The college football season is a long one. Even still, the assumption preseason was that Deion Sanders’ inaugural season at Colorado would be pretty much derailed by now.

Not quite yet. However, the Buffs had their come-back-to-Earth moment against Oregon in Week 4. The Ducks demolished Sanders’ squad, and things aren’t going to get any easier moving forward against a tough Pac-12 slate.

The Buffs still have to face off against 4 ranked teams (USC, Utah, Washington State and Oregon State) and previously-ranked UCLA. They, of course, need 3 more wins to become bowl eligible.

Randy Cross, who works for CBS Sports, explained Tuesday night why he thinks Sanders and Co. will be able to crack a bowl this season regardless:

The Buffs are a fun story, but obviously still a flawed football team. However, regardless of how the remainder of the season goes – short of losing out or similar – you could chalk the season up as a success. A bowl berth would affirm that.

We’ll see what Colorado is truly made of this week as the Buffs take on No. 8 USC. The game is set to kick off at Noon on FOX, with the Trojans coming in as a 21-point favorite.

(Featured image via @CBSSportsCFB on X, formerly Twitter)