K-State president has heard enough of vulgar anti-KU chant

By Matt Tait     Feb 15, 2017

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Kansas State fans watch with disbelief after the Wildcats are whistled for a foul during the first half, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016 at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kan.

Around here, the popular profanity-laced chant unleashed by K-State students at home basketball games, whether they’re playing KU or not, has become the butt of many jokes, with Kansas fans pointing to what they believe is an inferiority complex by the Wildcats.

Whether that is accurate or not is up for debate and depends on who you’re talking to and whom you’re talking about, but administrators at K-State evidently have heard enough.

Released at high volume during the riot-inducing sounds of the popular techo beat “Sandstorm,” the “F- KU” chant, as it has become affectionately known throughout the state, has been a fixture at Kansas State basketball games during recent seasons.

It showed up again this year, when the Jayhawks knocked off the Wildcats 74-71 on Feb. 6 in Manhattan and even was audible earlier in the season, when the Wildcats played Texas at home.

While the chant has become part of the rivalry and is a source of pride for many K-Staters, first-year KSU president Richard Myers would like to see it end.

Myers, on K-State’s official web site on Thursday, released [the following statement][1] about the chant and sportsmanship in general.

> “As the first year of my presidency
> unfolds, I continue to be even more
> impressed by the wonderful
> accomplishments of our students,
> faculty and staff. I hear daily about
> a student’s accomplishment or a
> faculty member’s significant research.
> What a pleasant surprise to discover
> our university is even better than I
> knew. This is why I decided to compete
> to become your president.
>
> One surprise that has not been
> pleasant is hearing a vulgar chant at
> sporting events targeted at our
> in-state rival. It’s easy to see how
> one can get caught up in the moment.
> However, many of my friends across the
> nation reached out to me following
> last week’s men’s basketball game and
> expressed their dismay. The chant was
> clearly heard from coast to coast on
> national television. It was personally
> embarrassing and not what one expects
> from a world-class university.
>
> The strength of the Wildcat family
> lies in passing our legacy from one
> generation to the next. K-Staters are
> known for doing the right thing.
> Whether our fans are 8, 18 or 80, they
> deserve the best fan experience in the
> Big 12. I think about those younger
> fans sitting in the stands or watching
> on television and know they represent
> our next generation. As we continue
> the spring competition season, let’s
> show them the Wildcat Way.”

Whether the words above, or others like them from other K-State dignitaries, are enough to get rid of the chant remains to be seen and likely won’t be known for at least another year. It’s also not the biggest deal in the world. Fans will be fans and sometimes fans of all teams just can’t control their emotions.

But props to Myers for speaking up.

The K-State fan base is one of the best in the country and consistently brings great energy and excitement to the rivalry with KU. They’re clever, loud, passionate and proud and those traits should be enough without having to make blatant, loud and prolonged profanities a part of their regular routine.

[1]: http://www.k-state.edu/today/students/announcement.php?id=32442

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.