Kansas vs. Missouri: Lance Leipold Is To Blame for Heartbreaking Loss

The Kansas Jayhawks are not a stronger or more athletic team than the Missouri Tigers, and everyone knew that heading into today’s Border Showdown. Still, KU had several chances to pull away with a victory before falling 42-31.

Despite the talent disparity on the field, the Jayhawks came up with some big defensive stops and even forced a fumble that resulted in a touchdown in the first quarter.

Unfortunately, conservative play-calling from offensive coordinator Jim Zebrowski and questionable decision-making by Lance Leipold left KU with little chance to leave victorious.

Kansas played a disciplined game avoiding penalties and had a chance to score a go-ahead touchdown with just over two minutes left after Missouri went ahead 35-31.

On third down at the Jayhawks' own 28-yard line, wide receiver Emmanuel Henderson Jr. dropped a pass, leaving KU with a fourth-and-7. Instead of trying to keep the drive alive, Leipold foolishly chose to punt.

Lance Leipold Made a Costly Decision in the Fourth Quarter

There was no reason for Kansas to boot the ball away in that situation. Missouri was running with kicker Robert Meyer, who replaced Blake Craig after Craig tore his ACL in the season opener.

Meyer had already had an extra point blocked earlier in the contest, and Missouri had shown a willingness to go for it on fourth down all game.

The Jayhawks punted from their own 28-yard line, a range Meyer likely wouldn’t have been comfortable attempting a field goal from anyway.

Even if KU had failed to convert, Missouri would have taken over with 2:45 left and would have needed a first down just like it did after the punt. Instead, Leipold sent out his punting unit, and it didn’t take long for Missouri running back Jamal Roberts to ice the game with a 63-yard touchdown run.

JAMAL ROBERTS GOES 63 YARDS TO PUT THE NAIL IN THE COFFIN @BarstoolMizzou
pic.twitter.com/0xg5wgtQqu
— Barstool U (@BarstoolU) September 6, 2025

We’ve seen this before from Leipold, who has struggled in late-game situations. It happened against UNLV, West Virginia, Arizona State, and more last season, where KU played too conservatively after jumping out to a big lead and let games slip away.

This issue extends to his coordinators as well. Kansas has cycled through three offensive coordinators in the past three years, and the same problem has persisted.

The Jayhawks led by as many as 15 today, but once again, they took their foot off the gas. Missouri walked away with its biggest comeback win in nearly a decade. The offense abandoned what had been working and leaned on a stagnant run game that finished with an abysmal three yards on 19 carries.

Leipold also settled for three points on a fourth-and-short in the red zone with the game tied at 21 in the third quarter.

There were plenty of positives to take away, but this was a winnable game KU had no business losing with how many breaks went its way. Leipold coached this one not to lose rather than going for the win — and that’s exactly why the Jayhawks left Columbia with a loss.