College Football Upset Picks for Week 10: Wrong Team Favored in USC vs. UCLA?

There are two weeks left in the college football season and there is still a ton to sort out both in conference play but also the College Football Playoff.

Chaos has taken college football by storm all season long and we should expect no different on Saturday with a handful of massive games that have direct ties to the CFP. USC and UCLA will meet in an inner-city battle at the Rose Bowl and plenty on the line for the Trojans PAC-12 title hopes. Can the Bruins bounce back after losing as 20-point home favorites last week to Arizona?

Another frisky underdog is one that has been overachieving all season in Kansas with the possible return of star quarterback Jaylon Daniels.

Here are two underdogs we are backing in Week 12:

Texas vs. Kansas Odds, Prediction and Pick

Jason Bean was forced to take over the 5-0 Jayhawks when Daniels was injured against TCU. They are 1-4 with Bean at QB even though his numbers don’t look bad. Bean has thrown for 1,256 yards and 14 touchdowns this season, he has also run for four scores and thrown four picks. Their only win in that stretch came two weeks ago against Oklahoma State. 

Texas hasn’t been a lot better and they’ve had their quarterback, Quin Ewers, for much of the year. Last week, Ewers missed a lot of throws and only went 17-for-39 for 171 yards and an interception against TCU’s 88th ranked pass defense. 

If Daniels can play, then the Jayhawks have an advantage at the most important position on the field. I think that is definitely enough for Kansas to cover and maybe even win at home. Texas is typically one of the more overvalued teams in the betting market and Kansas has been undervalued all season, so I’ll take the points early in the week and monitor the Daniels situation. -- Josh Yourish

Pick: Kansas +9.5 (-110)

USC vs. UCLA Odds, Prediction and Pick

I make UCLA a small favorite in this game, so even though this number crashed through the key number of three, there's still value on the Bruins. The loss to loss Arizona last week as 20-point favorites created a valuable bet this week as the Bruins have edges on the ground to expose this USC defense.

The Trojans are outside the top 100 in explosive rush rate and will go against the best rush offense in the country in terms of yards per carry (6.24). The blend of quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Zach Charbonnet should make life difficult for a USC defense outside the top 100 in success rate on the year.

While the Bruins defense is also prone to being gashed, the Trojans enter this game banged up with running back Travis Dye set to miss the remainder of the season. USC is an offense that doesn't rely on chunk plays to score, rather Dye and the ground game to put them in third and managable, but without their trusty running back, Caleb Williams will have to shoulder more of the burden for this Trojans offense.

This total is in the mid-70's for good reason, there won't be many stops in this one, but I think UCLA is more likely to slow down this methodical USC offense that is down a key contributor just enough to win this game outright. However, with a small moneyline and a high total, I'll take the two points in a game that could be decided in the final seconds with a two-point conversion, a la USC vs. Utah earlier this season. -- Reed Wallach

PICK: UCLA +2.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.