College football picks: Vanderbilt among five underdogs that can pull off Week 6 upsets
Week 6 of the 2025 college football season features quite a few upset opportunities for underdogs

One of the best parts of college football is big upsets. There's nothing quite like seeing a scrappy underdog shock the world by knocking off a heavily-favored squad. We've seen a few of these this year, namely Florida State over Alabama and a pair of South Florida wins. What upsets does the sport have in store for us this week?
If you're interested in college football betting on underdogs, we've got you covered. As we do every week, we're highlighting five underdogs who we feel can knock off a favored opponent. One of our highlighted teams knocked off this same opponent a year ago.
All spreads and money line odds are courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
No. 17 Vanderbilt (+10.5, +330) at No. 10 Alabama
It's funny how schedules work out. Last year, Alabama was coming off a big win over Georgia before taking on Vanderbilt, a game the Commodores won in one of the bigger upsets of the entire 2024 season. This year, Alabama is coming off a big win over Georgia before taking on, you guessed it, Vanderbilt. This one is a bit different, though.
First, this matchup is in Tuscaloosa as opposed to at Vanderbilt, so the Commodores won't have the luxury of a home-field advantage this time around. And second, Vandy isn't exactly a secret anymore. Diego Pavia burst into the national spotlight in this matchup a year ago, and he has the Commodores off to an undefeated start this year along with a ranking in the AP poll.
So can lightning strike twice? Certainly. Alabama is coming off the win over Georgia, so this is a natural letdown spot, even considering what happened last year. The Tide have also been upset once already, losing to Florida State to begin the year, so we know they're susceptible to "lesser" competition. And then there's Pavia, who has led Vandy to no fewer than 31 points in a game this year while also tallying 15 total touchdowns. The Tide likely won't be looking past this game like they did a year ago, and they certainly can't afford to with how the Commodores have been playing, especially on offense.
Florida (+6.5, +210) vs. No. 9 Texas
This game has the opportunity to get weird.
First off, the Gators really can't afford anymore losses. They're 1-3 and still have matchups with ranked foes Texas, Texas A&M, Georgia, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Florida State on the schedule. Florida's path to a bowl berth is perilous, to say the least, making Billy Napier's seat red hot. He really has nothing to lose at this point, so you may see the Gators get ultra aggressive and pull out all the stops.
Secondly, the weather is looking quite rough. There's going to be a lot of rain and wind and even some potential thunderstorms. Ball security will be at a premium, and there's no clear advantage for either side when that happens. Florida has a dynamic dual-threat quarterback in DJ Lagway, so his legs could be an X-factor with the weather a big question mark.
Texas is still looking for Arch Manning to put it all together against a quality opponent. He's gotten off to a rather slow start this year, and playing in a potential storm certainly won't help his passing numbers. Manning has also yet to win a road game, so that adds an extra layer of intrigue to this one.
Wake Forest (+7, +215) at Virginia Tech
The Demon Deacons were a hair away from pulling off a monster win last week, but they came up short in their upset bid of Georgia Tech. Wake Forest led 17-3 at halftime but fell 30-29 in overtime with head coach Jake Dickert opting for a 2-point try that ultimately failed, dropping the Demon Deacons to 2-2.
Virginia Tech, meanwhile, is 2-3. That may not seem bad, but the Hokies were 0-3 to start the year before firing head coach Brent Pry. They're are coming off a 23-21 win over NC State, which beat Wake Forest 34-24 in September.
The Demon Deacons have played most of their opponents close, narrowly beating Kennesaw State before blowing out WCU and falling to NC State and Georgia Tech by a combined 11 points. The Hokies have played mostly bad football this year, and one of their two wins was against Wofford. This game being on the road is part of why Wake Forest is a touchdown underdog, but the Demon Deacons can certainly steal one over an up-and-down Virginia Tech side that lost to Vanderbilt and Old Dominion at home so far in 2025.
No. 24 Virginia (+7, +205) vs. Louisville
Virginia is ranked No. 24 in the nation after knocking off Florida State in a thrilling double-overtime game last week, but the Cavaliers are touchdown underdogs at Louisville this week. It may seem a bit surprising to see a ranked squad as 7-point underdogs to an unranked foe, but there's a case for the Cardinals to be ranked this season.
Louisville is 4-0 while Virginia is 4-1, with its lone loss coming to NC State. The Cardinals have handled business against Eastern Kentucky, James Madison, Bowling Green and Pittsburgh, but this week will be their toughest task yet with the Cavs off to a stellar start behind quarterback Chandler Morris and the running back tandem of J'Mary Taylor and Harrison Waylee. That trio has combined for 25 total touchdowns so far.
Virginia is playing with a ton of confidence, especially after a program-shaping win over Florida State. This could be a potential letdown spot, or it could just be the next big step for a Cavaliers team that could be emerging as an ACC title contender.
Air Force (+11.5, +330) at Navy
We've got a military branch matchup on Saturday when Air Force visits Navy. Both academy schools have been putting up a lot of points, and despite their 1-3 record, the Falcons have scored at least 30 points in all four of their games this year. Quarterback Liam Szarka has nine total touchdowns on the year.
Navy is a perfect 4-0 thanks in large part to quarterback Blake Horvath, who has rushed for 355 yards and has eight total touchdowns on the year. Navy held Rice to 13 points last week but gave up 23 and 24 to Tulsa and UAB, respectively, and this will be the toughest task the Midshipmen defense will have to date. Add in the rivalry aspect and this has the makings of a potential upset.
















