College football is back, and Week 0 is already offering a couple of underdog angles worth circling.
One of the cleanest upset looks on the board is Hawaii against Stanford. The Rainbow Warriors have a quarterback who already flashed big-time production as a freshman, and Micah Alejandro heads into this season after throwing for 3,106 yards, 24 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. He gets his opener against a Stanford defense that had real trouble a year ago, finishing 96th in opponent EPA.
The concern for Stanford is that the fix on that side of the ball looks incomplete. The Cardinal return 62% of their production from last season, so if they’re going to avoid the upset, they’ll need their offense to keep pace with Alejandro and Hawaii.
That brings the spotlight to quarterback Davis Warren, who is set to open the year as Stanford’s starter. Warren, a former Michigan quarterback, missed the entire 2025 season because of injury, and his 2024 numbers weren’t exactly encouraging: seven touchdowns and nine interceptions on 209 attempts.
That’s enough to make Hawaii the side to back, especially with the Rainbow Warriors looking to beat Stanford in Week 0 for the second straight year.
The other upset pick is Memphis over UNLV. On paper, this one sets up as a ground game battle, but Memphis has the defensive edge where it matters most. Last season, the Tigers ranked 18th nationally in opponent EPA per rush, while UNLV sat all the way down at 127th in that category.
That mismatch matters, especially against a Rebels team with a defense that’s tough to trust. Dan Mullen is back as UNLV’s head coach, but the question is whether the transfer portal work was enough to clean up the problems from last season.
Memphis should have no trouble scoring, and that gives the Tigers a real shot to win outright as an underdog.
In Other News...
Memphis Just Lost A Notable Home Game For A Frustrating Reason
Mississippi States move to a 9-game SEC schedule has reshaped more than its own calendar, and Memphis is feeling the ripple effect. The Bulldogs have canceled the road portion of previously scheduled home-and-home series with Memphis, Southern Miss and Tulane, turning each matchup into a single home game for Mississippi State while adding replacement home games against Louisiana Tech and Troy.
For Memphis, the frustrating part is that this is not just another scheduling shuffle. The Tigers are losing a home game with no payout attached because of a contract clause tied to the SECs schedule expansion, leaving them to absorb the hit without the usual financial cushion that often softens a cancellation. [Read more 🡒]
Memphis Keeps Its Biggest Preseason Question Alive Before UNLV
The biggest preseason question around Memphis is still hanging in the air as the Tigers move toward their opener against UNLV. Head coach Charles Huff said in a press conference that he does not plan to publicly reveal the starting quarterback before the game, leaving the competition between West Florida transfer Marcus Stokes and South Carolina transfer Air Noland unresolved for now.
Huff also pointed out that Memphis is not the only team dealing with uncertainty, noting that UNLV coach Dan Mullen has not named a starter either. For both sides, that means the final stretch of prep will come with limited clarity at the most important position, and the Tigers will head into game week still sorting out a decision that could shape the tone of the season. [Read more 🡒]