Wednesday, October 31, 2007
In the Big 12 conference’s history, the South has dominated the North in football. But with the many unexpected game outcomes so far this season it’s no surprise that the roles have switched.
This past Saturday was a good example of how far along the North has come in terms of competing with the South. The North claimed victory in three of four games against the South. Kansas defeated Texas A&M, Colorado won at Texas Tech and Kansas State stomped Baylor. Nebraska played Texas and even though the Cornhuskers led most of the game against the Longhorns, Nebraska couldn’t quite pull the upset in Austin, Texas.
Nebraska lost for three straight weeks and a win on the road against Texas would have saved (and been the highlight of) its season. The media would maybe stop talking about whether head coach Bill Callahan is going to be fired and maybe give the team a boost going into this Saturday’s contest against the undefeated Kansas.
"And with only one true road game left (and at least one more on a neutral site), Kansas looks to finish strong and get a nod for a BCS bowl game."
As for those Jayhawks, not only have they won against two of the Texas schools, they have also proved they can do it on the road. Before this season the Jayhawks had only won four road games in Mark Mangino tenure as head coach and none against South opponents. They have almost doubled that total so far this season, with three total conference road wins.
Many other shocking upset victories that prove the North’s worth have included Colorado over then No. 3 Oklahoma, and Kansas State’s win at then No. 7 Texas. The Buffaloes scored 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to come from behind and defeat the Sooners, while the Wildcats beat Texas by 20. This was a big boost in confidence, for Colorado especially. It showed that the North is a lot stronger then everyone expected it to be. Colorado also had a big win against the high-powered offense of Texas Tech this past weekend, the week after Missouri beat the Red Raiders in Columbia, Mo. Except for Iowa State and Nebraska, teams that are 0-3 against the South, the North has been great.
Of the 16 games played so far this year between North and South teams, 10 points or fewer have decided seven games, with the overall record tied at 8-8. Subtract Nebraska and Iowa State the other four North teams (Kansas, Missouri, Kansas State, Colorado) are 8-2 total. In previous years the typical scenario was that South teams, like Oklahoma or Texas, would win their games by about 30 points. Now the tables have turned, and the powerhouse programs in the Big 12 South are starting to realize that games against North teams aren’t cakewalks anymore.
Overall, there are only two more North vs. South Big 12 games left in the season. Both should be just as exciting as the previous games. There could be some more upsets because that has been the story of the season. The most important and thrilling one will have to be the Big 12 championship game in December. Even though there have been a few surprise victories in recent years, this one will probably be one of the most remembered just because everyone can finally say that Oklahoma or Texas won’t be riding on their high horses expecting to win by 30.
Kansan Sports Columnist Erica Johnson can be reached at ejohnson@kansan.com
— Edited by Rachael Gray
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