Missouri Tigers Need to Avoid Stirring Echoes of Last Season vs. Kansas

The agonizing vividness of that photo is still freshly branded in my brain.

Down by two scores to unranked Kansas early in the third quarter of last season's Border Showdown, No. 13 Missouri scored 27 of the game's next 34 points to take a seemingly unconquerable 37-33 lead with less than two minutes remaining.

For a star-laden MU squad, it appeared to be a fitting and satisfying end to a regular season that had sadly gone terribly awry after beginning with darkhorse-ish national championship aspirations.

With a commanding lead in the shaky Big 12 North, the Tigers were assured a spot in the conference championship regardless of its performance against the Jayhawks.

But for MU quarterback Chase Daniel and his fellow seniors, the opportunity to beat their hated neighbors to the West for the third time in four years was the more pressing matter. And here they were, a mere 90 seconds away from their goal.

Yet, for all the heroics of the MU offense to dramatically and courageously overcome a sizable deficit on national television, one image from the 2008 Border Showdown stands above all else: KU receiver Kerry Meier , after breezing by paralyzed MU safety Justin Garrett, hauling in a fourth-down, 26-yard desperation heave from quarterback Todd Reesing to ultimately seal the Jayhawks' 40-37 win .

It was a moment that took your breath away, but only because it felt like someone was mean-spirited enough to punch you in your stomach.

And it was clear, one week later against the Oklahoma, that the Tigers were still shaking out the cobwebs during their 41-point throttling at the hands of the Sooners.

And now, here we are, 364 days later and things don't look all that much different.

After another midseason malaise, Missouri (7-4, 3-4) has righted the ship with a late surge and would like nothing more than to put a stamp on the season with a win over the Jayhawks.

And like 2008, the Tigers, once possessing the look of a team that was down-and-out, now look rejuvenated while arguably playing their best football to date.

And though it has struck in a much larger and more publicized manner this time around, adversity appears to be crippling the KU program late in the season. 

In 2008, the Jayhawks, after beginning the season 5-1, lost four of five to limp into the Missouri game at 6-5 and barely bowl-eligible.

However, the last-second theatrics of Reesing and Meier saved a season in peril, as the win over MU generated enough momentum to carry Kansas to an eight-win campaign that ended in a victory over Minnesota in the Insight Bowl.

And if the Jayhawks appeared frail at this time last season, their psyche now is absolutely off the charts .

The only thing that would make this Mark Mangino scandal spicier would be if he would agree to opt out of his $6 million worth of contract money to wrestle athletic director Lew Perkins in a steel-cage, table-ladders-and-chairs match in downtown Lawrence.

For weeks now we have heard every angle of the allegations against Mangino. Players' moms and dads have been called out for their unsavory parental prowess.

Former Jayhawks have spoken out, with some saying their old coach resembles a mean dictator who doesn't shy away from getting in a player's face or doing a little chest-poking.

Even at the deepest level, Kansas (5-6, 1-6) appears to be in shambles. But that's precisely what makes the Jayhawks such a dangerous team at Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday. And that's precisely what makes the Tigers so vulnerable at the same time.

This is a game Missouri should win. The Tigers have momentum. They have unity and cohesiveness. You could argue that Missouri is far better than Kansas, with or without the whole Mangino upheaval.

Hit hard by graduation and the NFL in the offseason, the 2009 Tigers are young—but they're not stupid. Upperclassmen have put in the time to lecture younger players on how important the Kansas game is.

What few seniors there are on the MU roster still marvel at how that game got away last season, which is the first step in preventing history from repeating itself.

If it does, the Tigers are in a world of trouble.

Despite the politics and turmoil that are eating away at the program, Kansas will undoubtedly give Missouri its best game.

Much has been said about Mangino's rotund physique, but his heart of gold and devotion to his job have not gone unnoticed by his players, so it's easily dismissive to say the Jayhawks will lie down for the Tigers.

Plus, what of KU's seniors? Do they not want to earn bowl eligibility to prolong their careers, and do so against their biggest rival?

For players like Reesing and Meier, who aren't exactly locks to get selected in next year's draft, this may be their last shot. And what better way to go out than by perhaps replicating last season's memorable pitch-and-catch to win the game?

Not only would a loss drop the Tigers to a murky 7-5, but it would do nothing to ward off those skeptics who insisted prior to the season that the MU program was entering a reconstruction phase and needed some time to ascend back to the top of the Big 12.

A loss to Kansas would be utterly disastrous. In a weird sort of way, it would almost render meaningless everything the Tigers have achieved this season.

Missouri is known for losing games like this. It's happened too many times for it not to be a concern just because Kansas has lost six in a row and is on the potential verge of a nasty lawsuit with its embattled head coach.

This rivalry is the second-oldest in college football and arguably its most competitive, with each team claiming 54 victories.

But if MU head coach Gary Pinkel wants to forge ahead in his task to change the culture in Columbia, the Tigers have to break that deadlock on Saturday.

Furthermore, the Tigers are currently facing a spectrum of possibilities in regards to which bowl invitation they'll receive, with the most prominent being a call to represent the Big 12 in the Cotton Bowl for the second time in three years.

However, with a loss on Saturday, Missouri may be destined for a repeat trip to San Antonio for the Alamo Bowl, whereas a win could mean a boarding pass to San Diego to face a high-profile Pac-10 opponent in the more appealing Holiday Bowl.

Missouri's loss to Kansas last season hurt. It hurt a lot. But all things considered, a defeat in Saturday's rival war would be downright excruciating.

Especially if Reesing and Meier decide to play a recurring role.

Photo credit: Associated Press