Стэнфорд Айнасы мен Кал–Стэнфорд ойынының жүлдесі

American college football trophy awarded to the winner of the Big Game

The Stanford Axe is a trophy awarded to the winner of the annual Big Game, a college football match up between the University of California, Berkeley Golden Bears and the Stanford Cardinal. The trophy consists of an axe head mounted on a large wooden plaque, along with the scores of past Big Games. Cal currently holds the Axe after defeating Stanford 27–15 in the 2023 game.

The Axe was originally a standard 12 inch lumberman's axe. It made its first appearance on April 13, 1899, during a Stanford rally when yell leaders used it to decapitate a straw man dressed in blue and gold ribbons while chanting the Axe yell, which was based on The Frogs by Aristophanes (Brekekekèx koàx koáx):

The Axe made its second appearance two days later on April 15, 1899, at a Cal–Stanford baseball game played at 16th Street and Folsom in San Francisco. Led by Billy Erb, the Stanford yell leaders paraded the Axe and used it to chop up blue and gold ribbon after every good play by the Stanford team, while shouting the Axe yell. However, Stanford lost the game and the series, and the yell leaders debated if the Axe was a jinx and whether to dispose of it. As Stanford students discussed the Axe's fate, a group of Cal students seized it and ran off with the Axe. It in turn was passed from student to student, and a chase ensued through the streets of San Francisco, first followed by Stanford students and fans and second followed by the San Francisco police. During the chase, the Axe's handle was broken off. Recent research indicates it is possible Miller may have used the historic Southern Pacific steam ferryboat Berkeley (Maritime Museum of San Diego) as the getaway boat. From there Miller took the Axe back to Berkeley where it was first stored in a fraternity (Chi Phi), and later in a bank vault. Two days later, Cal held its first Axe Rally.

Depending on which school holds the Axe, the trophy's recorded score for the 1982 Big Game is changed. This is part of the continuing dispute surrounding The Play, the last play in the final seconds of the 1982 game, which ended with a kickoff return marked by five laterals. During the play, the Stanford Band, believing the game was over and that Stanford had won, ran onto the field; the touchdown run through the band featured the last Cal returner, Kevin Moen, running through a Stanford trombone player, Gary Tyrell, in the end zone. Referees declared the touchdown as legal, and California won the game. However, Stanford contends that one of the five laterals on that play was an illegal forward pass, and that a Cal player was tackled before he lateraled the ball. As a result, whenever Stanford wins the Axe, the 1982 score is changed on the trophy from "California 25 20" to read "Stanford 20 19." Despite this practice, the official score (California 25 20) must be on the Axe prior to the start of each Big Game, no matter who has it at the time. When Stanford has the Axe, it is guarded by the Stanford Axe Committee and kept in a secret location, when not on display in the lobby of the Arrillaga Sports Center. When California is in possession of the Axe, the Chairman of the UC Rally Committee acts as its custodian. It is generally displayed in the lobby of the Martin Luther King Junior Student Union Building. During the Big Game, the Stanford Axe is displayed by the school that won the Big Game during the previous year. The Stanford Axe is transferred at the Big Game during what is known as "The Stare Down." With two minutes remaining in the Big Game, the Stanford Axe is brought to the 50 yard line, where members of the UC Rally Committee and the Stanford Axe Committee wait until the end of the game to determine who will take the Axe. Once the game ends, the winner of Big Game takes possession of the Axe until the next Big Game is played. Currently, California, has the Axe after winning the 126th Big Game on November 18, 2023, by the score of 27–15, continuing their three year hold on the Axe. Although Stanford leads the all time series before and after the use of the Axe as a trophy, California still has held the Axe for a longer amount of time due to their 31 year possession before the recapture of the Axe by Stanford. During the time the Axe has been used as a trophy, Stanford has held it 48 times to California's 37.