NCAAF · 10 minutes ago

College Football Upset Alert: Ranking Top 5 Matchups to Watch

Bo Marchionte

Host · Writer

5. First-Round QB vs. Kentucky
South Carolina over No. 24 Kentucky

Here's the beautiful oddball of the five. Kentucky owns the ranking. South Carolina owns the home field and LaNorris Sellers. And the betting market has essentially shrugged at the poll and made the Gamecocks the favorite. Sellers is a day one type prospect in the 2027 NFL Draft. These are the games that build trust for NFL scouting departments.
- Records: Kentucky 3-1 | South Carolina 2-2
- Rankings: Kentucky No. 24 | South Carolina NR
- Home/Away: Kentucky away | South Carolina home
- Last Game: Kentucky beat South Alabama 45-21 | South Carolina lost to Alabama 49-18
- The Number: Kentucky +2.5 | South Carolina -2.5
Upset temperature: The ranking says upset. The point spread doesn't. South Carolina is favored despite being unranked and coming off a 31-point loss. That's the kind of contradiction that practically writes the tease itself.
5. Kamario Taylor vs. Keelon Russell
No. 16 Mississippi State over No. 7 Alabama

This isn't Alabama visiting some hopeful underdog. Both teams are unbeaten, both are 2-0 in the SEC, and Mississippi State just backed up its start by knocking off ranked Missouri. Kamario Taylor gives the Bulldogs something every upset needs: a quarterback capable of changing the game himself.
- Records: Alabama 4-0 | Mississippi State 4-0
- Rankings: Alabama No. 7 | Mississippi State No. 16
- Home/Away: Alabama away | Mississippi State home
- Last Game: Alabama beat South Carolina 49-18 | Mississippi State beat Missouri 31-24
- The Number: Alabama -6 | Mississippi State +6
Upset temperature: Taylor has thrown 14 touchdowns in four games, including 360 yards and three scores against Missouri. Alabama's problem isn't simply stopping the Bulldogs. It's stopping them once the play stops behaving the way Alabama drew it up. The Crimson Tides, Keelon Russell vs. Taylor match-up within the game.
2. Pat Narduzzi vs. James Franklin
Pitt over Virginia Tech

This is the Friday-night detour from all the ranked-on-ranked stuff. Pitt heads into Blacksburg for an ACC road game, and that alone gives this one a different personality. No rankings, no national-title hysteria just a road team we're putting on upset watch.
- Records: Pitt 3-1 | Virginia Tech 2-2
- Rankings: Pitt NR | Virginia Tech NR
- Home/Away: Pitt away | Virginia Tech home
- Last Game: Pitt beat Louisville 27-6 | Virginia Tech beat Wake Forest 38-35
- The Number: Pitt +2.5 | Virginia Tech -2.5
Upset temperature: The Panthers have allowed just 8.5 points per game, and now that defense gets dropped into a Friday night in Blacksburg. This isn't the biggest upset numerically. It might be the easiest one to imagine becoming strange by halftime.
3. Buckeyes vs. Kinnick Stadium
No. 14 Iowa over No. 5 Ohio State

Ohio State brings the horsepower. Iowa brings Kinnick (Stadium), an unbeaten record and absolutely no requirement that this game be aesthetically pleasing. The Hawkeyes just walked into Michigan and escaped 20-19. Now the degree of difficulty jumps considerably.
- Records: Ohio State 3-1 | Iowa 4-0
- Rankings: Ohio State No. 5 | Iowa No. 14
- Home/Away: Ohio State away | Iowa home
- Last Game: Ohio State beat Illinois 42-19 | Iowa beat Michigan 20-19
- The Number: Ohio State -14 | Iowa +14
Upset temperature: Here's the number that makes you look twice. Ohio State's last visit to Kinnick ended 55-24 Iowa, with the Buckeyes throwing four interceptions. That was 2017, not 2026, but the building hasn't moved.
4.
No. 25 Missouri over No. 8 Florida

Florida just detonated Ole Miss 52-28 and shot up to No. 8. Missouri just suffered its first loss. Flip the emotional temperature, put the game in Columbia, and suddenly the team coming off the worse Saturday gets an interesting opportunity.
- Records: Florida 4-0 | Missouri 3-1
- Rankings: Florida No. 8 | Missouri No. 25
- Home/Away: Florida away | Missouri home
- Last Game: Florida beat Ole Miss 52-28 | Missouri lost to Mississippi State 31-24
- The Number: Florida -4.5 | Missouri +4.5
Upset temperature: Florida has earned the attention. Now comes the less glamorous assignment take that shiny new Top-10 ranking on the road seven days after the biggest win of the season. That's where college football occasionally gets mischievous.
5. First-Round QB vs. Kentucky
South Carolina over No. 24 Kentucky

Here's the beautiful oddball of the five. Kentucky owns the ranking. South Carolina owns the home field and LaNorris Sellers. And the betting market has essentially shrugged at the poll and made the Gamecocks the favorite. Sellers is a day one type prospect in the 2027 NFL Draft. These are the games that build trust for NFL scouting departments.
- Records: Kentucky 3-1 | South Carolina 2-2
- Rankings: Kentucky No. 24 | South Carolina NR
- Home/Away: Kentucky away | South Carolina home
- Last Game: Kentucky beat South Alabama 45-21 | South Carolina lost to Alabama 49-18
- The Number: Kentucky +2.5 | South Carolina -2.5
Upset temperature: The ranking says upset. The point spread doesn't. South Carolina is favored despite being unranked and coming off a 31-point loss. That's the kind of contradiction that practically writes the tease itself.
5. Kamario Taylor vs. Keelon Russell
No. 16 Mississippi State over No. 7 Alabama

This isn't Alabama visiting some hopeful underdog. Both teams are unbeaten, both are 2-0 in the SEC, and Mississippi State just backed up its start by knocking off ranked Missouri. Kamario Taylor gives the Bulldogs something every upset needs: a quarterback capable of changing the game himself.
- Records: Alabama 4-0 | Mississippi State 4-0
- Rankings: Alabama No. 7 | Mississippi State No. 16
- Home/Away: Alabama away | Mississippi State home
- Last Game: Alabama beat South Carolina 49-18 | Mississippi State beat Missouri 31-24
- The Number: Alabama -6 | Mississippi State +6
Upset temperature: Taylor has thrown 14 touchdowns in four games, including 360 yards and three scores against Missouri. Alabama's problem isn't simply stopping the Bulldogs. It's stopping them once the play stops behaving the way Alabama drew it up. The Crimson Tides, Keelon Russell vs. Taylor match-up within the game.