The Border War is back and we should all be happy about it
The Border War is back!
Screw political correctness and screw journalistic integrity. I'm calling it the Border War because that's what it is and I'm using exclamation points because that's what it deserves.
A little more than seven years ago, the University of Missouri made the decision to take its ball and leave the Big 12 Conference. At the same time, the University of Kansas made the decision to take its ball and go home, saying it wouldn't play the Tigers if they wanted to leave the league.
For seven years, Mizzou fans have said "We're in the SEC, the Big 12 is dumb, we don't need you." For seven years, Jayhawk faithful have said, "We're better than you, why would we play you, we don't need you."
And on Monday night, everybody finally came to their senses.
If you're one of those on either side that wants to keep your pride and keep saying "We don't need you!" I guess that's your prerogative. Go ahead. But I don't agree with you. I haven't for seven years, I don't now and I won't in 2025 when this series is over and hopefully renewed for another generation to enjoy.
Missouri basketball is better when Kansas is on the schedule. Kansas basketball is better when Missouri is on the schedule. College basketball is better when this game is played. It's better when this war that started before college basketball was played (and it was a war, look up the history youngins) is a thing. It's better when the Antlers can haze Bill Self and when they can play Grandpa Simpson on the video board at Allen Fieldhouse. It's better when we can talk about Aaron Miles and Lee Coward and Christian Moody and Marcus Denmon and how Thomas Robinson fouled Phil Pressey. It's just all better.
So much of what's gone on in college sports in the last decade or so has been about hurt feelings and chasing paychecks and abandoning history and pride. And if we're really being honest, very little of it has made anything better except the bottom line for the schools. And finally, we get something that's about what it should be about: The fans. Us.
I grew up on this rivalry. My ancestors were threatened by Jayhawkers around the Civil War. Most of my family went to Mizzou. My father told me when I went to college the only two things I couldn't do were play basketball for Bobby Knight and attend the University of Kansas. For my last two years in college and then another ten after I came back to work for PowerMizzou, I got a front row seat to this rivalry. I saw Corey Tate win one in double overtime, I saw the only loss for a loaded Jayhawk team lead by Paul Pierce and Raef LaFrentz, I saw Ryan Robertson get booed every time he moved, I saw blowouts in Lawrence and nail-biters in Hearnes and Mizzou Arena. I saw 2012 where the two teams played two of the most epic games in the history of the series before Mizzou walked out the door.
And since then, I've seen, well, there have been basketball games. I've gone to Rupp Arena and the SEC has tried to manufacture a rivalry between Mizzou and Arkansas that seemed real for about ten seconds when I thought Mike Anderson and Frank Haith might throw down at midcourt. But it wasn't the same. It wasn't the Border War.
Maybe Kansas fans would say they've had as much fun beating the hell out of Kansas State or welcoming Bob Huggins and West Virginia to Allen Fieldhouse. But they'd mostly be lying to show you they were too cool to admit that it was fun playing Missouri. For God's sake, the two teams sold out an exhibition game in about two hours. Sure, both sides felt good about raising money for disaster relief, but if you think either team would have generated that much buzz without the other one, well, come on man.
We were nearing the point where this rivalry coming back wasn't going to be a big deal. By the time the first game is played (Dec. 12, 2020 at the Sprint Center, mark it down right now), the freshmen at both schools were ten years old the last time the two teams played. If it stayed away long enough, it was just going to be something we told our kids about. But now, a whole new generation gets to know what this thing is like. And man it's been good a whole lot of times.
You can say it won't matter as much because they're not in the same league. You can say you won't go because you don't want to play those dirty bastards from the other school. You can say you want the game to be played in football too.
But I don't care about any of that. I only care that the sporting event that gave me more memories than any other--both good and bad--is back. Thanks to Cuonzo Martin and Bill Self. Thanks to Jim Sterk and Jeff Long. Thanks for thinking of us.
The Border War is back. This is great. Time to start working on those stripper pole jokes.