Missouri, Purdue officially announce football series for 2017-18

Missouri and Purdue officially announced a two-year football series on Wednesday that will help the Tigers fulfill a new Southeastern Conference scheduling requirement.

Starting in 2016, all 14 SEC teams must play at least one opponent from the other four major conferences: the Big 12, Pac-12, Big Ten and Atlantic Coast Conference. MU is still looking for a major opponent for 2016.

The series will begin Sept. 16, 2017, in Columbia, where Purdue will play its first game at Memorial Stadium since a 16-7 victory over the Tigers in 1956. The return game will be Sept. 15, 2018, in West Lafayette, Ind., where the Tigers last played in 1954, losing 31-0.

The last of the two schools’ eight meetings was in 1980, when Purdue won 28-25 in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tenn.

“We’re pleased to add a quality opponent such as Purdue to our schedule,” said Missouri executive associate athletic director Bryan Maggard, who oversees football scheduling. “We feel like this is an attractive game for many reasons, and that it provides a name opponent within traveling distance that will allow our fans the chance to see a new location and follow the Tigers on the road.”

This story was originally published July 9, 2014 at 11:13 AM with the headline "Missouri, Purdue officially announce football series for 2017-18."