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Dennis Murphy

For the students, by the students

Jayhawks get revenge, and down Tigers
Adam Buckallew, CAFNR Corner Post Reporter

September 29, 2003 - Kansas football players had been waiting for this game for a year. Last year, following a 36-12 homecoming victory over arch-rival Kansas, the Missouri football team led a group of fans in tearing down the goal posts at Faurot Field. Kansas's coaches made sure that no one on their team had forgotten by taping pictures, of the Missouri players hanging from the goalposts, to every Jayhawk player's locker in the Kansas locker room.

Kansas had their revenge humbling Missouri 35-14 and knocking the Tigers out of the national rankings. Missouri led 14-13 heading into the fourth quarter, but with Jayhawk senior quarterback Bill Whittemore, Kansas scored 22 points. Whittemore won the duel of star quarterbacks, almost by default. Brad Smith, the sophomore sensation, whom some football analysts had mentioned as a possible Heisman candidate, played perhaps one of his worst games as a Tiger.

Smith completed 12-24 of his passes, but those 12 passes only totaled 62 passing yards. Smith, known for being an improvisational runner, never seemed to get into a flow for the game and earned only 33 yards rushing.

Whittemore did not have an exceptional day passing, but he made the most of his opportunities and burned the Tigers on several occasions late in the game. Whittemore finished with 111 passing yards on 14 of 22 completions. Whittemore did significant damage with his scrambles and designed runs, rushing for 76 yards on 16 rushes.

The lone bright spot for the Tigers was the play of tailback Zach Abron. Abron carried the ball 17 times for 112 rushing yards, and it seemed as if the Kansas defenders could not stop him. Missouri Head Coach Gary Pinkel just couldn't seem to understand that though. Pinkel gave the ball to Abron only once in the second quarter, and only twice in the fourth quarter.

Pinkel underutilized his best offense, and as a result Kansas earned the right to tear down the goal posts after the game this year. But, Kansas's players decided to stay out of the post-game celebration, and they let their fans rip down the goal posts. Missouri now must wait yet another year before they have the right to redeem themselves for losing to their hated rivals in Kansas.

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