Tearing It Down In Kansas

By: Chris Licata

Posted: 11/2/05

LAWRENCE, Kan. - This past weekend I left the familiar settings of the Storrs-Mansfield area for Kansas City, Mo. to attend a conference on college journalism. While the conference was interesting the highlight of the weekend came on Saturday when I took a trip to Lawrence, Kan. to take in the annual "Border War" between Kansas University and the University of Missouri. As an added bonus, this game also happened to be homecoming at KU. All the ingredients for an unforgettable day were present, but there was no way I could have anticipated what I experienced.

9:30 a.m. - The College Store Crown Center Shops
Kansas City, Mo.

The first thing I knew I had to do before attending this game was to get dressed for success. Luckily there was a mall connected to the hotel that had a store that sold strictly KU, K-State and Mizzou apparel. Immediately, I purchased both a KU T-shirt and a Missouri T-shirt - why you ask? Because regardless of the outcome, I planned on celebrating with someone afterward.

10:30 a.m. - Hertz Rental Counter Westin Crown Hotel
Kansas City, Mo.

Anyone who tells you that you need to be 25 to rent a car is either a liar or completely clueless. Car rentals begin at age 21, but taxes and additional fees apply from that age through 24. Subsequently, I was forced to pay $81 dollars in rental fees as opposed to $51 dollars - and I couldn't even get a convertible.

The good people at Hertz rented me a Hyundai Sonata, a very nice luxury car but a complete gas guzzler. Lawrence was only 30 miles away, yet in one day I managed to burn through half a tank of gas going to KU and back.

11:45 a.m. - KU Memorial Stadium - Lawrence, Kan.

Along with two fellow DC writers I parked my car illegally at the library, put on a KU T-shirt, took a swig of Irish coffee and went out to the stadium. The scene outside the stadium was absolutely awesome. If you think the tailgating scene at Rentschler is intense, you need to take a trip to Lawrence, Kan. In addition to a gigantic lawn that overlooks the stadium, numerous fraternities and other organizations had setup tents that contained both food and drink. While the tents may have been numerous due to homecoming, the number of fans outside of the stadium was absolutely stunning.

As I walked along the lawn I was greeted with yells of "Missouri's a slave state!" and a variety of other, less-printable chants. The KU students also had some of the most hilarious shirts I have ever seen. Slogans such as, "Muck Fizzou" (sound familiar?), "Rock out with your 'Hawk out,'" and shirts with the Jayhawk on the front with "Because every other team sucks" printed on the back.

12:15 p.m. - Game Time

Entering Saturday's contest, KU and Mizzou were teams on opposite paths. After starting the season 3-0, the Jayhawks had lost four straight games and were in desperate need of a win to remain bowl eligible. Conversely, the Tigers began the season 2-2 with losses to No. 2 Texas and New Mexico - but were winners of three straight coming into Saturday. The stage was set for a big upset and the KU student section was more than happy to make it a reality.

The KU Memorial Stadium students section was a site to behold. Absolutely packed and spilling over into the reserved seats, the section seemed to encompass nearly a quarter of the stadium and was, brace yourself, located on the 50-yard line. The students rewarded the athletic department's generosity by being absolutely deafening during the fourth quarter. Mizzou quarterback Brad Smith was unable to get into a groove the entire game, but once the fourth quarter rolled around was absolutely useless.

3:30 p.m. - Game Over

The final kneeldown is taken and pandemonium erupts. KU wins, 13-3. The student section pours out of the stands and onto the field where KU police do everything but help them take down the goalposts. Actually, the athletic department beat the Jayhawk faithful to that - but it didn't stop the students from hoisting up the goalposts and parading them around the field. In the middle of the pandemonium I see one student sitting atop the goalposts, covered in fake blood with a decapitated stuffed tiger hanging from a rope. The goalposts are being marched around the stadium when suddenly - they disappear.

3:45 p.m. - The Goalposts Take A Swim

I lost track of the goalposts in the pandemonium of trying to find my co-workers on the field, but I soon saw them again. The KU students had taken the goalposts out of the stadium and dumped them into a nearby lake. A number of students dove into the lake and went swimming with the goalposts while the remaining student body sang the fight song.

4:00 p.m. - An Impromptu Parade

After a brief swim, a number of students began dragging out the waterlogged goalposts - but not to return them to the field. The goalposts were immediately dragged out of the lake and paraded up and down West Campus Road to the delight of honking cars. Chants of, "To the Chancellor's Office!" could be heard from all over, but the students had a better idea.

4:30 p.m. - A Final Resting Place

The final stop for the Memorial Stadium goalposts proved to be the "Chi-Oh (Chi Omega) fountain" in the middle of a roundabout located in the heart of campus. The students set the goalposts up in dramatic fashion and pictures were taken while I was asked by a number of students to swap e-mail addresses so they could use the pictures for Facebook.

So I was finally able to live out my dream of rushing a football field - and I didn't even get pepper sprayed. Although it is a shame it happened at a school close to 2,000 miles away from UConn. The KU athletic department should be commended for what they did. Rather than fight the situation and alienate their students, they acted quickly to bring the goalposts down themselves and limit the risk of injury. Pepper spray is not the answer and neither is complacency. It's time for more universities to take a page out of the KU playbook.

LicataCS@yahoo.com