Governor's Cup (Kansas)

Governor's Cup
Teams Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas Jayhawks
Originated 1969
Series K-State leads 23-19-1 or 22-20-1
(disputed)
Current Holder Kansas State
Current Streak 3 in row
First meeting K-State 26, KU 22
Last meeting K-State 59, KU 21
Next Meeting Week 12, 2012

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.

Kansas State University leads the Cup series, with a 23-19-1 advantage. (Kansas forfeited a 1980 victory.)[1] The most recent game, played on October 22, 2011, was won by Kansas State University by a score of 59-21.

The two teams had a very long history prior to the inauguration of the Governor's Cup: they began play in 1902 and have faced each other every season since 1911, making this the third-longest uninterrupted series in college football history. The University of Kansas built a large advantage in the series by 1923, and still leads the overall series, although the two schools disagree on the record. KU does not acknowledge the forfeit, though the Big 8 Conference forced KU to vacate victories. KU leads the series 65-39-5, while Kansas State reports the record as 64-40-5.[2]

The Cup is actually the third trophy associated with the rivalry. In 1902, in the very first match-up, a "Governor's Trophy" was given to the winning team. Then, beginning in the 1940 football season, the winner of the KU-KSU contest received the "Peace Pact Trophy", which was miniature bronze goalposts. The Peace Pact Trophy was intended to keep the winning team's student body from tearing down the loser's goalposts. However, as years went by, both of these prior trophies were forgotten.

Contents

Game results

Date Site Winning team Losing team Series Attendance
October 11, 1969 Lawrence Kansas State 26 Kansas 22 KU 45–18–4
October 10, 1970 Manhattan Kansas 21 Kansas State 15 KU 46–18–4
October 9, 1971 Lawrence Kansas 39 Kansas State 13 KU 47–18–4
October 13, 1972 Manhattan Kansas State 20 Kansas 19 KU 47–19–4
October 13, 1973 Lawrence (#19) Kansas 25 Kansas State 18 KU 48–19–4
October 12, 1974 Manhattan (#19) Kansas 20 Kansas State 13 KU 49–19–4
November 1, 1975 Lawrence Kansas 28 Kansas State 0 KU 50–19–4
October 23, 1976 Manhattan Kansas 24 Kansas State 14 KU 51–19–4
November 5, 1977 Lawrence Kansas 29 Kansas State 21 KU 52–19–4
November 18, 1978 Manhattan Kansas State 36 Kansas 20 KU 52–20–4
November 3, 1979 Lawrence Kansas 36 Kansas State 28 KU 53–20–4
November 1, 1980 Manhattan Kansas StateA 18 Kansas 20 KU 53–21–4
October 24, 1981 Lawrence Kansas 17 Kansas State 14 KU 54–21–4
October 23, 1982 Manhattan Kansas State 36 Kansas 7 KU 54–22–4
October 15, 1983 Lawrence Kansas 31 Kansas State 3 KU 55–22–4
October 12, 1984 Manhattan Kansas State 24 Kansas 7 KU 55–23–4
October 19, 1985 Lawrence Kansas 38 Kansas State 7 KU 56–23–4
October 18, 1986 Manhattan Kansas State 29 Kansas 12 KU 56–24–4
November 7, 1987 Manhattan Kansas State 17 Kansas 17 KU 56–24–5
November 5, 1988 Lawrence Kansas 30 Kansas 12 KU 57–24–5
October 28, 1989 Manhattan Kansas 21 Kansas State 16 KU 58–24–5
October 27, 1990 Lawrence Kansas 27 Kansas State 24 KU 59–24–5
October 12, 1991 Manhattan Kansas State 16 Kansas 12 KU 59–25–5
October 10, 1992 Lawrence Kansas 31 Kansas State 7 KU 60–25–5
October 9, 1993 Manhattan Kansas State 10 Kansas 9 KU 60–26–5
October 6,1994 Lawrence (#19) Kansas State 21 Kansas 13 KU 60–27–5
October 28, 1995 Manhattan (#14) Kansas State 41 (# 6) Kansas 7 KU 60–28–5
November 9, 1996 Lawrence (#13) Kansas State 38 Kansas 12 KU 60–29–5
November 8, 1997 Manhattan (#11) Kansas State 48 Kansas 16 KU 60–30–5
October 31, 1998 Lawrence (# 3) Kansas State 54 Kansas 6 KU 60–31–5
October 9, 1999 Manhattan (# 9) Kansas State 50 Kansas 9 KU 60–32–5 52,254
October 7, 2000 Lawrence (# 4) Kansas State 52 Kansas 13 KU 60–33–5  
October 27, 2001 Manhattan Kansas State 40 Kansas 6 KU 60–34–5 51,101
November 2, 2002 Lawrence (#14) Kansas State 64 Kansas 0 KU 60–35–5
October 25, 2003 Manhattan Kansas State 42 Kansas 6 KU 60–36–5 51,614
October 9, 2004 Lawrence Kansas 31 Kansas State 28 KU 61–36–5 50,152
October 8, 2005 Manhattan Kansas State 12 Kansas 3 KU 61–37–5 49,798
November 18, 2006 Lawrence Kansas 39 Kansas State 20 KU 62–37–5 47,933
October 7, 2007 Manhattan Kansas 30 (#24) Kansas State 24 KU 63–37–5 50,924
November 1, 2008 Lawrence Kansas 52 Kansas State 21 KU 64–37–5 52,230
November 7, 2009 Manhattan Kansas State 17 Kansas 10 KU 64–38–5 48,306
October 14, 2010 Lawrence Kansas State 59 Kansas 7 KU 64–39–5 47,561
October 22, 2011 Lawrence (#12) Kansas State 59 Kansas 21 KU 64–40–5 47,157

Notable games

1969: The first game

Kansas State won the first contest in the Governor's Cup series 26-22 on October 11, 1969, in Lawrence, Kansas. The game was a classic in the series, contested by two high-quality teams. The University of Kansas was coming off an appearance in the Orange Bowl the previous season, while Kansas State in 1969 was an offensive juggernaut led by quarterback Lynn Dickey and running back Mack Herron. The game was not decided until the final play, when two K-State defenders jarred the ball loose from a KU receiver in the end zone. Following the game, Kansas State fans tore down the goalposts in KU's stadium (an act with a long history in the rivalry, and that K-State fans would repeat in 1994).

1980: The forfeit

On November 1, 1980, Kansas defeated Kansas State, 20-18, in Manhattan, Kansas, to take a commanding 9-3 lead in the first dozen years the Governor's Cup was awarded. However, it was later determined that Kerwin Bell, a running back for Kansas in that game, had been academically ineligible at the time. The Big Eight Conference later ordered Kansas to forfeit three conference wins and one tie from the 1980 season, including their victory in the 1980 Governor's Cup game.[1] As a result, the two schools now dispute the overall record in both the Sunflower Showdown and more recent Governor's Cup series, with each school claiming the 1980 game as a victory.

1987: The Toilet Bowl

The one tie in the Governor's Cup series, which occurred on November 7, 1987, in Manhattan is the most infamous game in the history of the series. The game, which was termed "The Toilet Bowl" and "The Futility Bowl" by national commentators during the week leading up to it, featured a KU team with a 1-7 record and 0-8 K-State. The contest lived down to expectations and resulted in a 17-17 tie, which was secured when Kansas blocked a field goal at the end of the game.[3][4] Following the tie, both teams went on to lose their last two games of the season.

1995: Two ranked teams

The only match-up in history of the two teams while they were both ranked occurred on October 28, 1995, in Manhattan.[5] The University of Kansas came into the game 7-0 and ranked #6 in the AP Poll, while Kansas State University was 5-1 and ranked #14. Both teams would finish the season ranked in the top ten, but this day belonged to Kansas State. KSU started strong and maintained the advantage throughout for a decisive 41-7 victory.

2004: The streak buster

An 11-year Kansas State winning streak was broken when KU won a back-and-forth 31-28 thriller in Lawrence on October 9, 2004.[6] This game represents an instance of the pupil besting his mentor, as Mark Mangino, head coach of the Jayhawks and former Wildcat assistant, defeated KSU top man Bill Snyder in his final visit to Memorial Stadium before Snyder retired (returned to coaching in 2009).

2007: Kansas wins in Manhattan

The Jayhawks entered the game 4-0 following their non-conference slate. Kansas State came in with a 3-1 record, but was favored in the contest, fresh off a 41-21 on-the-road upset of the Texas Longhorns and with a ranking of 24th in the AP Poll. The University of Kansas overcame several mistakes through the course of the first half, tying the contest 14-14 at halftime. Following a strong second-half performance by KU, the visitors from Lawrence posted a 30-24 victory. The game marked the Jayhawks' first win in Manhattan since 1989, but was also their third win in the last four games between the teams.

2009: Return of Bill Snyder

This was the first game to take place between University of Kansas and Kansas State since Bill Snyder returned to coaching the previous spring. The game marked the Wildcats' first win against KU since 2005, and coach Snyder was able to extended his personal record against the Jayhawks to nine straight home games won.

The Wildcats entered the game 5-4 (3-2 Big 12) following a 30-42 loss to Oklahoma the previous week. Kansas came in with a 5-3 (1-3 Big 12) record, after a 21-42 loss to the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Kansas State was the first to put points on the board with a field goal in the first quarter. This was followed with both the Jayhawks and Wildcats gaining touchdowns by halftime. The Kansas offense continued to struggle in the second half, making only a field goal after a Wildcat touchdown early in the half.

This win maintained the Wildcats' place at the top of the Big 12 North with only two games left in the regular season.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Sports People" (in English). New York Times. August 27, 1982. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9503EEDE1738F934A1575BC0A964948260. Retrieved 2006-12-30. 
  2. ^ "KSU-KU Postgame Notes" (Press release). Kansas State University. November 18, 2006. http://www.kstatesports.com/pdf3/52444.pdf?&KEY=BLITLGORZZCGHDK.20061113231920&ATCLID=693520&SPID=212&DB_OEM_ID=400&SPSID=3065. Retrieved 2006-12-30. 
  3. ^ "Jayhawks, K-State Battle to 17-17 Deadlock" (in English). Lawrence Journal-World. November 8, 1987. http://www2.kusports.com/news/1987/nov/08/jayhawks_kstate_battle_1717_deadlock/. Retrieved 2007-10-03. 
  4. ^ "Plunge Into History" (in English). Lawrence Journal-World. October 3, 2007. http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/oct/03/plunge_history/?football. Retrieved 2007-10-03. 
  5. ^ "Showdown Comes With High Expectations" (in English). Topeka Capital-Journal. October 4, 2007. http://cjonline.com/stories/100407/cat_205174726.shtml. Retrieved 2007-10-05. 
  6. ^ "At Last!" (in English). Lawrence Journal-World. October 10, 2004. http://www2.kusports.com/news/2004/oct/10/at_last/. Retrieved 2007-10-03. 
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