Clemson coach Dabo Swinney watches from the sideline during the second half of the team's NCAA college football game against Syracuse, Friday, Oct. 13, 2017, in Syracuse, N.Y. Syracuse upset No. 2 Clemson, 27-24. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

Upset alert: 3 teams that need to be careful in Week 9 of college football

Which teams are in trouble this week?

The FanBuzz upset alert is back, and there are several ranked matchups in Week 9 that are sure to shakeup college football yet again.

Outside of the big ones like Penn State vs. Ohio State and Notre Dame vs. N.C. State, look out for these games to cause potential upsets this Saturday.


No. 7 Clemson
Oct. 28 vs. Georgia Tech

Here is where things could get interesting in the ACC.

Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant is likely to play in this game, but as we saw in the Syracuse game before he was knocked out, Bryant was still showing signs of a lingering ankle injury. Georgia Tech's defense isn't great, but they are good enough that it could flip the outcome of the game if Bryant is slowed down.

The good news for Clemson is that they've had a week off to continue getting healthy. Defensive coordinator Brent Venables also has a lot of experience against Georgia Tech's option, so the Clemson defense should be able to give their offense some room to try and piece things together after the loss to Syracuse.


No. 4 TCU
Oct. 28 at No. 25 Iowa State

"A tough game on the road against a ranked Iowa State team" isn't a phrase that has been used a lot in recent memory.

Honestly, I feel like this game goes one of two ways: either Iowa State wins a close thriller, or TCU wins by 20 points. It's the biggest game in Ames in a long time, and it often seems that these games go that way.

The key to this game for Iowa State will be young quarterback Kyle Kempt, who has performed well since being named the starter. His games against Oklahoma and Texas Tech were particularly great, but TCU will be the best defense he has faced by far. If he plays well, it could be that close thrilling win. Struggles? Yeah, that won't be good.


No. 21 USC
Oct. 28 at Arizona State

USC opened as a four-point here. I'm honestly not sure they will make it to the weekend as more than a one-point favorite at best.

The loss to Notre Dame greatly exposed a lot of USC's problems that they had been able to barely escape in weeks before. The Trojans offensive line has looked horrible, while the Arizona State defense has been phenomenal in recent wins over then No. 5 Washington and Utah.

If USC's offensive line doesn't get it together, this could very much prove to be exactly like the aforementioned Arizona State game against Jake Browning and Washington. Considering the incredible preseason hype that USC was receiving, it would be shocking to see their potential Pac-12 championship hopes ended before we even get to November.