Upset Alert: 5 college football teams in danger of losing in Week 9

Alabama avoids being on upset alert without Tua Tagovailoa but LSU and Ohio State are among the top college football teams in danger of losing in Week 9

The college football world was turned on its head last week with the injury to Alabama starting quarterback and Heisman candidate Tua Tagovailoa. In the moment, it looked bad for the star signal-caller and, though he should only miss a couple of weeks, it was unsettling to see. Now, the Crimson Tide will trot Mac Jones out at quarterback which begs the question: Is going from Tua to Jones enough to put Alabama on upset alert in Week 9?

Frankly, if this were against the majority of the teams in the SEC, the answer would be an unequivocal yes. While you can find numerous glowing reviews about Jones’ talent, we saw him in relief of Tagovailoa and Jalen Hurts last year against Mississippi State and he was abysmal. Part of that was protecting a lead but part of it was undeniably Jones looking bad.

Luckily for Nick Saban’s team, they avoid being on upset alert in college football Week 9 because they’ve drawn a matchup with Arkansas. The Razorbacks are 2-5 on the season and looked hapless against Auburn last week, losing by 41 points. Even with Jones at the helm, the Tide will roll on Saturday.

Alabama isn’t alone in avoiding a possible upset in college football Week 9, either. Just looking at the numbers in front of teams, the No. 8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish have to go to Ann Arbor and face the No. 19 Michigan Wolverines. That might be a potential upset, right? Well, not so much.

There is no reason to believe that Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan team can upset a superior opponent. Sure, they beat Iowa but we’ve since seen that the Hawkeyes aren’t exactly a powerhouse. Against Wisconsin and Penn State, though, the Wolverines looked outmatched almost entirely. Notre Dame is closer to the Badgers and Nittany Lions than they are the Hawkeyes. Thus, the Irish won’t be sounding the upset alarms this week.

So which teams does that leave to put on upset alert in college football Week 9? Two top-five teams have huge showdowns with top-15 opponents while another top-15 team is coming off of their worst showing this season, inspiring little faith. Those three teams, in addition to two others are all in danger of losing on Saturday. Let’s dive into these matchups.