Life comes at you fast in college football.
In Week 1, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish were the toast of the town. Marcus Freeman’s squad traveled to College Station, Texas, and landed a prime-time road win against the Texas A&M Aggies. The Irish were lauded as a playoff favorite.
One week later, Notre Dame’s fortunes couldn’t have been more reversed. The Northern Illinois Huskies came into South Bend, Indiana, and dispatched the fifth-ranked Irish.
The Huskies’ major road triumph wasn’t the first upset of the season, but it’s certainly been the largest. We’re tracking all of the biggest upsets of the 2024 college football season throughout the fall.
Sept. 7: Northern Illinois 16 – Notre Dame 14
The Huskies’ defense won the day at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame was held to just 286 yards of total offense as Northern Illinois eventually put through the decisive field goal late in the fourth quarter.
The win was the Huskies’ first in program history against a top-10 opponent. NIU had been 0-14 across all prior attempts, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Aug. 24: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 24 – Florida State Seminoles 21
College football returned with a bang, as the Yellow Jackets pulled off an immediate stunner in Dublin, Ireland. Florida State entered the 2024 season ranked No. 10 in the AP poll but couldn’t find traction after an unbeaten regular season in 2023.
The contest came down to the leg of Georgia Tech kicker Aidan Birr. The redshirt sophomore kept his cool, driving the game-winning field goal through the uprights as the clock struck zero.