Beating Missouri



  • The foundation was laid more than a sesquicentennial ago. Hatred formed out of a horrible violent act. Good vs. Evil. North vs. South, Slave vs. Free, however you want to call it, the foundation for a less serious type of hate was laid.

    There’s a lot of sports teams that have hated rivals. We all know about the Yanks and Sawx, Giants and Dodgers, Packers and Bears, latest beatdown coming tonight. But they’re all different rivals. These are rivals of hatred, just rivals of geographically proximate teams.

    Sox-Cubs is one I’m most familiar with. It’s a your team sucks, no your team sucks even worse lets all go out and get a beer after the game rivalry. They’ll make cute 'House divided shirts and license plate holders showing their rivalry can be put aside for more important things like relationships and just plain being human in a society that is striving more and more to be just and fair.

    But this rivalry, well it’s just extra as they like to say today. It seems as if, and I’m greatly generalizing here, so forgive me, that the opposing sides are representative of the sides that have greatly divided our country in the last half decade. And when I think of Missouri I just think of a state that hasn’t progressed too much in the areas of justice.

    Are there good people over there? Yes indeed. In fact there are people there, just like the rest of this country working for change in the areas that interest me and many others. I know some of you live in Missouri and love your state.

    But there’s just this added dimension to the rivalry that isn’t present in any other (to my knowledge) rivalry in this country. And so we play ball. Much anticipated, unappreciated by some, disliked by others. I get all of those perspectives. But the AD’s of said institutions thought it best to start it back up.

    I’m not sure it will have the same teeth it had before because Missouri University forgot how to play basketball when they moved to the $EC. That was a KU vs. SE Missouri type beatdown or Kangaroos St. of UMKC type of beatdown. The TV announcers noticed it. They might be the worst major team in the country. They’re the type of team that when those same Kangaroos beat MU they put an asterisk next to it. Because schools like UMKC like to brag in their promotional lit about beating major conference teams, so they tell potential season ticket holders “we beat an SEC team*” then read below *Missouri really sucks bad at basketball so don’t think we’re going to beat other power 5 schools.

    Another way to put it. Missouri in B12 = Illinois or Arkansas or OK State in basketball. Gonna give you a tough one. Missouri in SEC = SWAC team.

    So it was an enjoyable day. Nice to break 100 against them. Nice to see everyone scoring and defense not being compromised along the way like it was when we runned and gunned against St. Johns while giving up a bunch as well. No this was score at ease and still play KU defense.

    While part of me hopes Missouri improves so these games are competitive, thus strengthening our team, part of me thinks well that’s what the most central of all states gets for leaving the league they belong in. That’s what they deserve for going to those states you’re more in kindred spirit with.

    Forgive me if I’m wrong or stepped on toes, just trying to figure out this uniquest of rivals.



  • Man, has Mizzou fallen on hard times or what? That was a KU vs. Tennessee-Chatanooga score yesterday.


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