Five True Facts about … Kansas football
Charlie Riedel, AP Photo
Kansas wide receiver Trevor Wilson runs the ball during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Iowa State Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo.Each week the Daily Herald provides five true facts about BYU’s next football opponent. This week, the University of Kansas.
One: Leather helmets
Kansas first started playing football in 1890, making it one of the oldest college football programs in the country.
Two: Futility streak
The Jayhawks had a 44-game losing streak against ranked teams from 2009 to 2022, when they beat 18th-ranked Oklahoma State 37-16.
Three: On top of the world
Kansas last won a conference championships in 1968 (Big Eight).
Four: Old-school simulation
In 1911, more than a thousand fans gathered in downtown Lawrence to watch a mechanical reproduction of a game being played at Missouri. A Western Union telegraph wire was set up to relay the plays to officials, who used a large model of a football playing field to show the results.
Five: Rah, rah, rah
The school’s famous “Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk … KU” cheer was invented in 1886 by a chemistry teacher named E.H.S. Bailey for the science club and was originally, “Rah, Rah, Jayhawk, KU.” It was replaced by “Rock, Chalk” because chalk rock is the name of the limestone all around the KU campus and because it rhymed with “Jayhawk.”
