Sunflower Showdown
Encyclopedia
Comparison of the two universities |
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| School | Kansas University of Kansas The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The... |
Kansas State Kansas State University Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States... |
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| Logo | ||
| Ownership | Kansas | Kansas |
| Location | Lawrence Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County... |
Manhattan Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281... |
| Conference | Big 12 Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving... |
Big 12 |
| Students | 30,004 | 23,581 |
| School Colors | Crimson Crimson Crimson is a strong, bright, deep red color. It is originally the color of the dye produced from a scale insect, Kermes vermilio, but the name is now also used as a generic term for those slightly bluish-red colors that are between red and rose; besides crimson itself, these colors include... & Blue Blue Blue is a colour, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nm. It is considered one of the additive primary colours. On the HSV Colour Wheel, the complement of blue is yellow; that is, a colour corresponding to an equal... |
Purple Purple Purple is a range of hues of color occurring between red and blue, and is classified as a secondary color as the colors are required to create the shade.... |
| Nickname | Jayhawks Kansas Jayhawks The sports teams at the University of Kansas are known as the Jayhawks. They are one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a member of the Big 12 Conference... |
Wildcats Kansas State Wildcats Kansas State University's athletic teams are called the Wildcats. The official color of the teams is Royal Purple, making Kansas State one of very few schools that have only one official color; white and silver are generally used as complementary colors.Kansas State participates in... |
| Mascot(s) | Big Jay Big Jay (mascot) Big Jay is one of the mascots of the University of Kansas' sports teams. He and fellow mascot Baby Jay are Jayhawks. School tradition dictates Big Jay be male and at least 6 feet 2 inches tall, and in a given year there are multiple people that are Big Jay.... , Baby Jay Baby Jay Baby Jay is one of the mascots of the University of Kansas's sports teams. She and fellow mascot Big Jay are Jayhawks. Baby Jay was created by student Amy Sue Hurst and "hatched" at half-time of KU's Homecoming victory in football over Kansas State University on October 9, 1971, and has served as a... |
Willie the Wildcat |
| Football Stadium | Memorial Stadium | Bill Snyder Family Stadium Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium is a stadium in Manhattan, Kansas. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the Kansas State University Wildcats football team. It is named after head coach Bill Snyder and his family... |
| Basketball Arena | Allen Fieldhouse Allen Fieldhouse Allen Fieldhouse is an indoor arena at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. The arena, named in honor of Dr. Forrest C. "Phog" Allen, who coached the university's men's basketball team for 39 years, is one of college basketball's most historically significant and prestigious buildings... |
Bramlage Coliseum Bramlage Coliseum Fred Bramlage Coliseum is a 12,528-seat multi-purpose arena in Manhattan, Kansas. The arena's primary function is as home to the men's and women's basketball teams for Kansas State University. The building also holds offices for Kansas State Wildcats baseball, Intercollegiate Athletics, and Sports... |
| Baseball Stadium | Hoglund Ballpark Hoglund Ballpark Hoglund Ballpark is a baseball stadium in Lawrence, Kansas. It is the home field of the University of Kansas Jayhawks college baseball team. The stadium holds 2,500 people and opened for baseball in 1958. It is named after former Jayhawk baseball shortstop Forrest Hoglund.Following the 2010... |
Tointon Family Stadium Tointon Family Stadium Frank Myers Field at Tointon Family Stadium is a baseball stadium in Manhattan, Kansas. It is the home field of the Kansas State University Wildcats college baseball team. The stadium holds 2,000 people and opened for baseball in 1961... |
The Sunflower Showdown is the series of athletic contests
College athletics
College athletics refers primarily to sports and athletic competition organized and funded by institutions of tertiary education . In the United States, college athletics is a two-tiered system. The first tier includes the sports that are sanctioned by one of the collegiate sport governing bodies...
between Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
and the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
, most notably football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
and men's basketball
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
. The name is derived from the official nickname for the state of Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
: the Sunflower
Sunflower
Sunflower is an annual plant native to the Americas. It possesses a large inflorescence . The sunflower got its name from its huge, fiery blooms, whose shape and image is often used to depict the sun. The sunflower has a rough, hairy stem, broad, coarsely toothed, rough leaves and circular heads...
State.
The two schools compete each year for the Governor's Cup
Governor's Cup (Kansas)
The Governor's Cup is a trophy awarded to the victor of the annual college football game between the University of Kansas and Kansas State University, as part of the "Sunflower Showdown." It has been awarded every year since 1969....
in football. The football series dates back to 1902
1902 in sports
1902 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Michigan Wolverines and Yale Bulldogs Events...
, and has been played every year since 1911
1911 in sports
1911 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Penn State Nittany Lions and Princeton Tigers -Association football:England...
, making it the third-longest uninterrupted series in college football history. The University of Kansas built a large advantage in the series by 1923, and leads the overall series 64-40-5 or 65-39-5 (depending on whether a 1980 forfeit by KU is counted) after the 2011
2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season, play of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level, began on Thursday, September 1, 2011...
game.
The men's basketball series dates back to 1907
1907 in sports
1907 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Yale Bulldogs-Association football:England...
, and is the most-played series in either school's history and 7th most played in NCAA history. KU leads the men's basketball series 181-91 following the 2010-2011 regular season. This ranks as the third most victories by one school over another in the NCAA.
In 2010, Dillons
Dillons
Dillons is a grocery supermarket chain based in Hutchinson, Kansas, and is a division of The Kroger Company. Other banners under Dillon Stores Division include Gerbes in Missouri, Baker's in Omaha, Nebraska and a Food 4 Less store in Fremont, Nebraska...
bought the naming rights and the series was re-branded "The Dillon’s Sunflower Showdown".
Origins
Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281...
(now home to KSU) and Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
(now home to KU) both competed to be the site of the state University – required in the Kansas Constitution – after Kansas achieved statehood in 1861. Manhattan would have become the home of the University in 1861, but the bill establishing the University in Manhattan was controversially veto
Veto
A veto, Latin for "I forbid", is the power of an officer of the state to unilaterally stop an official action, especially enactment of a piece of legislation...
ed by Governor Charles L. Robinson
Charles L. Robinson
Charles Lawrence Robinson was the first Governor of Kansas. He was also the first governor of a US state to be impeached, although he was not convicted or removed from office. To date he is the only governor of Kansas to be impeached...
of Lawrence. An attempt to override the veto in the Legislature
Kansas Legislature
The Kansas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. It is a bicameral assembly, composed of the lower Kansas House of Representatives, composed of 125 Representatives, and the upper Kansas Senate, with 40 Senators...
failed by two votes. In 1862, another bill to make Manhattan the site of the University failed by one vote. Finally, on the third attempt, on February 16, 1863, the Kansas Legislature designated Manhattan as home to the state's Land-grant university
Land-grant university
Land-grant universities are institutions of higher education in the United States designated by each state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890....
. Yet the legislature was not done. Prodded by former Governor Robinson, the Legislature distinguished this institution from the "University" in the Constitution, and on February 20 the Legislature named Lawrence as the home to the state University (provided Lawrence could raise $15,000 and acquire 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) of land). When Lawrence met these conditions, the University of Kansas was established there in 1865.
The first recorded meeting between the two institutions in athletic competition was a little more than thirty years after their founding, in a baseball
College baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. Compared to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a less significant contribution to cultivating professional players, as the minor leagues primarily...
game in 1898
1898 in sports
-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Harvard Crimson and Princeton Tigers Events* The Morgan Athletic Club, which will eventually become Arizona Cardinals, is founded in Chicago and is the sport's oldest professional team.-Association football:England*...
.
Men's basketball
Sunflower Showdown |
|
| Kansas State Wildcats Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball The Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball team represents Kansas State University in college basketball competition. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I, and is a member of the Big 12 Conference. The current head coach is Frank Martin.... |
Kansas Jayhawks |
| Originated | 1907 |
| Continuity | Continuous since 1912 |
| Overall series leader | Kansas (181-91) |
| Most recent winner | Kansas State |
The two schools have had a strong rivalry in basketball for several decades, peaking in the 1950s. Recently, the University of Kansas has been dominant in the series, including a winning streak over K-State that lasted from 1994 to 2005, and a 11-2 record against the Wildcats since the streak ended. Despite the lopsided record, the rivalry has become highly competitive again in recent years, with both teams ranked in the AP Top 25
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...
for many of the match-ups.
Even when the schools are at different levels, upsets are always a possibility in the rivalry, as when Kansas State upset a KU team that was ranked #1 in the AP Poll on January 17, 1994, or when KU pulled the upset on a K-State team ranked #1 on January 17, 1953. Most recently, K-State beat a #1 KU team on February 14, 2011 in Manhattan. Over the decades, the rivalry has seen a number of notable coaches match wits, including Jack Gardner
Jack Gardner (basketball)
-Head Coaching Record at Utah:-External links:*...
, Tex Winter
Tex Winter
Morice Fredrick "Tex" Winter is a Hall-of-Fame American basketball coach, and innovator of the triangle offense.-Early life:...
, Lon Kruger
Lon Kruger
Lon Kruger is an American college and professional basketball coach who is currently the men's basketball head coach of the University of Oklahoma. Kruger played college basketball for Kansas State University...
and Jack Hartman
Jack Hartman
-Coaching record at Kansas State:- References :...
at Kansas State, and James Naismith
James Naismith
The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...
, Phog Allen
Phog Allen
Forrest Clare "Phog" Allen was an American basketball and baseball player, coach of American football, basketball, and baseball, college athletics administrator, and osteopathic physician...
, Larry Brown
Larry Brown (basketball)
Lawrence Harvey "Larry" Brown is an American basketball coach and former player. He most recently served as head coach of the National Basketball Association's Charlotte Bobcats....
, Roy Williams
Roy Williams (coach)
Roy Williams is head coach of the men's basketball team at the University of North Carolina. After averaging nearly an 80% win percentage in 15 seasons at the University of Kansas, he became the eighteenth head coach at North Carolina when he replaced Matt Doherty in 2003...
and Bill Self
Bill Self
Bill Self is an American college men's basketball coach at the University of Kansas, where he led the Jayhawks to the 2008 NCAA national championship....
at KU.
Early years
The teams were fairly even up until the 1930s, with the series standings at 31-27 in favor of Kansas entering the decade. During the 30's and 40's, Kansas would gain a large lead in the standings with a number of win streaks, including 22 in a row from 1938 to 1947. In 1935 Kansas tied an NCAA record by beating Kansas State five times in the same calendar year, a feat that was only accomplished one other time, when Kansas beat Nebraska five times in 1909.1950s
Both schools were national title contenders in the 1950s, with Kansas State starting the decade in the title game of the 1951 NCAA tournament1951 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1951 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 16 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 20, 1951, and ended with the championship game on March 27 at Williams Arena in Minneapolis,...
, and KU winning the title at the 1952 NCAA tournament
1952 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
-External links:* on Shrp Sports * , source for much of the information on this page....
. Befitting a clash of these titans, one of the best games of the 1951-1952
1952 in sports
1952 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:* NFL Championship – Detroit Lions win 17–7 over the Cleveland BrownsGeorgia Tech wins national college football championship-England:...
season was an epic 90-88 overtime victory by #4 KU over #8 K-State in the 1951 Big Seven Holiday Tournament. KU returned to the title game in the 1953
1953 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1953 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 22 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 10, 1953, and ended with the championship game on March 18 in Kansas City, Missouri...
NCAA Tournament, claiming the league title along the way over a KSU team that had earlier been the top-ranked basketball team in the country.
The rivalry heated up even further with the arrival of Bob Boozer
Bob Boozer
Robert Louis "Bob" Boozer is a retired American professional basketball player. Boozer was born and raised in North Omaha, Nebraska and graduated from Tech High in Omaha....
at Kansas State and Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; he also played for the Harlem Globetrotters prior to playing in the NBA...
at KU in the middle of the decade. In the 1955-1956 season, Kansas State split the season series with KU and won the Big Seven Conference title. The following year, Chamberlain led KU to the league title and a triple-overtime loss to North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
in the title game of the 1957 NCAA tournament
1957 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1957 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 23 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 11, 1957, and ended with the championship game on March 23 in Kansas City, Missouri...
. Kansas and Kansas State played another classic the following season, when Boozer scored 32 points in a 79-75 double-overtime victory at KU on February 3, 1958, while KSU was ranked #4 and KU was ranked #2. (When the two teams had previously met that season on December 30, 1957, they were ranked #2 and #3 in the country.) Following that season, KSU made another appearance in the Final Four. To close the decade, Kansas State swept the season series from KU on the way to a 25-2 record and a #1 ranking in the final AP Poll
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...
for 1959
1959 in sports
1959 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:* NFL Championship – Baltimore Colts won 31-16 over the New York Giants* August 14 - The American Football League is founded...
.
During the 1950s, the two schools also engaged in one-upsmanship in facilities. In prior decades, Kansas State had played their games in Nichols Hall
Nichols Hall
Nichols Hall is a building on the campus of Kansas State University. This building was originally built in 1911 and appears as a castle from the exterior. It burned down in 1968 and was rebuilt again in 1985...
, which doubled as a gymnasium, livestock pavilion, and pool. In the late-1940s the state Legislature approved and paid for the construction of a new and much larger basketball facility. In 1950 Kansas State opened Ahearn Field House
Ahearn Field House
Ahearn Field House is one of the athletic buildings on the campus of Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. It is currently home to the K-State volleyball team and indoor track and field squad, and houses facilities for the and the ....
, one of the largest basketball facilities in the country at the time, which seated 14,000 spectators. Meanwhile, KU still played their home games on a converted stage in Hoch Auditorium
Hoch Auditorium
Hoch Auditorium was a 3,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Lawrence, Kansas. It opened in 1927. It was home to the University of Kansas Jayhawks basketball teams until Allen Fieldhouse opened in 1955....
with a seating capacity of 5,500. In response to the construction of Ahearn, the University of Kansas successfully lobbied the state to pay for the construction of Allen Fieldhouse
Allen Fieldhouse
Allen Fieldhouse is an indoor arena at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. The arena, named in honor of Dr. Forrest C. "Phog" Allen, who coached the university's men's basketball team for 39 years, is one of college basketball's most historically significant and prestigious buildings...
, which would seat 17,000. KU opened the facility with a 77-66 victory over Kansas State on March 1, 1955.
This period also saw the beginning of the 'Sunflower Doubleheader', with two non-conference teams visiting the state to play KU and K-State at one venue one night, then switching venues and opponents the following evening. This event was held from 1957 to 1968, and featured national powerhouses such as UCLA, Xavier
Xavier University (Cincinnati)
Xavier University is a co-educational Jesuit university in the United States located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The University is the sixth-oldest Catholic university in the nation and has an undergraduate enrollment of about 4,000 students and graduate enrollment of 2,600 students. Xavier is primarily...
, San Francisco
University of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco , is a private, Jesuit/Catholic university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco. It is the second oldest institution for higher learning in California and the tenth-oldest university of...
, St. Joseph's, Cal
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, and Marquette
Marquette University
Marquette University is a private, coeducational, Jesuit, Roman Catholic university located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1881, the school is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities...
.
1960s and 1970s
The basketball rivalry between the two schools continued unabated through the 1960s and 1970s, with the two schools competing annually for the Big Eight Conference championship (see chart below). In Dick HarpDick Harp
Dick Harp became the Kansas Jayhawks' fourth men's basketball coach in 1957. He coached for eight years until 1964. Harp's overall Kansas record was 121-82 and conference record was 53-45 ....
's last two seasons as the KU coach, the Jayhawks plummeted to losing records of 7-18 in 1962 and 12-13 in 1963. Nevertheless, in the championship game of the Big Eight Holiday Tournament in December 1962, KU posted a surprising 90-88 quadruple-overtime victory over K-State. Also, on February 20, 1965, one of the classic pranks in the series was perpetrated when a pair of 6x12 banners saying "Go Cats, Kill Snob Hill Again" unfurled on the east and west sides of the Allen Fieldhouse scoreboard with eight minutes left in the first half of an 88-66 KU victory. Another popular "prank" perpetrated by Kansas State students throughout the years is throwing live chickens, painted blue and red, on the court during pre-game introductions, as a taunt at the Kansas mascot, the Jayhawk. For years the Kansas State administration has attempted to stop this practice, and following a nationally-televised game on February 19, 2007, PETA
Peta
Peta can refer to:* peta-, an SI prefix denoting a factor of 1015* Peta, Greece, a town in Greece* Peta, the Pāli word for a Preta, or hungry ghost in Buddhism* Peta Wilson, an Australian actress and model* Peta Todd, English glamour model...
complained about it in a letter to KSU President Jon Wefald
Jon Wefald
Jon Michael Wefald is an American educator and served as the twelfth President of Kansas State University.-Biography:...
.
1980s
The 1980s saw the return of star power to the schools and arguably the rivalry's most high-profile game. At the start of the decade, Rolando BlackmanRolando Blackman
Rolando Antonio Blackman is a retired professional basketball player. He was an All-Star who spent most of his career with the Dallas Mavericks...
at Kansas State and Darnell Valentine
Darnell Valentine
Darnell Terrell Valentine is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball at the University of Kansas where he was a three-time Academic All-American and was a member of the 1980 Summer Olympics men's basketball team...
at KU squared off in some classic match-ups. To close the decade, it was Mitch Richmond
Mitch Richmond
Mitchell James "Mitch" Richmond is a retired American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association. He played collegiately at Kansas State University. He was a 6-time NBA All-Star, a 5-time All-NBA Team member and a former NBA Rookie of the Year...
(K-State) and Danny Manning
Danny Manning
Daniel Ricardo "Danny" Manning is a retired American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association. He is an assistant basketball coach at his alma mater, the University of Kansas Jayhawks. Manning won the National Championship with the Jayhawks in 1988 as a player, and...
(KU) battling.
With Richmond and Manning in their senior years, the 1987-1988 season proved to be momentous in the rivalry. In the first matchup of the season, on January 30, 1988, Richmond scored 35 points to lead Kansas State to a 72-61 win to halt KU's then-record 55-game home winning streak. On February 18, KU turned the tables, prevailing 64-63 in Ahearn Field House to deny K-State a victory over KU in the old field house's last year. In what was supposed to be the rubber game, in the 1988 Big Eight Conference
Big Eight Conference
The Big Eight Conference, a former NCAA-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored football, was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association by its charter member schools: the University of Kansas, University of Missouri, University...
tournament, Kansas State won a decisive victory by a 69-54 score. However, the biggest was yet to come. Both teams qualified for the NCAA tournament
1988 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1988 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 17, 1988, and ended with the championship game on April 4 returning to Kansas City, Missouri...
, and after three wins apiece in the tournament they faced each other on March 27 in Pontiac, Michigan
Pontiac, Michigan
Pontiac is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan named after the Ottawa Chief Pontiac, located within the Detroit metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 59,515. It is the county seat of Oakland County...
, for the right to advance to the Final Four. Led by Manning's 20 points, KU turned a tight game into a runaway and prevailed 71-58. They eventually advanced to claim the school's second NCAA Tournament Championship (4th national title overall). That game in the Pontiac Silverdome
Pontiac Silverdome
The Silverdome is a domed stadium located in the city of Pontiac, Michigan, USA, which sits on . It was the largest stadium in the National Football League until FedEx Field in suburban Washington, D.C...
was the first of only two meetings between the 'Hawks and the 'Cats that was not played in Lawrence, Manhattan, or Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
(the second meeting being the 2007 Big 12 Tournament
2007 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2007 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men's Basketball Championship was the 2007 edition of the Big 12 Conference's championship tournament held at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City from March 8 until March 11, 2007...
in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
).
The 1990s and 2000s: KU winning streaks
The rivalry slipped in significance after the 1988 season, as K-State slowly declined in the Big 8 and Big 12 conferences and KU saw sustained success under new coach Roy WilliamsRoy Williams (coach)
Roy Williams is head coach of the men's basketball team at the University of North Carolina. After averaging nearly an 80% win percentage in 15 seasons at the University of Kansas, he became the eighteenth head coach at North Carolina when he replaced Matt Doherty in 2003...
. During Williams' tenure at Kansas, the Jayhawks went 50-6 against the Wildcats. Only occasionally would K-State make some noise, such as the 68-64 win over then-#1 KU in Allen Fieldhouse in 1994.
From 1994 to 2005, KU won 31 straight games against K-State, the longest streak for either school in the series. Also, from 1984 to 2007, KU won 24 straight games on the Wildcats' home floor, the third longest win streak on an opponents home court in NCAA history. During the latter streak, K-State won seven games against KU, but all were away from Manhattan: four games in Lawrence (1988, 1989, 1994, 2006) and three games in the Big Eight Tournament in Kansas City (1988, 1989, 1993). That streak began in Ahearn Field House
Ahearn Field House
Ahearn Field House is one of the athletic buildings on the campus of Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. It is currently home to the K-State volleyball team and indoor track and field squad, and houses facilities for the and the ....
, where KU won the final five meetings, and carried over into Bramlage Coliseum
Bramlage Coliseum
Fred Bramlage Coliseum is a 12,528-seat multi-purpose arena in Manhattan, Kansas. The arena's primary function is as home to the men's and women's basketball teams for Kansas State University. The building also holds offices for Kansas State Wildcats baseball, Intercollegiate Athletics, and Sports...
, where KU won the first 19 contests. KU's streak at Bramlage Coliseum came to an end on January 30, 2008, when #22-ranked Kansas State upset previously-unbeaten #2 Kansas 84-75.
2006-Present: Reigniting the rivalry
When Kansas State hired coach Bob Huggins
Bob Huggins
Bob Huggins, nicknamed "Huggy Bear", is the head coach of the West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team. Huggins previously held the head coaching positions at the University of Cincinnati and Kansas State University...
to replace Jim Wooldridge
Jim Wooldridge
Jim Wooldridge is an American college basketball coach and the current head men's basketball coach at the University of California, Riverside. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Woolridge played on Putnam City High School's class 4A state basketball championship team in 1972...
in the 2006 off-season, it promised to reignite the rivalry. At K-State's Madness in Manhattan celebration to start the 2006-2007 season
2006-07 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2006–07 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 7, 2006, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on April 2, 2007 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia...
, Huggins said that "February 19th is when we break the streak." However, KU managed to sweep the season series from Kansas State, and Huggins departed following the season to take a position coaching at his alma mater, West Virginia University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
.
The 2007-2008 season
2007-08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2007–08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 5, 2007 ended with the 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament's championship game on April 7, 2008 in the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.-Season headlines:...
presented an intriguing contrast between youth and experience. KU was led by the experienced coach Bill Self
Bill Self
Bill Self is an American college men's basketball coach at the University of Kansas, where he led the Jayhawks to the 2008 NCAA national championship....
and retained a lineup of experienced players. Kansas State was led by a first-year head coach, Frank Martin
Frank Martin (basketball coach)
Frank Martin is the head men's basketball coach at Kansas State University. Martin was announced as Kansas State's 22nd head men's basketball coach on April 6, 2007, following the resignation of Bob Huggins, who departed for West Virginia University...
, and featured one of the top-rated groups of freshman players in the nation. Prior to the season, Kansas State freshman phenom Michael Beasley
Michael Beasley
Michael Paul Beasley, Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association . He plays both forward positions, and shoots his jump shot left-handed, though he is also ambidextrous...
boasted that "We're gonna beat KU at home. We're gonna beat 'em at their house. We're gonna beat 'em in Africa. Wherever we play we're gonna beat 'em." KU came into the first match-up of the 2007-2008 season, on January 30, 2008, with a 20-0 record and a #2 ranking, but Kansas State prevailed 84-75. Kansas State's trip to Lawrence later that year was not as enjoyable for the Wildcats as they lost 88-74 to Kansas, leaving Beasley's prophecy unfulfilled. Both schools advanced to the NCAA tournament at the conclusion of the 2008 regular season, and Kansas went on to win its third NCAA championship
2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 65 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball as a culmination of the 2007–08 basketball season...
.
The two teams played three high-profile matchups in the rivalry during the 2009-2010 season. In the first match-up on January 30, 2010, in Manhattan with ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's College GameDay
College GameDay (basketball)
College GameDay is an ESPN program that covers college basketball and is a spin-off of the successful college football version. Since debuting on January 22, 2005, it airs on ESPN Saturdays in the college basketball season at 11am ET and 8pm ET at a different game site each week...
broadcasting live from the game, Kansas came into the game ranked #2, while Kansas State was ranked #11. KU prevailed in overtime 81-79, in a game that ESPN described as a "classic." After the game, Kansas center Cole Aldrich
Cole Aldrich
Cole David Aldrich is an American basketball player who is currently playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder in the National Basketball Association . He completed his junior year at the University of Kansas in March 2010. Aldrich was selected as a McDonald's All American in 2006. He attended...
said, "You're going to get done playing basketball, and you're going to look back and say, 'I loved playing that game.'" The Wichita Eagle wrote that the "rivalry is back." The second match-up on March 3, 2010 was the first time since 1958 that both teams were ranked in the top 5 with Kansas at #2 and KSU at #5. With number one seed implications on the line, Frank Martin called it "the biggest game we've ever played at K-State". Kansas went on to win 82-65 and secure sole possession of the Big 12 Championship. The two teams met again in the 2010 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament
2010 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament
The 2010 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men's Basketball Championship was the 2010 edition of the Big 12 Conference's championship tournament held at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri from March 10 until March 13, 2010. It was won by top-seeded Kansas...
Championship Game with KU ranked #1 in the nation and KSU ranked #9. The Jayhawks won 72-64, completing the three game sweep of the Wildcats and winning the Big 12 Tournament title.
Conference titles
From 1946 through 1978, Kansas and Kansas State made the competition for the basketball title for their conference (known as the Big Six, Big Seven and Big Eight during this time) virtually a two-way affair. During this 33-year period, KU or KSU won or shared the title 26 times. The following chart shows the conference titles captured by the Sunflower Showdown schools during this span of time.| Team | Season | Conference |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas | 1945–1946 | Big Six Conference |
| Kansas State | 1947–1948 | Big Seven Conference |
| Kansas | 1949–1950 | Big Seven |
| Kansas State | ||
| Kansas State | 1950–1951 | Big Seven |
| Kansas | 1951–1952 | Big Seven |
| Kansas | 1952–1953 | Big Seven |
| Kansas | 1953–1954 | Big Seven |
| Kansas State | 1955–1956 | Big Seven |
| Kansas | 1956–1957 | Big Seven |
| Kansas State | 1957–1958 | Big Seven |
| Kansas State | 1958–1959 | Big Eight Conference Big Eight Conference The Big Eight Conference, a former NCAA-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored football, was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association by its charter member schools: the University of Kansas, University of Missouri, University... |
| Kansas State | 1959–1960 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | ||
| Kansas State | 1960–1961 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1962–1963 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1963–1964 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | 1965–1966 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | 1966–1967 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1967–1968 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1969–1970 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | 1970–1971 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1971–1972 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1972–1973 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | 1973–1974 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | 1974–1975 | Big Eight |
| Kansas State | 1976–1977 | Big Eight |
| Kansas | 1977–1978 | Big Eight |
Both schools have also won a number of other conference basketball titles, with the University of Kansas alone winning or sharing 54 conference titles in 102 years of conference play following the 2009-2010 season – more conference titles than any other Division I basketball team in the country.
Football
History
After the two programs began playing football in 1902, ill will soon surfaced. Following the 19091909 in sports
1909 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Yale Bulldogs-Association football:England...
contest, a 5-3 KU victory, a dispute between the schools led them to cancel the game scheduled for the 1910 season. After taking the break in 1910, the teams have met on the field every autumn since, and the 2010 game marked the 100th straight year the two teams played. Only three other series in college football have been contested for more consecutive years.
KU was notably dominant in the series during the early years, building a 17-1-3 advantage through the 1923 season. Since 1923, the programs have been much more even, with KU holding a 47-39-2 advantage during that period (including a 1980 forfeit by KU). Because KU does not acknowledge its forfeit, the two schools disagree on the overall series record. KU and the Big 12 say it leads the series 65-39-5, while Kansas State reports the record as 64-40-5 following the 2011 game.
The teams began competing for the Governor's Cup
Governor's Cup (Kansas)
The Governor's Cup is a trophy awarded to the victor of the annual college football game between the University of Kansas and Kansas State University, as part of the "Sunflower Showdown." It has been awarded every year since 1969....
in 1969, and many of the most storied or interesting games between the programs have come during this period, including a 1995 matchup between sixth-ranked Kansas and fourteenth-ranked Kansas State, won by Kansas State 41-7.
During the 1990s and early 2000s, Kansas State fielded a much stronger team – annually garnering high national rankings – resulting in a winning streak over KU that lasted from 1993 through the 2003 season, finally ending in 2004.
Baseball
Series standings
The schools compete annually in football, men's basketball, women's basketball, women's volleyball, baseball, cross country, track and field, women's tennis, rowing, men's golf, and women's golf. Kansas State does not sponsor fast-pitch softball or women's soccer, and Kansas does not sponsor men's tennis. Below are the series records in the major sports.| Sport | Series Record | Last Result |
|---|---|---|
| Football | KU leads 65-39-5† or 64-40-5‡ | 59-21 KSU win on October 22, 2011 |
| Men's Basketball | KU leads 181-91 | 84-68 KSU win on February 14, 2011 |
| Women's Basketball | KSU leads 59-42 | 56-51 KSU win on March 5, 2011 |
| Baseball | KU leads 176-165-1† or KSU leads 167-161-1‡ | 10-6 KSU win on May 22, 2011 |
| Women's Volleyball | KSU leads 62-41-1 | 3-1 KSU win on November 23, 2011 |
| Women's Tennis | KU leads 39-11 | 4-1 KSU win on April 28, 2011 |
| Women's Rowing | KSU leads 14-13 |
13-6 KSU win on April 23, 2011 |
† - As recorded in the KU record books. ‡ - As recorded in the K-State record books. |