In June of 1934, the "Tiny Buck of the Month Club" was formed to raise the necessary funds from Stanford alumni and friends to pay the tuition costs for capable, worthy, and needy student-athletes. As the Club's name implied, membership dues were one dollar per month and the word "tiny" was added to emphasize the modest amount and to honor head football coach, Claude "Tiny" Thornhill. The Club later shortened its name to the "Stanford Buck Club" and revised its initial membership dues requirement.

Until the mid-1970's, there were no athletic scholarships for women, nor was there any fundraising organization devoted to this purpose. To accomplish the task of raising scholarship funds for women, the Cardinal Club was formed in 1977-78.

Under the guidance of the Buck and Cardinal Club leadership, a merged Buck/Cardinal Club was formed in 1987 to raise funds for both men's and women's athletic scholarships. The new volunteer organization was built on the fine Buck and Cardinal Club traditions that served both organizations well.

Behind the Buck/Cardinal Board of Directors and more than 6,000 donors, the Club has continued to expand in recent years to provide football priority seating in Stanford Stadium and priority seating for men's basketball. In addition, the Club now provides program support for all 35 varsity sports and 800 plus student-athletes.

The Buck/Cardinal Club will not only continue its great scholarship tradition, but also assist the department's coaches and staff in providing the resources needed to compete at the highest level of NCAA Division I Athletics.