Deion Sanders: Colorado 'Fumbled' Chance to Control Our Own Destiny for CFP Bracket

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders said his team "fumbled" a chance to control their path to the College Football Playoff with Saturday's 37-21 loss to Kansas.

"We controlled our own destiny, and we fumbled it," Sanders told reporters after Saturday's loss.

Colorado entered Saturday's game at No. 16 in both the AP Top 25 poll and the College Football Playoff rankings.

The loss marked the Buffaloes' third of the season and threatened the team's chances of a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game.

The Big 12 gets one guaranteed spot in the first 12-team CFP. Three-loss Colorado, now out of the running for an at-large bid, could still earn that spot by emerging victorious from the conference title game.

But even winning out by defeating Oklahoma State next Friday will not secure the Buffaloes a spot in the conference championship game following the upset to Kansas.

Arizona State ensured they would remain in the Big 12 title game conversation with a 28-23 win over BYU earlier on Saturday.

That will leave Colorado scoreboard watching next weekend to track BYU, ASU and Iowa State.

Should Iowa State defeat Utah on Saturday, all four teams could potentially finish the season with matching conference records. Title game eligibility would come down to tie breakers, starting with head-to-head records and followed by win percentage against common conference opponents.

Every scenario that could get Colorado into the game hinges on the Buffaloes winning next Friday against Oklahoma State.

Colorado will be favored to win. Then again, the Buffaloes were also favored to win against Kansas. Having now defeated Iowa State, BYU and Colorado in consecutive weeks, the Jayhawks have singlehandedly done their best to mix up the Big 12 standings.

The Buffaloes struggled to contain the Jayhawks offense as then team allowed a season-high 520 total yards on Saturday night. Sanders will be looking for big nights from defenders like Shilo Sanders and Travis Hunter as Colorado looks to rebound during next weekend's must-win clash with Oklahoma State.