Greg McElroy puts two top 25 college football teams on upset alert in Week 2

ESPN analyst Greg McElroy talks to the media during media day before the College Football Playoff national championship game | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

On his podcast Always College Football, ESPN analyst Greg McElroy previewed the loaded Week 2 college football schedule for this weekend. In his "Giant Killers" segment, he named two top 25 programs that could be on upset alert on Saturday.

McElroy started with Baylor traveling to No. 17 SMU, a crucial matchup for the Bears after a Week 1 loss at home.

"We'll go Baylor +3 against SMU," McElroy said. "I think Baylor kind of needs this one, and SMU, I don't know why that line's three. Feels like SMU should be favored by more, which makes me think Baylor is going to make this things very interesting."

The Bears opened the season with a 38-24 loss to Auburn after allowing over 300 yards on the ground. On a more positive note, quarterback Sawyer Robertson completed 27-of-48 attempts for 419 passing yards and three touchdowns. This could be interesting if Baylor can find the same amount of success through the air, but it will need its defense to step up against a solid SMU rushing attack.

SMU had a much easier Week 1 matchup, defeating East Texas A&M 42-13 in a blowout victory.

Kevin Jennings led the Mustangs with 260 passing yards and two passing touchdowns, adding another score on the ground. The Bears struggled to defend the quarterback run, allowing Auburn's Jackson Arnold to run for 137 yards and two scores. Finding a way to stop Jennings will be key for the Bears to pull off the upset.

McElroy turned his attention to a major Big 12-SEC out-of-conference matchup that could have College Football Playoff implications.

"I look at Mississippi State catching seven thereabouts against Arizona State at home. I think Arizona State is going to struggle to communicate in this game," McElroy explained. "I think if you talk to people that are associated with Arizona State's program, this is a game that concerns them.

"This, however, for Mississippi State, massive opportunity for Jeff Lebby. They have nothing to lose in this game. Go throw a punch... I think they will. I think they'll make this game very, very close against the Arizona State Sun Devils."

Both teams enter Week 2 at 1-0 after solid wins over non-P4 opponents. The Sun Devils defeated Northern Arizona 38-19, while the Bulldogs beat Southern Miss 34-17 in an interesting in-state matchup.

Arizona State won the most recent matchup between these programs, beating Mississippi State 30-23 in a Week 2 game in 2024.

The Sun Devils are looking to make another run to the College Football Playoff under head coach Kenny Dillingham. He helped turn the program around from a three-win team in 2023 to an 11-win team only one season later.

It all starts with quarterback Sam Leavitt, who had a good Week 1 performance with 257 passing yards and two passing touchdowns. He added another 73 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. The Sun Devils also have a dangerous weapon on the outside in Jordan Tyson, who led the team with 141 yards on 12 catches with two scores.

Mississippi State is looking to rebound after a 2-10 season last year, in which the only wins came against an FCS program and UMass. It'll be key to get quarterback Blake Shapen playing well after a solid Week 1 performance.

Time will tell if Mississippi State or Baylor can shake up the AP Top 25 poll, but these will both be games to watch on Saturday.