It’s late in the college football season, and we’re still seeing some hearty upsets out there. Last week, four underdogs of at least 13.5 points won outright, sending money-line supporters of those teams home happy.
Washington was a 13.5-point dog (Dawg?) when it went into Autzen Stadium and ended No. 6 Oregon’s Playoff hopes. Vanderbilt and Boston College were 17.5-half point underdogs against Kentucky and N.C. State, but both schools showed they are still working despite disappointing seasons and pulled upsets. And Arizona orchestrated a Pac-12 After Dark special, knocking off UCLA as a 19.5-point underdog.
Are there still more big underdogs ready to rise up as we near the finish line? Here at the Underdog Challenge, it’s our job to find them. Rules reminder: Each expert picks three underdogs to win. Should the upset come through, the expert gets as many points as the team was an underdog.
MORE: Top 25 picks against the spread for Week 12
| Name | Correct picks | Points |
| Bill Trocchi | 8 | 64.5 |
| Mike DeCourcy | 12 | 63 |
| Bill Bender | 13 | 49 |
| Zac Al-Khateeb | 8 | 41.5 |
On to the upsets.
Bill Trocchi, senior editor
UConn (+10) at Army
All hail the Huskies! From 1-11 to 6-5? Jim Mora is on the short list for national Coach of the Year honors. UConn has won five of six, including a 36-33 win over a Liberty team that just beat Arkansas and took Wake Forest to the wire. On the other side, since Week 2, Army has scored between 42 and 48 points three times (twice against FCS opponents), and between seven and 14 points four times. It’s feast or famine for the Knights. I’m banking on the latter against a decent UConn defense.
Kansas (+9.5) vs. Texas
You watched the Texas game last week, right? Three points on offense against a TCU defense that was giving up 26.9. Remember, Kansas beat Texas last year in Austin. Kansas is much, much better this year. Is Texas? Not really sure.
No. 10 Utah (+3) at No. 12 Oregon
Utah bludgeoned Oregon twice last season — 38-7 in the regular season and 38-10 in the Pac-12 championship game. This is definitely a different Oregon squad, but with Bo Nix a bit banged up and Utah on a four-game winning streak, I’m going with the Utes to notch their third straight in the series. Should be another fun Pac-12 game in a season loaded with them.
MORE: Betting trends to know ahead of Utah-Oregon
Mike DeCourcy, senior writer
No. 22 Oklahoma State (+7.5) at Oklahoma
I see that another of Trocchi’s “Hail Marys” has cost me the lead in this competition, and so now I feel a little like Miami in 1985. But not exactly like Miami, because the Hurricanes were out of time after Gerard Phelan hit the turf with the football in the end zone, and I’ve still got a few weeks to get the standings back in the proper order. And I’ve got the Cowboys to get me a big chunk of those points.
Kansas (+9.5) vs. Texas
Of course it’s my own fault I’m in this predicament, because in glancing over the sheet last week, I somehow skipped over TCU being a significant underdog to the Longhorns. Pretty much everyone jumped on that pick but me, and the only reason I didn’t was because I read past it. Because I’m not convinced I’d trust Sark to get my lunch order right, and TCU was coming in undefeated. Whiffing on that may cost me the title. That’ll be on me. Maybe the Jayhawks can make up for it.
Houston (+6) at East Carolina
This will be like a basketball game, except it won’t be like a Houston-ECU basketball game. That matchup isn’t going to be pretty for the Pirates this winter. This one will be mesmerizing, teams trading scores until one or both are flirting with the 50-point mark and the clock runs out with someone having spent just a smidge more time in the other’s end zone. ECU is a better defensive team. But Houston enters every game aware it’s got to rack up huge numbers to have a chance. So much fun.
Bill Bender, lead college football writer
Iowa (+2.5) at Minnesota
The Hawkeyes have won the last seven in the series, and Kaleb Johnson has rushed for an average of 116.7 yards per game the last three weeks. That keeps the offense moving just enough to jump out on the Gophers in the first half. Iowa’s defense does the rest, and the Hawkeyes hang on to the Floyd of Rosedale Trophy; arguably the coolest trophy in college football.
Oklahoma State (+7.5) at Oklahoma
We know the risks with Bedlam. The Cowboys have been the better team this year, and Spencer Sanders is capable of leading Oklahoma State to a victory on the road. Oklahoma has not lost this game at home since 2014 and has not lost back-to-back games to the Cowboys since 2001-02. It’s still worth a shot.
Northwestern (+18.5) at Purdue
We need one home-run swing to catch up with the leaders, so why not try a 1-9 team in spoiler mode? Northwestern has won its last five visits to Purdue, which is coming off a big win at Illinois. This will be peak Big Ten West chaos when the Wildcats grind out a victory in bad weather.
Zac Al-Khateeb, content producer
UConn (+10) at Army
Jim Mora has the Huskies playing inspired in recent weeks, leading the team to a three-game win streak that includes wins over Boston College and No. 19 Liberty. At 6-5, UConn is enjoying its best season since a 6-7 campaign in 2015. One more win would get the Huskies their best record since 2010. Meanwhile, Army is coming off consecutive games scoring 10 or fewer points, both losses. You can never discount the triple option, but look for UConn to extend that win streak to four games.
Kansas (+9.5) over Texas
Here’s the difference between Kansas and Texas in 2022: The Jayhawks are ecstatic with their 6-4 record, while the Longhorns are despondent with theirs. That’s especially true after Texas suffered a 17-10 defeat at home vs. No. 4 TCU in Week 11: a game in which Quinn Ewers completed fewer than 50 percent of his passes for an interception while Texas mustered only 199 yards. This Kansas team was considerably more competitive vs. this same Horned Frogs team, suffering a 38-31 defeat earlier in the season. Expect Kansas to play tough against a Texas team coming off an emotionally exhausting loss.
Oklahoma State (+7.5) over Oklahoma
I can see why the Sooners would be favored in this game, considering Oklahoma State’s offensive struggles over the last three weeks: 36 combined points in three games, including a 48-0 shutout to Kansas State. That said, Oklahoma is coming off consecutive three-point losses to Baylor and West Virginia, where at least Oklahoma State has a 20-14 victory over Iowa State to break a two-game losing streak. I’ve gone with the Cowboys several times this season, with mixed results. I’m looking for them to step up to the challenge and bring the energy and effort the Bedlam rivalry demands.
