KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Devin Neal ran for 207 yards and three touchdowns, caught four passes for 80 yards and another score, and led Kansas to a 37-21 victory over No. 16 Colorado on Saturday that dealt a big blow to the Buffaloes' hopes of playing for the Big 12 title.

Jalon Daniels threw for 189 yards and a touchdown, and the Jayhawks (5-6, 4-4) scored on every offensive possession but their last, keeping Colorado stars Shedeur Sanders and Heisman Trophy candidate Travis Hunter standing on the sideline.

“We controlled our own destiny,” Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders said afterward, “and we fumbled it.”

Now, the Buffaloes (8-3, 6-2 Big 12, No. 16 CFP) need to beat Oklahoma State next week and get some help to play for a title in their return to the Big 12, and ultimately earn the league’s guaranteed spot in the College Football Playoff.

Shedeur Sanders finished with 266 yards passing and three TDs, setting the Colorado single-season record with 30 of them, and Hunter had eight catches for 125 yards and two scores as the two-way standout continued his Heisman campaign.

Problem is Hunter did little on defense, nor did anyone else in an all-white uniform. Kansas controlled the ball for more than 40 minutes, piled up 331 yards rushing and finished with 520 yards of total offense.

“There was a lot of negativity hanging around about what was wrong with this program and what should be done, and all of that,” said Kansas coach Lance Leipold, whose team became the first in FBS history with a losing record to beat three straight teams in the AP Top 25. “They owned it, they kept working, they stuck together and you can see the results of that.”

The Jayhawks, whose back-to-back wins over Iowa State and BYU had given them newfound confidence, suddenly resemble the team expected to challenge for a Big 12 title, before a series of late-game collapses resulted in a 1-5 start.

“We've just played with an extra edge, just in general these last three weeks. We have a different motivation,” said Neal, who also became the first player in Kansas history with three 1,000-yard rushing seasons. “Eventually we were just tired of losing — tired of losing the close ones. We knew what we had to do. It was a matter of doing it.”

The Jayhawks sure did it Saturday, opening the scoring with Neal's 51-yard touchdown catch. They forced a three-and-out and scored again for a 10-0 lead. And when they got the ball back yet again, taking advantage of a misfiring Colorado offense, Kansas churned down field and Neal scampered into the end zone for another score.

It was 17-0 before Hunter, who has emerged as the Heisman front-runner, took a short pass from Sanders and cut up field, deftly slipping between several Kansas defenders and going untouched 51 yards for a touchdown.

The teams traded scores into the break, the Jayhawks holding tight to a 23-14 advantage. The question became whether Leipold and the Jayhawks would rue kicking field goals of 24, 23 and 25 yards rather than going for those first-half touchdowns.

Nope.

After the Buffaloes closed within 23-21 on Hunter's second TD catch, the Jayhawks marched 80 yards with Neal answering the score. Kansas immediately forced a three-and-out, sacking Sanders on third down — he appeared to shove an official in the back after the play — and the Neal scored again to cap an 8-plus minute drive and give the Jayhawks a 37-21 lead.

Colorado's comeback chances ended when Cobee Bryant broke up a pass in the end zone on fourth down late in the game.

“It was fun in the locker room, man,” Bryant said, "just to see the whole team smiling, having fun, jumping around.”

The Takeaway

Colorado will lament a defense that was simply incapable of stopping the Jayhawks. Defensive back Shilo Sanders was flagged twice and gave up several big plays, while the Buffaloes were bullied up front by the Kansas offensive line.

Kansas could improbably make a bowl game for a third straight season for the first time in school history. The Jayhawks merely need to beat Baylor in their regular-season finale to earn an invitation.

Up Next

Colorado plays Oklahoma State on Friday.

Kansas visits Baylor on Saturday.

Keene, Donelson help Fresno State beat Colorado State 28-22

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — Mikey Keene threw two touchdown passes, Bryson Donelson had a career-high 150 yards rushing and a TD on 13 carries Saturday night and Fresno State beat Colorado State 28-22.

Colorado State (7-4, 5-1 Mountain West) fell into a tie for second with No. 24 UNLV in the conference standings behind No. 12 Boise State — which will host the Mountain West championship game on Dec. 6.

Donelson, a freshman, went into the game with 199 yards rushing this season, including his previous season high of 58 yards in the season opener. Keene was 20-of-28 passing for 181 yards with no interceptions. Mac Dalena finished with seven receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown for Fresno State (6-5, 4-3 Mountain West Conference).

Justin Marshall capped a 12-play, 77-yard opening drive that took nearly 6 1/2 minutes off the clock with a 10-yard TD for the Rams and finished with 94 yards rushing.

Donelson ran for a 21 yards and Keene hit Raylen Sharpe for a 38-yard gain to set up a 16-yard TD run by Donelson to make it 7-7. Joshua Wood followed with a 4-yard scoring run before Dalena caught a 28-yard touchdown pass with 3:18 left in the second quarter and Keene hit Jalen Moss for a 15-yard TD less than 3 minutes later that gave the Bulldogs a 28-7 lead at halftime.

Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi ran for a 9-yard TD late in the third quarter, threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Jamari Person and then hit Vince Brown II for the 2-point conversion to trim Colorado State's deficit to 28-22 with 17 seconds left.

No. 12 Boise State holds off stubborn Wyoming 17-13 and advances to Mountain West title game

LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — Ashton Jeanty rushed for 169 yards and a touchdown to lead No. 12 Boise State to a 17-13 win over Wyoming on Saturday night and a berth in the Mountain West Conference title game.

The Broncos (10-1 overall, 7-0) will play in the conference championship game for the seventh time in the past eight seasons against an opponent to be determined and kept their College Football Playoff hopes alive. Boise State was the provisional No. 4 seed in the playoff in this week’s rankings.

Boise State finished the Mountain West unbeaten, extended its winning streak to nine games and beat Wyoming (2-9, 2-5) for the eighth straight time, dating to 2016.

“I’m proud of our guys, and knowing this team and knowing our heart, we’re not done yet,” Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said. “We got a big-time opponent that we have to be ready for in Oregon State and whoever we play in the championship game. We got to go earn the right to play our best.

"I couldn’t tell you the last time we won back-to-back championships, I know it’s not in my time. We know whoever we play, we’re going to get their best and we have to be ready, but right now, we’re locked and focused on Oregon State.”

Wyoming, which entered as a heavy underdog, gave the Broncos plenty of problems and held a 13-10 lead midway through the fourth quarter.

But Boise State’s Jambres Dubar scored on a 2-yard run with just over five minutes left to play and the Broncos defense came up with one final stop to seal the win.

Boise State quarterback Maddux Madsen was 14 for 25 passing for 168 yards.

Wyoming used a pair of quarterback. Kaden Anderson was 9 for 14 for 116 yards and a touchdown before being knocked out of the game and place in concussion protocol before the start of the second half. Evan Svoboda took over and connected on 6 of 13 passes for 87 yards.

Led by Heisman candidate Jeanty, who surpassed 2,000 yards for the season and averaged 8.5 yards per carry, the Broncos outgained the Cowboys 353-319 in total yardage, despite going 1 for 10 on third down.

Jeanty went to the medical tent in the second half with an apparent lower body injury, but he was back in the game after missing one drive.

“Ashton’s a warrior,” Danielson said. “I’m going to keep hitting that. He’s banged up. This is game 11, week 13 of the season, and he’s an absolute warrior playing through being banged up. … We got to be smart with his body and make sure we get him what he needs. In that last drive of the game, he was ready to go. … He’s going to be just fine.”

John Hoyland opened the scoring with a 54-yard field goal, giving the Cowboys an early 3-0 lead in the first quarter. Boise State’s Jonah Dalmas had a chance to tie it with a 49-yard field goal on the ensuing drive, but his attempt missed wide left.

After Hoyland missed a 53-yard field goal try, Jeanty put the Broncos up 7-3 with a 61-yard touchdown run with 3:40 left in the first.

The Cowboys reclaimed a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter when a four-play, 67-yard drive was capped by a 5-yard touchdown pass from Anderson to Justin Stevenson.

Boise State tacked on a 24-yard field goal from Dalmas as time expired in the first half, sending the teams into the break tied at 10.

After a scoreless third quarter, Hoyland put the Cowboys back in the lead with a 25-yard field goal. But, Boise State answered with an eight-play, 75-yard drive capped by Dubar’s touchdown run.

It was likely the Broncos’ last trip to Wyoming, as Boise State is set to join the Pac-12 in 2026. Boise State leads the all-time series 18-1, with its lone loss coming against Josh Allen’s 2016 squad in Laramie.

“Give credit to Boise State,” Wyoming coach Jay Sawvel said. “They have a great football team, and they have a great football program. We wish their whole organization the best going forward, and hopefully they can represent the Mountain West well come playoff time. They have to win a couple more games, and we’ll be cheering for them to do it. They have a lot of class, and we wish them the best.”

The takeaway

Boise State: Will likely retain its spot as the No. 4 seed in the College Football Playoff rankings going into its final regular-season game.

Wyoming: The Cowboys are in the midst of their worst season since 2015, when they finished 2-10.

Up next

Boise State: Hosts Oregon State on Friday night in its regular-season finale.

Wyoming: Travels to face No. 25 Washington State on Saturday.

Quincy Craig powers Portland State to 45-13 victory over Northern Colorado in season finale

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Quincy Craig rushed for 137 yards and two of Portland State's six touchdowns on the ground as the Vikings cruised to a 45-13 victory over Northern Colorado in a season finale on Saturday.

Craig and Deion Thompson had short touchdown runs to help the Vikings (3-8, 3-5 Big Sky Conference) take a 17-7 lead into halftime.

Christian Grubb had an 18-yard scoring run and Craig added a 15-yarder to increase Portland State's advantage to 31-7 heading to the final quarter. Elias Spence ran it in from 4 yards and Jacques Badolato-Birdsell did likewise from the 10 to complete the scoring for the Vikings.

David Afari scored on an 8-yard run in the second quarter for the Bears (1-11, 1-7), who end the season on a five-game losing streak. Kaiden Box connected with Carver Cheeks for a 35-yard score in the fourth quarter. Northern Colorado has gone 1-21 in its two seasons under former BYU assistant head coach and special teams coordinator Ed Lamb. The Bears beat Weber State 21-17 on the road in mid-October for their lone victory.

Dante Chachere completed 14 of 19 passes for 150 yards with one interception for Portland State, which snapped a two-game slide. He added 80 yards on seven carries.

Box completed 14 of 28 passes for 221 yards for Northern Colorado. Cheeks had four receptions for 94 yards.

Allen, Carson and Hayes each run for a TD, Air Force beats Nevada 22-19

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Owen Allen ran for 107 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries, Dylan Carson opened the scoring with an 11-yard TD run and finished with 105 yards rushing Saturday night to help Air Force beat Nevada 22-19.

Air Force (4-7, 2-4 Mountain West) has won three games in a row following a seven-game skid.

Quarterback Quentin Hayes added 68 yards rushing, including a 1-yard touchdown that made it 22-12 with 1:11 to play.

Allen scored on a 9-yard run to cap a 14-play, 74-yard drive that took 7 minutes, 37 seconds off the clock and gave the Falcons a 15-12 lead with 8:29 to play and eight plays later Osaro Aihie intercepted a pass and returned it 39 yards to the Air Force 25 to set up the TD by Hayes.

Kian Afrookhteh kicked field goals of 27 and 26 yards in the second quarter before Brendon Lewis threw a 23-yard TD pass to Jaden Smith in the third that, after the 2-point conversion failed, gave Nevada (3-9, 0-6) a 12-7 lead.

The Wolf Pack has lost five games in a row and six of its last seven.

Cortez Braham Jr. caught a 27-yard touchdown pass from Lewis that capped the scoring with 4 seconds left and finished with seven receptions for 123 yards. Lewis finished 22-of-35 passing for 268 yards with an interception and added 53 yards rushing on 13 carries.