Missouri’s 38-21 win over Kansas on Friday ended with more than just a final whistle. It ended with a message.
After Kansas rolled out a hype video before the Border War that leaned on the history of Bleeding Kansas, Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said he saw it, took it personally, and wanted to answer in kind. The result was a chippy finish that brought pushing and shoving between players and coaches from both sides when the game was over.
“I was embarrassed for them, to be honest,” Drinkwitz said. “That's why I tried to embarrass them at the end.”
The Kansas video, which went viral, cast John Brown as an avatar for Kansas and William Quantrill as one for Missouri, with the narrator declaring, “There's right and wrong,” and then, “There's Kansas and Missouri.”
Drinkwitz said the timing made it worse. The video came out hours before the 25th anniversary of 9/11, and he said he didn’t think it was the right moment to drag old divisions into the present.
“I was disappointed in the rivalry, the turn that it took today,” Drinkwitz said. “I thought that was uncalled for.
This is about two teams playing football. Especially on 9/11, when we need more unity than ever before, to put some stuff on your screen celebrating ...
I mean, everybody's got complicated pasts. To make that an icon was bizarre to me.
"I'm just glad that this whole 'right versus wrong' bull crap that was started just got settled on a football field because it's a football game. It's an American football team that people love to come cheer for their teams.
It's not any deeper than that. I get there's a past to it, but why are we stirring that bull crap up?
It's 9/11. This country needs unity now more than ever.”
Drinkwitz also posted on X after the game, writing: “Hey Jack!? How’d that hype video end!?
Cause I’d didn’t see yall take the goalpost!? Was that supposed to happen??
#MIZ #WINNERSWIN”
On the field, the late-game tone matched the earlier words. With 28 seconds left and Missouri up 17, Drinkwitz kept the ball in the air after Kansas turned it over on downs. Backup quarterback Matt Zollers threw toward the end zone from the Jayhawks’ 13-yard line.
Drinkwitz said the point wasn’t to pile on, but to send a reminder.
“I didn't wanna score too bad or I'd have called timeouts and tried,” Drinkwitz said. “We didn't think we were gonna throw that in the end zone, but we just wanted to let them know, 'Dude, what are y'all doing?'
This is a football game. It shouldn't be bigger than that.”
The next Border War meeting won’t come until 2031, when Missouri hosts Kansas, but this one already has plenty to carry into the next chapter.
In Other News...
Kansas Let This Rivalry Game Slip Away For One Frustrating Reason
Kansas had the kind of first half that suggested the Border War might come down to a few key swings, with the teams tied 14-14 at the break before Missouri pulled away in the second half. The Jayhawks kept themselves in range early, but the game started tilting once Missouri began piling up yardage and Kansas could not match it for long stretches.
The bigger issue was the turnover battle, where Kansas gave it away three times and could not recover from the extra empty possessions. Isaiah Marshall had a rough afternoon as the offense stalled around him, and Kansas was outgained 469 yards to 255 in a loss that felt like it got away from them after halftime. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Suddenly Has A Quarterback Problem It Cant Ignore
Isaiah Marshall got his first start against an FBS opponent and the spotlight came with plenty of growing pains. With Cole Ballard forced out early after what looked like a shoulder injury, Marshall had to carry the offense the rest of the way, and the numbers told the story of a quarterback still trying to find his footing. He completed passes for 168 yards and found the end zone twice, but the overall performance was uneven enough to leave the sense that Kansas is still searching for stability behind center.
The bigger concern is less about arm talent than about the parts of the position that tend to decide close games. Marshall showed some mobility and a knack for improvising when plays broke down, but his decision-making and poise drew real questions from both the coaching staff and fans. Kansas can live with mistakes from a young quarterback while he develops, but it is getting harder to ignore the uncertainty that has crept into the room. [Read more 🡒]
Drinkwitz Just Turned Kansas Into A Bigger Rivalry Flashpoint
The Border Showdown already had enough edge to matter, but the latest meeting between Kansas and Missouri pushed the series back into the national conversation. Kansas helped set the tone with a pregame hype video, and the response from Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz made clear this was never going to feel like an ordinary nonconference game. Even with the on-field result in the rearview, the rivalry has kept its bite because both sides understand how quickly the emotion can spill beyond the lines.
Lance Leipold handled the fallout in a far calmer register, saying Missouri had every right to keep scoring and that Kansass job was simply to stop it. Drinkwitz, meanwhile, did little to suggest he wants the series to become a bigger annual event, especially with the teams not scheduled to meet again until 2031. For Kansas, the deeper issue is not just the outcome of one game but the way a long-dormant rivalry can suddenly feel bigger, sharper and harder to leave alone. [Read more 🡒]