COLUMBIA, Mo. - As the Missouri Tigers battled on Faurot Field against the Troy Trojans, there was a different feeling in the air than a typical Saturday evening at Memorial Stadium. Whether it was a fan’s first time stepping into the stadium or a season ticket holder who’s been committed to the program for decades, everyone witnessed the incredible honor that a legendary team received. 

“Getting to see all these people come together for Missouri football is great,” former Mizzou halfback Donnie Smith said.

On a night that was 66 years in the making, Smith was a member of the undefeated 1960 football team that was recognized as national champions Saturday evening. New signage was unveiled on the Memorial Stadium west press box honoring the team as national champions. At halftime, a ceremony formally honored the 1960 team. Joining Smith in the North End Zone field suites were three more members of the 1960 team and their families: Don Wainwright, Carl Crawford and Jim Estes. Family members of other deceased teammates joined them in the ceremony – representing standout players Norris Stevenson, Ed Blaine and Rockne Calhoun, among others – as well as several generations of Devine family members, all connected to Hall of Fame coach Dan Devine. Dan Devine Jr. represented the 1960 team during the pregame “Big Mo” tradition, smashing the drum in the north concourse just before kickoff. 

The evening was nothing short of emotional for the former players and their families as tears were streaming down many of their faces during the halftime ceremony.

“It’s nice to be recognized,” said Wainwright, a sophomore defensive end on the 11-0 squad. 

The season itself was a magical one from the start, as Mizzou won by 10 points or more in its first nine games of the 1960 campaign. 

“We were a team,” Wainwright said. “There was so much camaraderie on our team it was unbelievable.”

A main strength for the squad was their mentally stable presence on the field.

“They were all smart,” Wainwright said. “When you pick up the paper on Sunday morning, Devine would say, ‘These are the worst athletes I've ever coached, but they're so smart they can't help but move the ball from one end zone to the other.’”

One of the biggest hurdles the team had to overcome was going on the road against Oklahoma. Going into that game, the last time the Tigers had beaten the Sooners was 1945. The 15-year drought was a long one, but it was time for the then 8-0 Missouri squad to snap the streak.

The Tigers defeated the menacing Sooners in a convincing 41-19 road victory in what the Missouri players called the “Snake Pit.” Not only did the victory end the drought, it moved the Tigers to No. 1 in the rankings.

“There's a picture of me in the paper next to the words, ‘Number One.’ I will never forget it,” Wainwright said. 

A big victory for the Tigers meant a big celebration when the team arrived at the Columbia Municipal Airport. At the time of the victory, Columbia was just a town of around 35,000 residents. That did not stop the celebration, as the whole town packed the streets for the bus to drive the team to campus. The team got the warm welcome they deserved with an escort by a fire engine.

“My dad grabs me and pulls me up onto the steps of the fire engine,” Dan Devine Jr. said. “I rode with him all the way back to campus – and that was a memory that I will always have.”

After slaying the Sooners, it was time for the Tigers to take on their most hated rival, Kansas. 

“I think the rivalry was worse than it is now,” Wainwright said. 

While a national title was very much on the players’ minds, regional pride in one of the more bitter rivalries in sports was more important for the players. 

While the Tigers suffered a 23-7 defeat, much more unfolded after the game leading to years of endless controversy.  Bert Coan, a newly acquired Kansas running back from TCU, accumulated 67 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the game for the Jayhawks. However, Coan was later ruled ineligible by the Big Eight following violations regarding impermissible benefits. As a result, Kansas was stripped of its final two wins and the Big Eight title. 

“Kansas is just a bunch of jerks, so I'm glad that the law came out on top," Smith said. “We're the boys that deserved it.”

Despite the forfeit ruling, the Missouri players still had a bitter taste in their mouths and wanted to end the season with a victory decided on the field. The team got the opportunity to play in the Orange Bowl against No. 4 Navy and Heisman Trophy winner Joe Bellino. Despite the honor, it took some grit for the team to stay sharp for the month and a half in between the Kansas game and the Orange Bowl.

“I put (football) down on my resume,” Wainwright said. “They would ask, ‘Did you work?’ I said, ‘Have you taken 25 hours a semester in engineering and played football? That's work.’”

The Tigers defeated the Midshipmen 21-14 and held Bellino to just 4 yards, ending the season on a high note.

“We were going to win that game,” Smith said. “It meant something.”

After the undefeated season, years passed where the team may have been forgotten or just not thought of when talking about Missouri Tiger football history until Sen. Eric Schmitt introduced a resolution on the U.S. Senate floor on Aug. 6 that was unanimously passed to declare the 1960 team national champions. Schmitt joined the 1960 team for Saturday’s ceremony, sporting a throwback Mizzou jersey featuring the No. 60 with one word emblazoned on the back: CHAMPS.

“We should have been national champions back then, but it's quite a thrill,” Smith said.

The teams’ legacy forever lives on as being the best in the country, but it meant more than just a championship. 

“He'd look out and be appreciative of all the fans that are here cheering for the team,” Devine Jr. said when talking about his father, who died in 2002.

For Smith, representing his home state and bringing a title home is what really mattered to him. 

“I almost went to Oklahoma and Arkansas,” Smith said. “Then I finally just said, ‘No, I'm going to play for my state and thank goodness I did.’”

While other schools also claim the 1960 title, one thing is unmistakable: The 1960 Tigers earned the recognition they deserved.

“(Missouri) means everything,” Smith said, “and we had a heck of a team out there.”