In a stunning turn of events, the No. 16 Colorado Buffaloes saw their College Football Playoff aspirations crumble after suffering a devastating 37-21 loss to the Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday. The defeat, which took place at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, sent shockwaves through the college football world and left Colorado head coach Deion Sanders searching for answers.
A Jayhawk Juggernaut
Kansas, led by a career-best performance from senior running back Devin Neal, dominated the game from start to finish. Neal amassed an astonishing 287 yards from scrimmage and found the end zone four times, powering a Jayhawk offense that proved unstoppable. Kansas outrushed Colorado 331-42 and never punted or turned the ball over in a near-flawless outing.
Sanders: “We Got Intoxicated with Success”
In the aftermath of the loss, a visibly frustrated Deion Sanders pulled no punches in his assessment of his team’s performance. “We started smelling ourselves a little bit,” Sanders admitted. “We got intoxicated with the success. We got intoxicated with the multitude of articles and the assumption that we’re this and the assumption that we’re that. And we did not play CU football. Therefore, we got our butts kicked.”
“We could not stop the bleeding. We tried consistently, but we could not stop the bleeding. That’s hats off to them. They were physical. They outphysicaled us. They outplayed us. They wanted it a lot more than we did.”
– Deion Sanders, Colorado Head Coach
Big 12 Title Hopes Hanging by a Thread
The loss couldn’t have come at a worse time for Colorado, who entered the game with an 8-2 record and a clear path to the Big 12 Championship Game. Now, the Buffaloes find themselves in a three-way tie atop the conference standings with Arizona State and BYU, with Iowa State also in the mix pending Saturday night’s result against Utah.
If all four teams finish tied at 7-2, Arizona State would earn the No. 1 seed and face Iowa State in the title game, according to Big 12 tiebreaker policy. It’s a bitter pill to swallow for a Colorado team that appeared destined for greatness just a week ago.
Kansas Rising from the Ashes
On the other side of the coin, Kansas’ resurgence under head coach Lance Leipold has been nothing short of remarkable. After starting the season 1-5, the Jayhawks have now won four of their last five games, including three straight victories over ranked opponents – a first in program history.
“I’m extremely proud of them and their resolve and resiliency of going through it. There was a lot of negativity hanging around about what was wrong with this program and what should be done and things like that. We’ve talked about how close we were for a long time. They owned it, they kept working, they stuck together and you can see the results of that. I think it’s something that’s truly special.”
– Lance Leipold, Kansas Head Coach
With a chance to secure bowl eligibility for an unprecedented third straight year, Kansas will look to keep the momentum going in their regular-season finale against Baylor next Saturday.
Where Does Colorado Go from Here?
As for Colorado, the road ahead is filled with uncertainty. The Buffaloes will need to regroup quickly as they prepare to host Oklahoma State on Friday with their once-promising season suddenly hanging in the balance.
Despite the setback, Sanders remains confident that his team will bounce back and finish strong. “You’ve got to refocus your young men and let them understand this is not about turkey and dumplings and cranberry sauce and whatever you have,” he said. “It’s not about that. It’s about football, man.”
Only time will tell if the Buffaloes can salvage their season and make a late push for a spot in the Big 12 title game. But one thing is certain: the path to the playoffs just got a whole lot tougher for Deion Sanders and his Colorado squad.
