How does Notre Dame’s surprise defeat rank among the biggest upsets in college football history?

Northern Illinois entered its Week 2 game against Notre Dame in South Bend as a 28.5-point underdog. A win seemed all but certain for the nation’s No. 5 team after a season-opening win over Texas A&M.

However, the Huskies turned the tables and surprisingly beat the Fighting Irish 16-14 with a field goal by Kanon Woodill 31 seconds before the end of the game.

Northern Illinois’ win was certainly impressive considering the rankings, and for a team from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) to beat one of college football’s traditional powers is remarkable. But how impressive was the Huskies’ win in terms of point differential?

Surprisingly, a 28.5-point upset doesn’t even rank among the 10 biggest point-spread upsets of all time. But it is among the 15 biggest point-spread upsets of the last 45 years. According to Action Network, three previous teams have won as 28.5-point underdogs:

• Illinois over Wisconsin (2019)

• Pitt over West Virginia (2007)

• Nicholls State vs. Western Michigan (2013)

Two of them may not seem quite as impressive since they were conference matchups, but Southland Conference FCS Nicholls State’s win over MAC team Western Michigan is worth a circle.

The biggest upset in college football history was Howard’s 43-40 win over UNLV in 2017. The Bison trailed by 45.5 points in that matchup. In 2007, Stanford beat USC 24-23 after trailing by 40.5 points. (No, that wasn’t the “What’s your deal?” game that took place two years later.)

Syracuse beat Louisville (2007) and Texas State beat Houston (2012) as 36.5-point underdogs. UTEP beat BYU in 1985 and Temple beat Virginia Tech in 1998 as 36-point underdogs. And to round out the top five, Central Michigan beat Western Michigan as 35.5-point underdogs in 2000.

It’s probably not much consolation for Notre Dame fans to not be one of the five biggest upsets in college football – or even the ten biggest upsets in terms of scoring – but at least Fighting Irish fans can say there have been worse surprises.