LAWRENCE — It’s the same song but a different verse. The traditional “I’m a Jayhawk,” fight song has been reworked to remove mention of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, who are moving to the Big 10 Conference. Matt Schoenfeld of Countryside won a contest by the KU Alumni Association to redo the lyrics to reflect the changed Big 12 landscape. Although his wife is a KU graduate, Schoenfeld is a graduate of Baylor. But he included a stanza about the Jayhawks beating the Bears. His lyrics change the first verse and one line of the chorus: “Talk about the Sooners, Cowboys and the Bears,
Aggies and the Tiger and his tail. Talk about the Wildcats, and the Cyclone boys,
but I’m the bird to make ’em weep and wail.” The chorus: “’Cause I’m a Jay, Jay, Jay, Jay, Jayhawk, up at Lawrence on the Kaw … got a bill that’s big enough
to twist a Tiger’s tail, rope some ‘Horns and listen to the Red Raiders wail —’cause I’m a Jay, Jay, Jay, Jay, Jayhawk, riding on a Kansas gale.” “I’m a Jayhawk,” was written in 1912 by KU graduate George “Dumpy” Bowles. The lyrics haven’t been changed in 50 years.
Monday, Oct. 25, 7:30 a.m.
