College Football Rankings: 5 Ranked Teams on Upset Alert

The underdog completing an upset over a ranked team is one of the most exciting moments in sports.

Up to this point in the 2011 college football season, we haven't seen many notable upsets.

But that could all change come Saturday.

Here are five ranked teams that should be on upset alert heading into this weekend's games. 

No. 12 South Carolina

On Saturday, the South Carolina Gamecocks welcome the Vanderbilt Commodores to town in an SEC matchup of the unbeatens. 

Neither team has been overly impressive this season, with no standout victories on either of the teams' resumes. 

To be honest, it is hard to believe that South Carolina is the No. 12 team in the country, as they allowed 37 points to East Carolina and narrowly escaped games against Georgia and Navy.

With Stephen Garcia struggling, completing just 55.4 percent of his passes and throwing more interceptions than touchdowns, the Gamecocks could be in for another tough test against the Commodores.

After dismantling Ole Miss, 40-7, last week, the Commodores will come to South Carolina confident and looking to knock off one of the country's top-ranked teams.

Despite the game being at home, the Gamecocks are definitely on upset alert on Saturday.

No. 11 Florida State Seminoles

After a tough loss to the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners, the Florida State Seminoles do not get a break on Saturday as they head to Death Valley to face the No. 21 Clemson Tigers.

Worn out from the loss to the Sooners, the Seminoles could be due for another letdown on Saturday when they face a Clemson team coming off a high of beating the defending National Champion Auburn Tigers.

The good news for the Seminoles is, the Tigers are just 2-4 against ranked teams in Death Valley since 2008. But this Clemson team may be the best since 2008, with Tajh Boyd completing 67.3 percent of his passes with a 10-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

Anything can happen on the road in college football, and with Death Valley being one of the toughest places to play, the Seminoles should certainly be on upset alert come Saturday.  

No. 23 USC Trojans

Despite all the controversy surrounding the USC Trojans program and Lane Kiffin, they have still played good football.

With a 3-0 start to the 2011 season, the Trojans look legit with Heisman Trophy candidate Matt Barkley leading the team with 892 yards passing and nine touchdowns. 

On Saturday, the Trojans hit the road to play an Arizona State team with their own highly-touted gunslinger.

Brock Osweiler has tossed six touchdowns to go along with 871 yards, including the game winning touchdown in overtime to beat the Missouri Tigers two weeks ago.

The Sun Devils are 2-0 this season at home and will be pumped up to play the No. 23 Trojans, looking to avenge last season's nail biting 34-33 loss at the Los Angeles Coliseum.

Without a road test this season, the Trojans should definitely be on upset alert when they head to Sun Devil Stadium on Saturday night.  

No. 10 Oregon Ducks

Since losing to LSU in the season opener, the Oregon Ducks have been on fire, averaging 62.5 points in their last two games.

On Saturday night, the Ducks hit the road and face an ailing Arizona team who has lost back-to-back games to Top 10 teams.

No one has ever questioned the Ducks' offensive abilities, but their defense is a different story, and the Wildcats have one of the best quarterbacks in the country, Nick Foles.

Foles has thrown for 1,049 yards and seven touchdowns thus far and could be a problem for the Ducks on Saturday night.

Since 2008, the Wildcats are 15-7 at home and could be overlooked by the Ducks, as they are just 1-2 this season.

If the Ducks do, in fact, overlook the Wildcats, they could find themselves walking away from Arizona Stadium with a loss. 

No. 2 LSU Tigers

Off to a fast start to the 2011 season, the LSU Tigers will face yet another ranked team on Saturday when they visit Morgantown for a matchup with the No. 16 West Virginia Mountaineers.

The Tigers have arguably the best resume of any team in college football, with victories over Oregon and Mississippi State.

LSU proved they can win on the road last week at Mississippi State, but the Mountaineers are 21-2 at home since 2008 and will put up a tough fight.

Of all the teams on this list, the Tigers have the least to worry about.

But if they don't bring their "A" game on Saturday night, they could leave Mountaineer Field with a sour taste in their mouths.