Aussie Keanani, Rosie Momi, Jada Keala, Barbara Lilia and Ivory Meli.