Another championship year: Chiefs’ Super Bowl run tops KC’s sports stories of 2023
Kansas City sports joy peaked in early February with confetti falling on the Chiefs after their second Super Bowl triumph in four years. What could possibly match that?
But the year in sports continued with moments to cheer and savor, including from plenty of other teams around the KC metro.
Here’s our chronological list of the most newsworthy — for better or worse — moments in Kansas City sports in 2023:
Chiefs are ‘Super’ again (Feb. 12)
Once again, the Chiefs spotted a Super Bowl opponent a double-digit lead before roaring back.
This time, the Philadelphia Eagles jumped to a 10-point halftime advantage. But behind NFL and Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs, as they did four years earlier when they trailed the San Francisco 49ers by 11, didn’t flinch. Mahomes threw a pair of touchdown passes and kicker Harrison Butker provided the go-ahead score with a 27-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining for the 38-35 triumph.
Sidebar: When the final viewing numbers were counted, Super Bowl LVII was the most watched program of all-time, with more than 115 million viewers.
Bill Self steps away from KU (March 8)
The day before Kansas opened play at the Big 12 tournament and week before the Jayhawks would begin defense of their NCAA title, coach Bill Self was taken to KU Medical Center and had a catheterization to treat blocked arteries in his heart. His basketball season was over, and KU’s soon would be with a second-round loss to Arkansas.
About a month later, Self spoke publicly for the first time since the episode and reaffirmed his desire to continue coaching. “I missed my job,” he said. “I love my job and I want to do my job for a long time.”
Sidebar: The “long time,” is at least five years. That’s the length of his extended contract — a “lifetime” deal that adds a year after each season completed — signed in November. Self, 60, is set to make $53 million over that span.
K-State and the play of the NCAA Tournament (March 23)
Kansas State point guard Markquis Nowell exchanged animated hand signals with coach Jerome Tang. And in the next instant, while standing some 35 feet from the basket, he flicked a perfect chest pass to Keyontae Johnson, who cut behind the Michigan State defense for a reverse slam.
Kansas State had the lead for good in overtime, Nowell had his 18th — and most artistic — assist on his way to an NCAA Tournament record 19, and the Wildcats’ magical NCAA Tournament run continued with a 98-93 triumph. Making it more special for Nowell, the Harlem native, the Sweet 16 game was played at Madison Square Garden.
Sidebar: Tang’s Wildcats were picked to finish last in the Big 12. No conference team advanced farther in the NCAA Tournament.
The NFL Draft comes to Kansas City (April 27-29)
Four years after the announcement, the NFL Draft arrived in Kansas City and played to mostly rave reviews. One of the largest events in the city’s history attracted an estimated 312,000 fans to the three-day football festival at Union Station and the National World War I Museum and Memorial.
Three of the first four players selected were quarterbacks, with Alabama’s Bryce Young going to the Carolina Panthers, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud to the Houston Texans and Florida’s Anthony Richardson to the Indianapolis Colts.
Sidebar: Visit KC estimated $164.3 million in economic impact for the three-day event, and some 54 million viewers watched part of the event on ABC and ESPN.
Summer (and fall ... and winter) of Royals stadium news (June 29)
The location for the Royals’ proposed downtown ballpark will be identified by late summer, team owner John Sherman announced: East Village or North Kansas City. But as of the final days of 2023 no site has been announced and many other questions remain unanswered.
Will a sales-tax extension proposal go to the voters in April 2024? How will other funding work? Why is former Royals All-Star second baseman and now Jackson County executive Frank White against the project? Why should the Royals leave Kauffman Stadium? The answers should come in 2024.
Sidebar: A third possible site re-emerged in November. Originally rejected, the area along downtown’s south loop holds appeal for its location in the heart of growing area, between the Power & Light District and Crossroads District.
“Traylor” (or “Tay-vis”) begins with a snub (July 7-8)
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour arrived in Kansas City for two of 52 shows on her U.S. tour, and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce wanted to give her a bracelet ... and his telephone number. Swift is reluctant to meet people before and after concerts, and Kelce said on the New Heights podcast he shares with his brother Jason that he was “butt-hurt” over the snub.
But two months later, Swift attended her first Chiefs game, and saw Kelce catch a touchdown pass against the Chicago Bears. They were a couple by then, Swift said in her Time Person of the Year story. She’s worn red to Chiefs games home and away since, and she sometimes hangs out in Kansas City when she’s not touring. Pretty cool, KC.
Sidebar: Swift’s appearances at Chiefs games increased the viewership of an already popular team. The Chiefs have played in the highest-rated NFL game of the week five times since Swift started attending games.
Chris Jones returns to the Chiefs (Sept. 11)
Over a contract dispute, Chiefs star defensive lineman Chris Jones missed all of offseason activities, training camp and the Chiefs’ opening-game loss to the Detroit Lions. Finally, Jones signed a one-year deal, and he’s solidified the best Chiefs defense in the Mahomes era.
As the offense struggles to find the flow of previous seasons, the Jones-led defense has ranked among the NFL’s top 10 all season.
Sidebar: Because of salary cap implications, the Chiefs are unlikely to sign Jones to a long-term contract or apply the franchise tag next season.
Harrison Mevis from 61! (Sept. 16)
No. 15 Kansas State, the defending Big 12 champion, came to Missouri to meet a Tigers team that hadn’t been impressive in its first two games. But a back-and-forth contest came down to a final play, 61-yard field goal attempt by Harrison Mevis.
Mizzou fans stormed the field, and the Tigers used the momentum to build a 10-2 record, the seventh double-digit victory total in the program’s 122 years, in Eli Drinkwitz’s fourth season. Next task: A Cotton Bowl date with Ohio State.
Sidebar: Tigers running back Cody Schrader joined the program last year as a transfer from Division II Truman State. His 1,499 rushing yards this season rank third in school history. Schrader was named a consensus All-American and finished eighth in Heisman voting.
Bobby Witt Jr.’s 30/30 season (Sept. 29)
Bobby Witt Jr. had locked up the stolen-bases end of the 30/30 club with nearly two months left in the season. He needed nearly the entire year to get his 30th home run. It came on the final weekend, when Witt belted a two-run blast against the New York Yankees to become the first Royals player to reach the statistical milestone.
In his second major-league season, Witt was superb with an .815 OPS and finished seventh in MVP balloting. He became the first player in MLB history with at least 30 home runs, 10 triples (he led the AL with 11) and 45 stolen bases (finishing with 49).
Sidebar: Is a contract extension in Witt’s future? He’s not eligible for free agency until 2028 but Royals general manager J.J. Picollo said the organization wants to keep Witt in Kansas City. “He is a special player,” Picollo said. “We want to keep special players in our uniform.”
Sporting KC saves season ... and sweeps St. Louis (Nov. 5)
By the end of April, Sporting KC had played 10 games and had no victories. The team was going nowhere, called a players-only retreat and aired out issues and concerns. The result? A victory in the next game at Seattle that started a remarkable recovery all the way to the MLS Cup conference semifinals.
To get there, Sporting, the eighth seed, had to defeat top-seeded St. Louis, looking to cap an inaugural season with a championship. Instead, Sporting defeated its budding rival St. Louis twice. A season was saved.
Sidebar: Sporting is getting younger. After the season the club released legends Graham Zusi and Roger Espinoza. They combined for 810 appearances for SKC.
What’s coming to KC in 2024?
CPKC Stadium opening
The Kansas City Current will play 2024 home games in the first stadium constructed specifically for a professional women’s team — named CPKC Stadium. The NWSL season kicks off in mid-March, and the schedule will be announced at a later date.
The Current will have new leadership. Vlatko Andonovski, who won two NWSL titles while coaching FC Kansas City, returns after four years coaching the U.S. Women’s National Team.
Tickets: cpkcstadium.com/tickets
World Cup 2026 announcements
The first quarter of 2024 is expected to bring the FIFA World Cup 2026 dates of games in each of the North American cities, including Kansas City. The teams won’t be known until they qualify, but KC and other cities will know when the games will be played.
NCAA wrestling returns
The NCAA Wrestling Championship is back in Kansas City for the second time. It played to full houses at Kemper Arena in 2003 and the same is expected for T-Mobile Center on March 21-23.
Tickets: www.ncaatickets.com.
