FROM ROW 15
Braggin' rights forever ended a little early. It disappeared over Kerry Meier's shoulder into the south endzone then glanced off Philip Strozier's extended hand a few plays later. Braggin' rights forever? C'mon, it's the war. It doesn't matter if you're playing for the national title in front of 80,000 or both teams come in 0-11. The only thing that matters is scoreboard and KU has it for this particular 365 day period.
THE GOOD
Jake Laptad gets the safety. That's when I knew. After two years of watching Chase Daniel stand back and pick us apart with no harrassment, I knew when he went down in the same endzone that Missouri snagged Todd Reesing to end the 2007 game. Irony, I love it.
BONUS GOOD
The end-game duel between Chase Daniel and Todd Reesing. It sure was nice to see Reesing win this one, especially with one of his typical avoid the rush plays. You know the one where he locates "Old Reliable" at the last minute. With the timeout prior, you have a lot of time to think about that one as a fan. My thought line was something along the following line. In situations like this you sometimes see the type of play that you remember forever. And we did.
THE BAD
Probably shouldn't even mention it as the defense set this up by playing three-and-a-half quarters with absolute guts. You could see that they had everything in this one because they were out of gas at the end and the tackling suffered ... or maybe the Tigers slicked up their jerseys with Vaseline or something. Again though, no criticism because they set up Todd Reesing for a final duel and their faith in the snake wrangler from Texas paid off.
THE SWEET
Guess who won't be here next year? Yep, #10 in yellow is gone. So is #45. And in my opininion, Jeremy Maclin is absolutely ready for the NFL. Why chance injury next year while a new QB learns the ropes? On the flip side, I'll be looking forward to watching Todd Reesing, Dezmon Briscoe, Kerry Meier, Jake Sharp, Darrell Stuckey, Jake Laptad, Max O and many more return to Arrowhead for the 2009 game.
WHAT'S NEXT
Well, we'll root against Mizzou on Saturday and wait for our official bid to the Insight Bowl next Sunday. Looks like we'll get Minnesota and I certainly like a Big 10 matchup. In the meantime, it's time to start up the campaign for dragging KU fans out to Arrowhead for the 2009 game. Hey, it's a four-year deal now and we know all of the negatives, but we're locked in. Plus, the Kansas players voted with their play on Saturday and delivered a victory to remember. Now, it's time for KU fan to step up and claim your side of the stadium. We're on the cusp now as a program and though we've improved our football fan base quite a bit, it's time to take it to the next level. It's time to toughen up and be a factor in every game. Forget the campus atmosphere and game day revenue for Lawrence merchants -- the number one reason KU fans are skipping the Arrowhead Border War is they don't like interacting with MU fans. No, it's not pleasant, but maybe that's the way it's supposed to be. It's a war on the field and the players have to go earn it. Maybe, KU fan needs to earn it in the stands as well -- cheer your team, set an unwavering example of good sportsmanship and maybe see something special.