Upset Alert: 5 college football teams in danger of losing in Week 12
Clemson and Georgia climbed into the top four of the College Football Playoff rankings but are in danger and on upset alert in Week 12.
With Alabama’s thrilling loss to LSU last week in the game of the 2019 college football season and with Penn State’s first loss of the season, the College Football Playoff rankings have been shaken up tremendously. Most notably, the Crimson Tide and Nittany Lions have dropped out of the top four, replaced by the Clemson Tigers and the Georgia Bulldogs at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.
As we come into Week 12 of the season, though, the chances that Clemson and Georgia could be heading towards the same fate as their predecessors in the last two spots in the top four is all that likely. If you’re looking at teams on upset alert, the Tigers and Bulldogs certainly qualify as they enter arguably their two toughest conference matchups for the year. Things could get dicey for these two teams on Saturday.
The good news for teams like Alabama and Penn State is that, after suffering their first loss of the season, they avoid getting put on upset alert this week. Nick Saban’s team goes on the road to play Mississippi State but the Bulldogs don’t appear to be a team that will offer much resistance.
Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions might be in trouble against Indiana if the Hoosiers hadn’t just lost Michael Penix Jr. for the rest of the season. And staying in the Big Ten, though Minnesota is coming off a huge win and playing on the road at Iowa, the Golden Gophers aren’t on upset alert simply because I don’t believe the Hawkeyes are a good football team — easy as that.
Have no fear, the college football slate for Week 12 still isn’t short of potential upset bids. Between a couple of other big-time conference matchups for ranked teams and then a contest between ranked opponents, there are numerous instances where we could see another top-25 ranked team topple this week. And really, that’s what this time of the season is all about.
While early-season losses don’t help a team’s case, they are undoubtedly less crippling than late-season losses. It’s clear that the College Football Playoff committee has some recency bias in terms of getting beaten, so the top teams in the country must finish the season strong to maintain their positioning down the stretch.
Taking that in mind, these five teams — including Clemson and Georgia — need to be at their best as they are on upset alert in Week 12 of the 2019 college football season.