KU makes its point, delivers a KO to No. 23 Tigers

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- First Kansas showed its archrival who had the better team. Then the Jayhawks went about showing Missouri who had more class.

As thousands of fans stormed the field Saturday and began tearing down the goalposts following a 35-14 victory over the 23rd-ranked Tigers, Kansas players all made a point to stay clear.

Last year at Missouri, after the Tigers won 36-12 victory in the oldest rivalry west of the Mississippi, the Missouri players had helped their fans rip down the goalposts, planting the seeds for revenge this season.

"We came into this game saying we weren't going to tear down any goalposts because that's showing no class," said running back Clark Green, who scored two touchdowns. "We thought what they did last year was disrespectful."

In the unlikely event that any of their players had forgotten that humiliation, Kansas coaches taped a photograph of Missouri players hopping onto the crossbars to everyone's locker stall.

"We definitely talked about the goalposts," said quarterback Bill Whittemore, who also scored two touchdowns and outplayed Missouri counterpart Brad Smith.

"We felt like it would be more classy if we just let our fans take care of that."

Whittemore scored on two short runs and engineered fourth-quarter drives of 72, 50 and 49 yards for the Jayhawks (4-1).

The sellout crowd of 50,071 was the largest for Kansas for any non-Nebraska game since 1975 and the Jayhawks' biggest ever at home against Missouri.

Smith, known for his fourth-quarter comebacks, never got untracked against a hard-charging Kansas defense and passed for only 62 yards. After running for 117 yards in Missouri's victory last year, he had only 33 yards on the ground.

"They just played good defense. That's all I can say," Smith said. "It's all of our fault. We just have to point the finger at ourselves."

Whittemore was 14-of-22 for 111 yards and picked up 76 more on 16 rushes.

"We're just going out there and having a good time," Whittemore said.

The Tigers, who were averaging 420 yards a game, managed only 196 against a defense ranked 10th in the Big 12. Zack Abron, with 112 yards on 17 carries, was the only threat the Tigers could muster.

"I feel awful," Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said. "And I feel bad for our fans. Obviously, I got outcoached today. I'm responsible for it."

Kansas went into halftime with a 13-7 lead despite a series of errors, starting with a missed extra point by Johnny Beck after Whittemore's 1-yard run gave the Jayhawks their first touchdown.

Smith, who scored on a 4-yard run in the first quarter, put the Tigers on top 14-13 with a 13-play, 72-yard drive in the third, capped by a 9-yard scoring pass to Darius Outlaw.

Then Kansas, which had taken a 13-7 lead on Green's 4-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, took charge.

Whittemore rushed for 32 yards on a 72-yard drive capped by Green's 6-yard TD run just a few seconds into the fourth to make it 21-14. Then, Whittemore took the Jayhawks on a 50-yard drive following Brock Harvey's 20-yard punt and scored on a 4-yard run.

In the final minutes, John Randle got loose on a 25-yard run and then scored on a 3-yard burst, going untouched through the weary Missouri defense.

Charles Gordon took Missouri's first punt 61 yards to the 14 and Whittemore a few minutes later bulled into the end zone from the 1.

Abron had gains of 15 and 19 yards on Missouri's 69-yard touchdown drive in the first quarter, aided by a 15-yard penalty when Nick Reid hit Smith out of bounds. Smith scored on a 4-yard run.