Somebody asked me the other day to name the most memorable Kansas University-Missouri football game I’ve ever seen. I was momentarily stumped. I’ve seen too many.

Still, I figured I could name a Top 10, although not in order of memorability. So here they are in chronological order:

Smell the Oranges

1968 — Kansas 21, Missouri 19. Jayhawks clinched share (with Oklahoma) of Big Eight Conference title and earned a trip to Orange Bowl in thrilling regular-season finale. Strong safety Dave Morgan was The Man, returning a Terry McMillan pass 35 yards for a TD, recovering a fumble to set up a KU score and intercepting a McMillan pass in the end zone to thwart a drive. Crowd of 61,013 was at the time (before Arrowhead Stadium, that is) the largest ever to witness a sports event in Missouri.

Let There Be Peace

1969 — Missouri 69, Kansas 21. After MU coach Dan Devine’s starters scored the first nine touchdowns, KU coach Pepper Rodgers quipped he had flashed Devine the peace sign and that Devine had flashed half of it back. McMillan, burned the year before, threw four TD passes and ran for two more. Crowd of 48,474 was — and still is — largest ever to witness KU-MU game in Lawrence.

The Great Comeback

1973 — Kansas 14, Missouri 13. Missouri led 13-0 going into the fourth quarter, but KU quarterback David Jaynes threw a pair of 14-yard TD passes to Bruce Adams and Emmett Edwards, his two favorite receivers. The pass to Edwards came with just 97 ticks showing. Mike Love’s extra point provided the clincher.

The Great Comeback II

1975 — Kansas 42, Missouri 24. Would you believe Kansas trailed 10-7 at halftime? The Jayhawks’ Wishbone offense exploded for 35 second-half points. Lightning-fast Laverne Smith rushed for 236 yards and fullbacks Norris Banks and Dennis Wright combined for 233 yards as the Tigers keyed on quarterback Nolan Cromwell, who settled for 53 yards in 20 carries but still finished as the Big Eight’s rushing leader.

No More Bud Moore

1978 — Missouri 48, Kansas 0. Missouri running backs James Wilder and Earl Gant steamrolled the Jayhawks and ended Bud Moore’s four-year tenure as KU coach — athletic director Bob Marcum fired Moore after the game. Moore had the last laugh, though, eventually becoming a millionaire beer distributor in the Pensacola, Fla., area.

The Salvage Job

1981 — Kansas 19, Missouri 11. After quarterback Frank Seurer went down in the first quarter because of a dislocated elbow, the Jayhawks rallied for 19 second-half points — a safety, a Bruce Kallmeyer field goal, a 15-yard Garfield Taylor run and Roger Foote’s 27-yard pass interception return. The win secured a berth in the now-defunct Hall of Fame Bowl in Birmingham, Ala. — KU’s last postseason outing on the mainland.

Gunfight in the Gloaming

1989 — Kansas 46, Missouri 44. The lead switched hands three times in the fourth quarter of this barn-burner. With darkness descending on lights-less Faurot Field, Missouri closed to within two points with :29 showing, but the Tigers failed on a two-point conversion. KU sophomore Tony Sands rushed for 215 yards and scored three TDs. MU quarterback Kent Kiefer threw for 444 yards and four TDs.

Tony Sands: Mr. Immortality

1991 — Kansas 43, Missouri 29. In the bone-chilling cold of a late November afternoon at Memorial Stadium, KU senior running back Tony Sands ran into history with 58 carries for 396 yards, both NCAA records. The 58 carries remain in the record book, but TCU’s LaDainian Tomlinson surpassed the 400-yard plateau a few years later.

The Heart-Stopper

1997 — Kansas 15, Missouri 7. MU was knocking on the door with a first-and-goal at the Kansas 10 in the waning moments when Ron Warner sacked quarterback Corby Jones, forcing a fumble recovered by Brett McGraw. KU ran out the clock, preserving the nail-biting victory.

Bye Bye, Larry Smith

2000 — Kansas 38, Missouri 17. Hammered by Kansas State (52-13) the week before, the Jayhawks limped to Columbia and shocked the favored Tigers as Carl Ivey intercepted two passes, Roger Ross had a 62-yard TD punt return and the defense held MU to a mere 10 rushing yards. It was the beginning of the end for MU coach Larry Smith, who was dismissed after the Tigers lost five of their last six, starting with the KU defeat.