The latest edition of the Border War between Missouri and Kansas turned out to be a mere skirmish for a half.
Robert Woodyard Jr produced back-to-back turnovers soon after the break, and Austin Simmons and the potent Tigers offense turned them into touchdowns, helping No 23 Missouri break open a tie game and roll to a 38-21 victory Friday night.
Jamal Roberts ran for 125 yards and a touchdown, and Donovan Olugbode and Cayden Lee caught TD passes, as the Tigers (2-0) beat their biggest rival for the fifth straight time in their first trip across the state line since 29 October 2005.
“The things that we gave them were undisciplined penalties, special teams were not good tonight in any form or facet, but we overcame it,” Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz said, “and that’s what you have to do on the road.”
That’s not all Drinkwitz had to say, though He took umbrage with the way Kansas leaned into the historic nature of the rivalry, which began as an armed conflict over the issue of slavery along the state line in the years leading up to the Civil War.
“I’m just glad the whole right-versus-wrong crap got settled on the football field,” Drinkwitz said. “I get there’s a past to it but why are we stirring that bullcrap up? It’s 9/11. We need more unity. I was embarrassed for them. That’s why I tried to embarrass them.”
The Tigers threw to the end zone in the final seconds, trying to get one last score, before running out the clock.
“There was a lot of juice in the stadium,” Jayhawks coach Lance Leipold said. “Just some things happened – a couple of things you just can’t do if you play ranked teams and want to beat them.”
The game was tied 14-all early in the second half when Woodyard fell on Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall’s fumble, and Simmons quickly found Olugbode for the go-ahead touchdown. On the Jayhawks’ next offensive play, Woodyard faded into the secondary and was there to pick off Marshall’s pass, setting up Xai’Shaun Edwards’ touchdown run.
Marshall finished with 168 yards passing, two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Jayhawks (1-1), who haven’t beaten Missouri since 29 November 2008. The sophomore quarterback also carried 20 times but managed just 23 yards.
Kansas actually jumped on the Tigers early, just as it did last season in Columbia, when a series that went on hiatus after the Tigers’ departure for the SEC finally resumed after more than a decade. This time around, the Jayhawks capitalized on Missouri miscues: four false start penalties in the first half alone, blown blocking assignments and two blocked field-goal attempts.
On the second block, the Jayhawks’ Austin Alexander scooped up the ball and ran 88 yards for the first points of the game.
Roberts, once more taking center stage for the Tigers with All-American Ahmad Hardy rehabbing after a gunshot wound earlier this year, quickly provided an answer, jetting over the right side for a 64-yard touchdown run. It was the longest of his career, eclipsing a 63-yarder that Roberts scored with 1:49 to go to clinch last year’s 42-31 victory over the Jayhawks.
The teams traded touchdowns late in the first half, sending the 122nd edition of the Border War to the break tied 14-all.
But two big plays by Woodyards and the Missouri defense tilted the game in their favor, and after Marshall found Nahzae Cox to get Kansas to 28-21 late in the third quarter, the Tigers’ Blake Craig added a field goal to help them regain control.
“Energy never changed, honestly. The mentality always stayed the same,” Simmons said. “We were just trying to win at all costs.”
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