Seth Herrold
@HerroldTimes
“God created war so that Americans would learn geography.”
― Mark Twain
Over the weekend Missouri and Kansas announced the return of the “Border War” on the gridiron. It will probably be called the “Border Showdown” when it does indeed return – because war isn’t politically correct anymore – the key takeaway here is that, yes, Missouri and Kansas are going to play football again.
The announcement came on the heels of the two universities resuming their basketball rivalry and when that announcement was made, it felt like just a matter of time before the football rivalry was renewed as well.
The details are this: the first football game will be played in Columbia in 2025, followed by the second in Lawrence, KS in 2026. The series resumes in 2031 back in Columbia then returns to Lawrence, KS for the final of the four scheduled meeting in 2032.
While that seems a ways off that is because college football schedules are created insanely early anymore and those games that are scheduled years out are contracted. While Missouri and Kansas are both willing to fall back into their old rivalry, neither are particularly fond of buying out contracts to get the series going any earlier. That makes sense now more than ever with universities struggling financially with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Regardless of how long it takes, I’m excited at the prospect of this rivalry returning to the football field. The basketball rivalry probably means as much or more to a great number of fans, especially west of Kansas City, however, this football rivalry has always meant the most to me.
I was there in 2007 – Armageddon at Arrowhead – to see the biggest game this series has ever seen. I have seen the highs and I have seen the lows. There are plenty on both sides as this series is extremely tight with Missouri holding a slim 56-55-9 advantage all time.
Tickets will no doubt be tough to come by for this one, but I will be there.
This week’s recommendations:
Read: The Fight by Norman Mailer follows the preparation and build up to the classic boxing bout between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman which was known as the ‘Rumble in the Jungle.’
Watch: UFC 249 on Saturday. Live sports returns on Saturday with the latest UFC event. It’s a pay-per-view so you have to pony up for it, but if you are starved for live action, it’ll be worth it. Tony Ferguson fights Justin Gaethje for the lightweight title in the main event.
Eat: Over the weekend my wife and I, along with her sister and brother-in-law who have been quarantining in our driveway with their RV for the last month, went in for curbside and ended up basically tailgating in the restaurant parking lot. You can’t dine in and there are no sports, but tailgating in a restaurant parking lot kind of gives you a feel for both.