Four Top 11-Ranked Teams Tumbled With Alabama on ‘Upset Saturday’

Diego Pavia (2) of the Vanderbilt Commodores throws a pass as LT Overton (22) of the Alabama Crimson Tide tries to block the pass during the second half at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 5, 2024. Carly Mackler/Getty Images

No fan base carried a goalpost further than Vanderbilt on Saturday, but four other schools celebrated stunning victories over the top 11-ranked teams.

Welcome to Upset Saturday, where four unranked college football teams pulled off stunning upsets and one No. 25 team beat a top-10 team. All of the upsets occurred within conference play for the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and Big Ten, and two of the upsets marked historic victories.

Vanderbilt (3–2) captured the nation’s attention with a 40–35 upset of No. 1 Alabama (4–1) in Nashville, Tennessee. Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia secured the win with a touchdown pass to wide receiver Kamrean Johnson in the fourth quarter. The Commodores fans were seen in a video posted on X storming the field, taking down the goalpost, and carrying it to the Cumberland River.

“This isn’t a finish point, but it’s a [expletive] of an arrival,” Commodores head coach Clark Lea said via ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Saturday. “This is the dream right here. For the next 12 hours, I’m going to enjoy the dream.”

Arkansas (4–2) took second in the unofficial SEC goalpost carrying contest as the Razorbacks fans stormed the field after a 19–14 win over No. 4 Tennessee (4–1). The Volunteers came into that game firing on all cylinders with dynamic quarterback Nico Iamaleava, but the Razorbacks defense held him to 200 yards and no touchdowns. Razorbacks fans tore down the goalpost but didn’t make it out of Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium due to security.

“When it was over, I was thinking about how proud the state of Arkansas is for their football team,” Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman told reporters afterward. “It’s not the reason I took the job, but it’s one of the top reasons I came here. I wanted to make the state proud of the team.”

Texas A&M (5–1), ranked No. 25, didn’t get a goalpost takedown, but the Aggies made a mark with a 41–10 upset of No. 9-ranked Missouri (4–1). Aggies running back Le’Veon Moss dominated with 138 yards rushing and three touchdowns to help his team win a fifth-straight game. The Aggies defense meanwhile contained quarterback Brady Cook and wide receiver Luther Burden III.

“I’m proud of our guys,” Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko told reporters afterward. “We challenged them to come out and play a complete game. I thought we did that. It was a very good Missouri team, and we knew we were going to have to play start to finish. We started fast. We stayed on them, made a lot of stops on defense in the first half. We really kept the game in rhythm.”

Unranked Washington (4–2) won 27–17 against No. 10 Michigan (4–2) in a rematch of last season’s national championship game. The Huskies fans stormed the field after running back Jonah Coleman and kicker Grady Gross put the game away in the fourth quarter.

“Well, I feel so good for the University of Washington,” first-year Huskies head coach Jedd Fisch told NBC Sports afterward. “I wasn’t here at the last game they played against Michigan. For our team and last year’s team, I hope we have some good redemption.”

Minnesota fans also stormed the field and threw a dance party after the Golden Gophers (3–3) stunned No. 11 USC 24–17 with a last-minute touchdown run. Gophers quarterback Max Brosmer pushed his way past the goal line with 56 seconds left on fourth down.

“It’s a big call, but it wasn’t very hard,” Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck told reporters afterward. “In a game like this, 17–17, how often do you have an inch to go beat USC? You don’t have it very often. We kick that field goal and make it, that’s fine. They went right down the field just like they did all game. That’s what they’re going to do. And they don’t throw the ball in the end zone like that—and we get the pick—unless we go for that. It was the decision to not just win the game, but protect the lead and allow us to play the defense we’re going to need to be able to play to seal that victory.”

Formerly in the Pac-12, USC (3–2) hadn’t lost to Minnesota since 1955, which also occurred in Minneapolis. Vanderbilt likewise hadn’t beaten the Crimson Tide in multiple decades with the last win in 1984.

In addition, Vanderbilt had never beaten a top-ranked or top-five team with 0–10 and 0–60 records respectively.