The Kansas Jayhawks began their football tradition in 1890 in Lawrence, Kansas. They represent the University of Kansas in the Big 12 North Division and are ranked in NCAA Division I. The home stadium is the University of Kansas Memorial Stadium which has a capacity of 50,071. It is the first stadium built on a college campus west of the Mississippi River. Their official mascots are Big Jay and Baby Jay. Gale Sayers, a two-time All American award winner, is an alumnus of the football team. Other great players were John Riggins, John Hadl, Mike McCormack and Nolan Cromwell among others. The current head coach is Mark Mangino, who led them to a 2-10 record in the 2002 season.
Soon after they played in three more bowl games over the last five years. The Jawhawks’ main rivals are the Kansas State Wildcats and the Missouri Tigers. The call: “Border War” was played between the Kansas Jayhawks and the Missouri Tigers. It began in 1891 and was considered the longest unbroken rivalry in college football west of Mississippi until 2007 when they retired the current drum. It was later renamed “Border Showdown”. The Border Showdown winner was awarded the Indian War Drum, which is the prize every time the two have a game. The other rival, the Kansas State Wildcats, is fighting the Jayhawks for the Governor’s Cup. The game between these two teams is called the Sunflower Showdown.
Championships and Important Moments:
The Jayhawks played in 11 bowl games with a 24-21 victory in the 2007 Orange Bowl. They had eight conference championships in 1892, 1893, 1895, 1908, 1930, 1946, 1947, and 1968. In 2007, they won the divisional championship. , which however they lost in a tiebreaker. Kansas, which holds the all-time record for the most ties in NCAA Division IA, which is 57, gave way to the ruling allowing a tiebreaker on October 6, 1990. The all-time record for the team is 559 -540-58 (.508)
Quarterbacks on current roster:
— Tyler Lawrence – Kale Pick – Todd Reesing
Kansas Jayhawks Recent News:
The Jayhawks were defeated 35-7 by Texas Tech in their November 15 game at Kivisto Field at Memorial Stadium. With the loss, Kansas fell to 6-5 on the season and 3-4 in the Big 12. It will be a week before they play again, this time with their border rival Missouri Tigers at Arrowhead Stadium. Fox Sports Network will televise the game on November 29 at 11:30 am As always, fans don’t need to watch games on the couch. The Kansas Athletics Box Office is located at the south end of the Booth Family Hall of Athletics. On a lighter note, Jayhawk linebacker Mike Rivera was announced as one of 15 finalists for the 2008 Wuerffel Trophy. He was previously named a Draddy Award semifinalist and a nominee for the Allstate AFCA Good Deeds Team. In other good news for Kansas, wide receiver Kerry Meier was named one of ten finalists for the Biletnikoff Award, which is given each year to the best wide receiver in the country.
