College football upset picks: 5 teams on upset alert in Week 1

College Football Upset Pick No. 2: LSU Tigers

Rank: 16 | Opponent: at UCLA Bruins | Time: Saturday, Sept. 4, 8:30 p.m. ET

Count me among the believers in LSU having a bounce-back year after the Tigers were a letdown in 2020 on the heels of a perfect season and winning a National Championship. Not only is moving on from defensive coordinator Bo Pellini addition by subtraction but this roster is loaded with talent. Moreover, Max Johnson is the team’s best option at quarterback, even if he got the starting job due to injury.

Based on all of this, the Tigers should have the opportunity to go to UCLA — even on the road — and pick up a comfortable win. But while I believe in LSU, they’re another team that has to prove themselves before you can go all-in on what they can accomplish this season. And of the two teams, the Bruins have a convincing win over Hawai’i already to their credit while we’ve yet to see Ed Orgeron’s team take the field yet this season.

LSU’s run defense was an issue last season and, while losing Pellini should help with that, it could still be a minor issue. With how devastating Zac Charbonnet was for the Bruins in the opening win, that could be a problem for the Tigers in a major way on Saturday.

Again, LSU is the better team in my estimation and should be able to come away with a victory. UCLA, however, is no slouch and, if the Tigers are clearly not in form yet, the No. 16-ranked team could certainly take a loss on the road to start their season.