Red Flags: 5 college football teams on upset alert in Week 9

Plenty of college football upsets were in order a week ago, some that we saw coming, and some we definitely didn't. We picked Iowa to go down against Minnesota, as was the case with the Utah Utes getting one over on USC. But virtually no one saw then-No. 10 North Carolina getting upset by one-win Virginia, nor No. 5 Washington nearly going down at the hands of Arizona State.

Such is the time of year in the college football season, though. When you get into the thralls of conference play and two months into the year, strange things start to happen in trap spots, in marquee matchups, in so on -- it's a breeding ground for upsets.

Overall, the college football Week 9 slate isn't all that rich. There are only two ranked-on-ranked matchups and an inordinate amount of other ranked teams have this week open. But that doesn't mean the upsets have to subside.

So where then are the Red Flags waving as we look ahead to Saturday? These are our college football upset picks for Week 9 of the 2023 season.

2023 Upset Picks Record: 12-28

Note: All lines are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. For more college football odds, picks and predictions, visit BetSided.

5. Tennessee Volunteers

Opponent: at Kentucky | Time: Saturday, Oct. 28, 7:00 p.m. ET (ESPN) | Spread: TENN -4.0

Josh Heupel's Tennessee Volunteers had an upset in mind last week on the Third Saturday in October. After one half too, the Vols had rival Alabama on the ropes as they held a 20-7 lead going into halftime. Of course, hopes of an upset quickly dissipated in the second half as the Crimson Tide reeled off 27 unanswered points, blanked Tennessee, and ran away for a two-score win.

After that heartbreak, the Vols now go on the road to face an SEC East foe in the Kentucky Wildcats. And really, when you start to dig into the numbers, these are two teams where the offenses have struggled to get off of the ground, particularly in the passing game, this season.

Both the Joe Milton and Devin Leary-led units rank in the bottom half of college football in EPA per dropback this season, but the rushing attacks rank inside the Top 20 of the same metric. Meanwhile, the defenses, shockingly, might be the best units on the field for this game -- and both run defenses are more effective against the run than the pass.

Despite what public perception might be about both teams, this might be a rockfight in Lexington on Saturday. The outcome of the game could very well hinge on one or two explosive plays or turnovers. Do you trust Milton more than Leary to not be the mistake-maker or to be the playmaker? I don't trust either, meaning this is a coin-flip.

So with the Vols on the road, there is a very real chance that we get an SEC upset in primetime.