HILLSBORO, Kan. – NAIA football isn't completely over yet, so this article is still relevant, despite the fact that there are only a handful of teams still playing. Tabor College played its first season of varsity football in 1967, one full year before the Bluejays gained membership in the historic Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC), and while not yet a full member of the league, TC played an eight-game schedule exclusively against KCAC opponents. At some point this schoolyear, the Tabor College Sports Information department will do a deeper dive into the history of Tabor's move to the KCAC and the path to joining the league, but the aim of this article is to explore the evolution of the Bluejays' football scheduling and exploring some fun facts and nuggets along the way.
 
The inaugural season of Bluejay football saw TC take on a schedule featuring eight different future KCAC foes, most of which likely sound familiar to current fans. The Bluejays took on Southwestern College, McPherson College, St. Mary of the Plains College, Kansas Wesleyan University, Friends University, Sterling College, Ottawa University, and Bethany College. Seven of the eight schools are still annual opponents, as St. Mary of the Plains, formerly the western-most institution in the KCAC, closed its doors back in 1992. Despite the Cavaliers early exit, TC and St. Mary of the Plains enjoyed a longstanding series from the beginning of one program, to the ending of the other. Interestingly enough, Tabor and Saint Mary of the Plains both joined the KCAC in 1968. 
 
A year later, Tabor officially joined the KCAC, adding two new opponents to a schedule including seven of the previous season's eight opponents. The Bluejays kicked off the longstanding 'Menno Bowl' rivalry with Bethel College, blanking the Threshers 35-0 in the first meeting between the two programs. 1968 also saw the first and only meeting between TC and then-KCAC member College of Emporia, as the Fighting Presbies left the KCAC for the Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) in 1971. COE eventually closed its doors in 1974, giving the school an eternal 1-0 record over Tabor on the gridiron. 
 
1969 saw the Bluejays switch out opponents once again, this time adding Baker University as part of TC's eight-game KCAC schedule. This marked the first of two meetings between the two programs, as they met once again the following season. Baker owns a 2-0 record over the Bluejays, winning by scores of 36-7 (1969) and 14-6 (1970). In addition to Baker gracing Tabor's 1970 slate, the Bluejays met Tarkio College in the program's first non-conference game since joining the KCAC, as the Owls began their first year in the Heart that season. Tarkio took the lone meeting, 21-6 and went on to compete until the college closed its doors in 1991.
 
Tabor replaced Tarkio on the 1971 schedule with Colorado College, a small liberal arts institution in Colorado Springs. The Tigers rolled past TC in the first-ever matchup between the two programs, 56-18, but the series would continue with the two schools meeting five more times with the final meeting taking place in 2005.
 
The next new opponent to appear on the Bluejay football schedule popped up in 1973 when TC took on Midland Lutheran College in their final contest of the season. Midland Lutheran, now known as Midland University, joined the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) in 1969 and is located in Fremont, Neb., just outside Omaha. The Warriors won the only meeting between the two programs in a 49-3 drubbing.
 
Benedictine College took Midland Lutheran's place during the 1974 campaign, giving the Bluejays a 13-0 loss. BC, located in Atchison, is a short three-hour trip from Hillsboro, making for a solid non-conference opponent. Tabor took on the Ravens in each of the following three seasons. In 1978, another GPAC opponent was added to the schedule in the form of the Hastings College Broncos. Another interesting tidbit from the 1978 schedule is the fact that the Bluejays matchup with Ottawa was tabbed as a non-conference game. Ottawa left the KCAC for the Heart in 1971, joining up with the growing number of Kansas City area teams in the league, before returning to the KCAC in 1982. Despite the Braves competing in a different league, they would still frequently schedule former KCAC opponents for their non-conference contests.
 
Once again, Hastings met up with the Bluejays in 1979, along with another Nebraska foe in Peru State College.
 
Over the course of the next few weeks, the Tabor College Sports Information Department will be taking a deep dive into the colorful history of TC Football opponents throughout the years. Fans will get to learn fun facts and nuggets about Tabor Football they may never have thought of before.
 
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The Tabor College Sports Information Department is showcasing former athletes and/or their respective teams throughout the 2024-25 school year in the new Flashback Friday series. The goal of this series is to bring recognition to the alumni that helped build the Bluejay Athletic Department into what it is today, as well as to create excitement for the current athletic programs here at Tabor.
 
Be sure to stay up to date with all information regarding Bluejay Athletics by following us on X at @gotaborbluejays, on Instagram and Facebook @taborbluejays, and on our official athletic website, taborbluejays.com.
 
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).