Photo courtesy of K-State Alumni Association
The Kansas State Wildcats and Kansas Jayhawks meet on the gridiron as the Sunflower Showdown takes place Saturday, Oct. 25, in Lawrence, Kansas.
K-State looks to continue its recent dominance over its rival, having won 16 straight games against KU. The past two seasons, the Jayhawks have been close to ending the “streak” and will try to get over the edge this season.
The first meeting between the two schools was in 1902, as KU hosted the Wildcats and beat K-State 16-0. The Jayhawks went on to win the first four games of the rivalry before the Wildcats won their first in 1906, 6-4.
Currently, the Jayhawks lead the all-time series with 64 wins to the Wildcats’ 53 wins. There have been five ties in the Sunflower Showdown’s history.
The early years of the rivalry saw KU as the dominant team. Recently, as you may know, it’s been the Wildcats who have dominated the rivalry. Kansas has beaten the Wildcats just four times since the year 1996, the year the Big 12 conference was formed.
Also, since the conference was formed, K-State ranks first among active Big 12 teams for conference wins with 146. Kansas ranks ninth in that same time frame with 56 conference wins. The Wildcats have also won three Big 12 championships, tying with Baylor for the most among active members since the conference’s inception.
The largest margin of victory by the Wildcats is when they beat Kansas 64-0 in November of the 2002 season. The Wildcats’ current 16-game winning streak is the longest ongoing winning streak against another team.
The Wildcats and Jayhawks’ last meeting on the day of Oct. 25 was in 2003 when the ‘Cats came out victorious with a 42-6 win. This game against the Jayhawks was when Darren Sproles broke the career rushing yards record at Kansas State, rushing for 98 yards in the win.
Last season, the Wildcats barely held on against Kansas, needing a 50-yard field goal from Chris Tennant late in the game to lead them to victory, 29-27. The year before, the ‘Cats beat KU 31-27 in Lawrence in a competitive game as well.
This year, the game shapes up to be another close, contested battle. The Sunflower Showdown, this Saturday, will kick off from Lawrence at 11 a.m. and be broadcast on TNT.