Colorado Still Has Shot at Orange Bowl : Big Eight: Buffaloes’ Hill scores touchdown in closing minutes for a 25-18 victory over Kansas.

James Hill’s eight-yard touchdown run with 2:09 to play capped a 42-yard drive that lifted No. 13 Colorado over No. 20 Kansas, 25-18, Saturday, moving the Buffaloes half a game behind Nebraska in the Big Eight race.

Colorado, which rallied behind Kordell Stewart’s passing after squandering a 14-0 lead, raised its overall record to 8-1-1 and its Big Eight mark to 4-1-1. Kansas dropped to 7-3 and 4-2.

Colorado can go to the Orange Bowl if it beats Iowa State and Nebraska loses to either Kansas State or Oklahoma.

A 15-yard personal foul penalty against Kansas on a punt gave Colorado the ball on the Jayhawk 42 with 5:15 to play. On third and six, Stewart passed to Charles Johnson for a 24-yard gain. Then Hill took it in with carries of five, two and eight yards.

Stewart fired a two-point conversion pass to Michael Westbrook, matching the two-point conversion that had given Kansas an 18-17 lead in the third quarter.

Stewart connected on 22 of 34 passes for 304 yards.

Kansas took its only lead of the day late in the third period when Chip Hilleary hit Dwayne Chandler on a 66-yard touchdown pass play and Maurice Douglas scored the conversion on a run.

Colorado got a gift touchdown in the first quarter when Marcellous Elder tipped Hilleary’s pass high into the air and Leonard Renfro, a 275-pounder, caught the ball and ran untouched 18 yards to the end zone.