Despite Missouri wanting to continue athletic competition, no further regular season games were scheduled between the two schools for several years.

[5] On October 21, 2019, the schools agreed to play six basketball games beginning in 2020,[6] however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the renewal was postponed one season.

Many believe the rivalry can trace its history to open violence involving anti-slavery and pro-slavery elements that took place in the Kansas Territory and the western frontier towns of Missouri throughout the 1850s.

When the Civil War began, the animosity that developed during the Kansas territorial period erupted in particularly vicious fighting.

The raid on Lawrence was led by William Quantrill, a Confederate guerrilla born in Ohio who had formed his bushwhacker group at the end of 1861.

[10] A rebuttal provided extensive evidence the rivalry "from its start, was influenced by animosity dating to the Border War".

In the three years preceding and the decades following the Civil War, the term "Jayhawker" was generally an epithet denoting "plundering marauder" both in the Missouri–Kansas region and nationally.

[21] Ironically, they once protected Columbia from attack by a band led by "Bloody Bill" Anderson, who participated in the Burning of Lawrence along with Quantrill.

KU supporters returned fire with a shirt depicting abolitionist John Brown with the words, "Kansas: Keeping America Safe From Missouri Since 1854.

Players, students, alumni, and fans failed to adopt the new name, and even media outlets such as Sports Illustrated[29] and NBC[24] continued to refer to the rivalry as the Border War.

Source:[34] When the series ended in 2011, it was the second-most-played rivalry in Division I-A (FBS) football history, with 120 games played.

[35][36][failed verification] The winner of the football game receives the informally arranged Indian War Drum traveling trophy.

The MU Kansas City Alumni Association made arrangements for the drum to be built by Osage Indians, because they represented the states more than other tribes.

The tradition resumed on an annual basis in 1947, and the MU and KU circles of Omicron Delta Kappa served as caretakers of the drum throughout most of its history.

[35][47][48] Going into the 1960 game, Missouri (9–0, #1 nationally ranked) was known for their very stingy defense that, until giving up 19 points to Oklahoma the week before the Border War match-up, had not allowed a team to reach double digits all season.

Their offense relied heavily on a wide sweep to the right with speedsters Norris Stevenson and Mel West in the backfield.

Even without Coan, Kansas's backfield consisted of three future NFL draft picks: two-time All-American John Hadl at QB had led the Big 8 in all-purpose yardage as a RB in the 1959 season; halfback Curtis McClinton (three-time All-Big 8), and Doyle Schick at fullback.

Kansas had threatened twice in the first half, but had turned the ball over on downs after Missouri's defense made a formidable goal line stand.

Missouri Coach Dan Devine stated "the better team won",[51] but also cited Coan as a key factor in the game.

[52] At TCU's urging, the NCAA investigated the matter and it was revealed Coan had taken a plane trip to an all-star game in the summer of 1959, paid for by KU donor and AFL co-founder Bud Adams.

Initially, Coan also denied any impropriety in his transfer to KU, but later in a 2007 interview he admitted he had indeed been illegally recruited by Adams.

Based upon the NCAA's ruling that a representative of KU's athletic interests, Bud Adams, had transported Coan from his home in Texas to Chicago to view a football all-star game,[54] the conference's members ruled, by a vote of 5–3, that KU had violated a conference ban on off-campus recruiting.

The Big 8 then ordered KU to forfeit the two games in which Coan had played following the NCAA finding (versus Colorado and Missouri).

When asked at the Look All-America gathering in New York City Missouri All-American, Danny LaRose said, "It'll always be a 9–1 season as far as I'm concerned.

Also at the gathering, Colorado All-American guard Joe Romig echoed similar feelings when he said, "I don't care what the NCAA or the Big Eight does.

"[55] Meanwhile, Kansas All-American quarterback John Hadl expressed more concern about his teammate when asked at the All-America gathering and had this to say, "He's a good guy.

"[55] Missouri head coach Dan Devine expressed his apparent disappointment in the process adopted by the Big 8 when he said, "This is the worst thing that could happen in inter-collegiate athletics.

KU relies on the actual on the field results of the game as well as the record keeping by the NCAA, which never ruled on the Conference determination one way or the other.

Bonus points are awarded for matchups that take place in post-season competition (Big 12 or NCAA tournaments).

[65] In 2007, the Jayhawks and Tigers added a non-conference game against each other in addition their three-game regular season Big 12 series.