ISU date moved

By Ryan Greene     Jun 28, 2005

What could be a major football game in the Big 12 North this fall will have an extra week for build-up.

Kansas University’s game against Iowa State, originally scheduled for Nov. 19, now will be played Nov. 26 at Memorial Stadium after Fox Sports and the Big 12 Conference discussed televising the game.

“That game could very well be a significant game in our division,” KU associate athletics director Jim Marchiony said. “We expect a very good crowd for this game.”

KU has history with Iowa State in season finales. On Nov. 22, 2003, the Jayhawks’ 36-17 home victory ended the program’s seven-year postseason drought.

That game, played on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, drew a crowd of 34,518 that tossed fruit onto the field in anticipation of a Tangerine Bowl berth.

But a game on Thanksgiving weekend also brings the threat of what happened in 2001, when KU played host to Wyoming.

That makeup of a game postponed after the 9-11 terrorist attacks had a listed paid attendance of 24,000. But factor in freezing temperatures, driving rain and a lack of student support, and actual attendance was well under 10,000. The Jayhawks won, 27-14.

The athletics department, however, does not anticipate anything like that in 2005.

“I think we’re a much better team right now,” Marchiony said. “I think Iowa State is a very attractive opponent.”

Iowa State returns most of its team after a 7-5 campaign in 2004 that included a 17-13 victory over Miami (Ohio) in the Independence Bowl.

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