Missouri football’s long wait for a national title claim is finally over - and Congress helped make it happen.
The school announced it will recognize its 1960 team as a national champion after a recent U.S. Senate resolution. For Mizzou, it is the first national title claim in program history, arriving 66 years after the season ended.
“The 1960 team has an important place in Mizzou history, and after reviewing the historical record, we believe it is appropriate to honor that team as national champions,” athletic director Laird Veatch said in a release.
The resolution itself came from Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), who introduced S.
Res. 833 earlier this month. The Senate adopted it without objection, which fits the moment: honorary resolutions move quickly, especially when senators have other business - like the college sports bill that has yet to get across the finish line.
Schmitt’s push also had a rivalry edge to it. Missouri finished 10-1 that year, with its lone loss coming against Kansas in the regular-season finale.
But Kansas was later found to have used an ineligible player. The Big 8 stripped Kansas of the league title and ruled its final two games as forfeits, which technically pushed Missouri to 11-0 after a bowl win.
The NCAA, however, did not count that as a Missouri victory.
Missouri also has the Poling System on its side. That mathematical formula, used from 1924 to 1984 and recognized by the NCAA as a historical championship selector, ranked the Tigers No. 1.
Still, the 1960 title picture has always been messy. Missouri had not previously claimed the national championship, while Minnesota and Ole Miss are treated as the co-national champions from the pre-bowl polls.
Washington and Iowa also claim pieces of the year. Washington beat Minnesota in the Rose Bowl and finished No. 1 in the Helms rankings, while Iowa finished No. 1 in another official formula despite losing to Minnesota.
With Missouri now adding its claim, five teams say they won the 1960 title.
The timing of Schmitt’s resolution wasn’t random. The Senate went into recess in early August and does not return until Sept. 14, which is three days after Missouri and Kansas meet in Lawrence this season.
“A championship obtained by cheating is not a championship at all,” Schmitt said on the Senate floor. “The people of Kansas have spent more than six decades trying to turn a blatant penalty into a moral victory.
But the truth is harder to bear, and facts are stubborn things. Missouri finished 11-0, reminding the conference and the American populace that cheaters never truly win.”
In Other News...
Mizzous Freshman Core Already Looks Ready For The Spotlight
Missouris volleyball team opened the season with a clean start at the Mizzou Invitational, rolling past Western Illinois and Towson in back-to-back sweeps. The early results gave the Tigers a quick jolt of momentum, but the bigger takeaway was the way the freshman class immediately fit into the action, with Ceylin Kuyan making an eye-catching debut and Eva Smith following with a strong showing in the second match.
Dawn Sullivan had plenty to like about the groups energy and consistency across the day, and that matters for a team trying to build its identity early. What makes the opening weekend even more interesting is how quickly those first-year players seem capable of shaping the rotation, giving Missouri a deeper and more versatile look as the schedule starts to tighten. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzous Backfield Picture Just Got Clearer Ahead Of The Opener
Missouris first depth-chart clues for the opener are starting to come into focus, and Jamal Roberts is right in the middle of it. Eli Drinkwitz said the veteran running back will be part of the starting group as the Tigers line up for the new season, a notable step for a player entering his fourth year after a career-best campaign. Roberts is joined on the list by left tackle Cayden Green, center Dominick Giudice, linebacker Nicholas Rodriguez, safety Santana Banner and kicker Blake Craig, giving Missouri a clearer sense of the core it expects to lean on early.
The rest of the group also speaks to where the Tigers believe their experience is strongest. Green and Giudice anchor the offensive line, Rodriguez and Banner give the defense familiar names in the middle and back end, and Craig handles a specialist role that can quietly matter in a tight September rhythm. For Missouri, the bigger takeaway is less about any one spot than the way the picture is settling ahead of kickoff, even if the full rotation in the backfield still leaves a little room for the opener to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzou Is Mourning One Of The Greatest Track Stars In Program History
Missouri track and field lost one of its all-time standard-bearers with the death of Dan Lavitt at age 67. A former Tiger who later became a 2000 Hall of Fame inductee, Lavitt built his reputation as one of the programs most accomplished hurdlers, winning four Big Eight Conference titles and setting a school record in the 110-meter high hurdles in 1980.
Lavitts legacy at Mizzou reached beyond individual medals, too. He was part of a relay unit that helped set a world record, and after his competitive career ended, he remained a familiar part of the Columbia community. For a program that has long taken pride in its history, his passing is a reminder of just how much one athlete can mean both on the track and far beyond it. [Read more 🡒]