There were some shocking upsets in Week 6 of the college football season.
Top-10 teams Texas and Penn State went on the road and were taken out by unranked teams, with both programs suffering their second loss of the season, respectively. The preseason Nos. 1- and 3-ranked teams, respectively, both have their College Football Playoff hopes hanging in the balance heading into Week 7.
Elsewhere, No. 12 Iowa State also suffered a road loss to an unranked team. Cincinnati downed the favorite for the Big 12 title, giving the Cyclones their first loss of 2025. Texas Tech now looks like the clear-cut leader of the conference so far.
College football is always set for surprises, especially when fans are least expecting it. Here’s a recap of the most notable upsets of Week 6 in college football:
College football upsets yesterday
UCLA 42, No. 6 Penn State 37
Easily the most shocking upset of the season so far, UCLA hosted Penn State without its head coach and both coordinators after firing all three this season.
The Bruins entered the game winless, and looked like one of the worst teams in FBS so far. UCLA fell to New Mexico 35-10 at home earlier this season, which resulted in the firing of former head coach DeShaun Foster.
Quarterback Nico Iamaleava, a former five-star recruit who transferred from Tennessee in the offseason, had been a disappointment — until he torched Penn State. Iamaleava threw for 166 yards with two touchdowns while rushing for 128 yards and three scores.
UCLA interim coach Tim Skipper deserves a lot of credit, but it was interim offensive coordinator Jerry Neuheisel (yes, Ken Neuheisel’s son) who stole the show against the Nittany Lions after the Bruins’ offensive explosion. It was Neuheisel’s first-ever game calling an offense.
For Penn State, the loss marked its second consecutive dropped game after falling to Oregon at home in double overtime on Sept. 28. The Nittany Lions were viewed as one of the top national championship contenders in the preseason, but haven’t lived up to that hype yet.
But give credit to UCLA, whose makeshift coaching staff (and roster, for that matter) came together with an impressive game plan for its first win of 2025.
Florida 29, No. 7 Texas 21
Texas’ road game against Florida in Week 6 had been viewed as a potential trap game since the Gators’ skid that started in Week 2. It was also going to be a tough matchup for Texas, especially with the game being on the road in a hostile environment and the Longhorns looking ahead, potentially, to their Red River Rivalry game vs. Oklahoma.
Texas’ offense continued to struggle, as former five-star recruit Arch Manning completed 16 of 29 passes for 263 yards with two touchdowns to two interceptions, which both came in costly moments in the fourth quarter. He also rushed for 37 yards.
Florida was coming off consecutive losses to South Florida, LSU and Miami. Its offense had also struggled mightily this season. True freshman receiver Dallas Wilson had a magnificent debut, catching six passes for 111 yards with two touchdowns. Running back Jadan Baugh also rushed for 107 yards and a score against the Texas defense.
Florida coach Billy Napier might still be on the hot seat, but the Gators head coach continues to add impressive wins to his resume when college football least expects him to.
Cincinnati 38, No. 14 Iowa State 30
Cincinnati was actually favored in this game by 1.5 points, per BetMGM. However, the ranking disparity warrants an ‘upset.’
The Bearcats jumped out to a huge lead early, leaving the first quarter with a 17-0 lead. Iowa State fought back late, but it was too little too late, as Cincinnati held on for a 38-30 win to move to 4-1 this season.
Quarterback Brendan Sorsby has been one of the most underrated signal-callers in the country this season, and threw for 214 yards with two touchdowns while rushing for 64 yards and another score. The Bearcats had 264 yards on the ground on only 33 carries, good for 8 yards per carry.
Cincinnati might just be a sleeper contender in the Big 12, although the conference still has a lot to be figured out throughout conference play.