Vanderbilt's stunning upset of Alabama shows there's always hope in college football

There's an old adage amongst college football fans that the weeks of the season that appear to have the least intrigue always end up as the most chaotic. It's very much become a cliché thing to say, and though there's precedent for that being the case, often times, chaos doesn't materialize.

Going into this Saturday, fans sang that same tune once more, calling to be wary of potential mayhem for a seemingly sleep slate. But this time, chaos reigned.

Saturday saw several major upsets, but none were bigger than what happened in Nashville. An unranked Vanderbilt squad that had previously lost to Georgia State upset a #1-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide team that was coming off a thrilling victory over Georgia. It was an upset that will go down in college football history, and it's the perfect example of why you should always have hope in this sport.

The unthinkable can always happen in college football

For as beloved as college football is, at times, the sport can't help but cultivate a feeling of hopelessness for a lot of fanbases. The talent-gap that exists between the elites of the sport and the traditional bottom-dwellers typically makes the results of matchups between them foregone conclusions. The elite team is going to win and win by a lot nearly every single time.

But Vanderbilt's win is a reminder that magic can always happen in this sport. There's no good reason why Vanderbilt should be able to beat Alabama, but they did. In a sport played by 18-22 year old college students that features unique matchups and styles, we can see stunners. It's rare they're to this magnitude, but when you aren't running professionals out there, the range of outcomes is wide.

The phrase "that's why they play the games" gets thrown around a lot, but it's true. Even the unthinkable can happen. And that's why hope should never fully be abandoned. Every program, regardless of its standing or history, has the chance to have its moment in the sun. And when those programs do, we see why this sport is so great.

If magic can happen for Vanderbilt, it can happen for Mississippi State football too

Mississippi State football has fallen on hard times. The Bulldogs have entered into full rebuild mode after a long run of success for the program, and the future is very much in doubt. But for as tough as things are currently, State's program isn't yet in a position of annual despair that Vanderbilt was just in.

The 'Dores went 2-10 last season, their fourth season with three or fewer wins in the last five years. Their last bowl appearance came in 2018. Their last winning season, 2013.

None of that mattered when they played Alabama on Saturday. On that same note, none of Alabama's history mattered on Saturday, either. Two teams lined up to play, one walked away with a win. It wasn't the team anyone expected, but to quote that old phrase once more, "that's why they play the games."

And if that applies to Vanderbilt, then it certainly applies to Mississippi State. For as bad as this season has been in Starkville, the situation in Nashville was far more destitute not even one year ago. And even this season, Vandy literally lost to Georgia State! There's nothing about that program that would suggest a signature, potentially program-changing win could happen against Alabama, but it did.

MSU is absolutely capable of having their own moment. Will it happen this season? I have no idea. What about next season or the one after? Still couldn't tell you. But today proved you should never totally lose hope in college football. So hold on to the hope, Bulldog fans.