1987 Kansas Jayhawks football team

1987 Kansas Jayhawks football
Conference	Big Eight Conference
Record	1–9–1 (0–6–1 Big 8)
Head coach	Bob Valesente (2nd season)
Captain	Game captains
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium

1987 Big Eight Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Oklahoma $	7	–	0	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 6 Nebraska	6	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 11 Oklahoma State	5	–	2	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
Colorado	4	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Missouri	3	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Iowa State	2	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Kansas	0	–	6	–	1			1	–	9	–	1
Kansas State	0	–	6	–	1			0	–	10	–	1
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987 Kansas Jayhawks football team represented the University of Kansas as a member of the Big Eight Conference during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their second and final season under head coach Bob Valesente, the Jayhawks compiled an overall record of 1–9–1 with a mark of 0–6–1 against conference opponents, tied for in seventh place in the Big 8, and were outscored by opponents by a combined total of 398 to 135.^[1][2] The team played home games at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas.

The team's statistical leaders included Kelly Donohoe with 981 passing yards, Arnold Snell with 691 rushing yards, and Willie Vaughn with 672 receiving yards.^[3] Team captains were selected game by game.^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 12	at No. 4 Auburn*	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL		L 0–49	65,711	[4]
September 19	Kent State*	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS		L 17–31	33,700
September 26	Louisiana Tech*	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS		L 11–16	23,000	[5]
October 3	Southern Illinois*	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS		W 16–15	20,500	[6]
October 10	at No. 2 Nebraska	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE (rivalry)		L 2–54	76,053
October 17	at Colorado	Folsom Field Boulder, CO	KCNC	L 10–35	43,514
October 24	Iowa State	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS		L 28–42	28,300
October 31	No. 1 Oklahoma	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS		L 10–71	23,500
November 7	at Kansas State	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS (Sunflower Showdown)		T 17–17	37,600
November 14	No. 17 Oklahoma State	Memorial Stadium Lawrence, KS		L 17–49	18,200–18,500
November 21	at Missouri	Faurot Field Columbia, MO (Border War)		L 7–19	32,202
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "1987 Kansas Jayhawks Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
2. 2017 Kansas Football Media Guide, p. 186.
3. "1987 Kansas Jayhawks Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
4. "Jayhawks demolished, excedrin headache No. 49". The Wichita Eagle. September 13, 1987. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "KU squanders chances in loss to La. Tech". The Kansas City Star. September 27, 1987. Retrieved July 6, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Win over SIU ends year-long victory drought for KU". The Salina Journal. October 4, 1987. Retrieved December 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.