By Eric Lucio
The Kansas Jayhawks were defeated 42-31 in a high scoring thriller by the Missouri Tigers on Saturday in Columbia.
Both teams came into the game undefeated for the first “Border Showdown” in 14 years.
“[After losing, I’m] a little upset, you know… I’m a very, very sore loser,” Kansas tight end DeShawn Hanika said. “But, you know, looking down the road, this is a game I’ll tell my kids about. You know, this was an unbelievable environment.”
The Tigers put the Jayhawks to bed after tight end Brett Norfleet caught a touchdown to take the lead late, followed by a dagger 63-yard touchdown by running back Jamal Roberts.
The story of the Jayhawks would be that of missed tackles and even more missed opportunities. Kansas allowed 583 yards of offense, with 249 yards on the ground alone. Multiple overthrows by Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels and an open drop by receiver Emmanuel Henderson Jr. were also costly in the Jayhawks’ final offensive drives.
“We were on the field way too long defensively today for multiple reasons,” Kansas head coach Lance Leipold said. “We didn’t sustain drives enough offensively, and we didn’t get off the field defensively at times… I don’t fault the effort of our guys and what the potential this team has moving down the road.”
The first quarter was all Kansas; following a quick touchdown by Missouri’s running back Ahmad Hardy, Kansas responded with a 15-yard touchdown reception by Hanika. On the following drive, Jayhawk safety Mason Ellis forced a fumble for a touchdown return by cornerback Austin Alexander.
Daniels found receiver Levi Wentz for a 50-yard bomb to set up a quarterback sneak that extended the Kansas lead, 21-6.
However, the Tigers quickly fought back in the second quarter. Missouri quarterback Beau Pribula found receiver Kevin Coleman Jr. for a 3-yard touchdown, followed by a safety after Daniels fumbled the ball into the endzone. Missouri kicker Robert Meyer knocked down two short field goals to tie the game going into halftime at 21.
Coming out of halftime, Kansas got on the board with a field goal, but it was quickly responded by an 11-yard touchdown reception by Norfleet to take a Tiger lead, 28-24.
Daniels led the Jayhawks down the field for Hanika’s second touchdown of the day to start the 4th quarter, but Mizzou’s offense converted two crucial 4th downs, including a 27-yard pass for Norfleet’s second touchdown of the day.
After Henderson dropped the pass on 3rd down, the Jayhawks elected to punt, leading to Roberts’ touchdown.
Leipold spoke on his decision to punt late.
“[We thought] we could get a stop, which again, you’re probably saying, ‘they’ve run 80-something plays,’ which is fair criticism, but with that much time in the game, we thought if we could get a stop, then we’d have a chance to go win the football game.”
Hanika spoke about the team’s future.
“It’s not your same KU team from the past. We got a lot of competitors in that locker room,” Hanika said. “We’re ready to attack that Big 12 schedule because, you know, I think we have a special team in that locker room.”
Kansas will host West Virginia on Saturday, Sept. 20 after its bye week at an unconfirmed time.