The Biggest Disappointments of the 2024 College Football Season
While there have been quite a few teams that have exceeded all expectations and proven to be better than expected (you can read about those surprise teams here), there are also teams that were highly ranked in the pre-season and have not lived up to those expectations.
Florida State (1-6)
Photo by Mark Wallheiser
When discussing the most disappointing teams in the 2024 season, you absolutely have to begin with the Florida State Seminoles. After finishing 13-0 last year and controversially missing out on the College Football Playoff, the Seminoles entered 2024 with high expectations once again. Despite losing some key players to the NFL, they returned a talented defense and added quarterback DJ Uiagalelei from the transfer portal to lead the offense. Unfortunately, the offense hasn’t just underperformed—it’s been completely dreadful, directly costing Florida State multiple games this season.
The Seminoles began the year ranked 10th in the country, but skepticism grew after a stunning loss to Georgia Tech on a last-second field goal as 10-point favorites in Week 0. Things only got worse in their home opener when they lost 28-13 to Boston College as 17-point favorites. Uiagalelei struggled, completing just 21 of 42 passes with one touchdown and an interception, while their leading rusher managed just 11 yards—a troubling preview of what was to come. Since then, the Seminoles have racked up losses to Mempis at home, on the road at SMU by 26 points, and a loss to Duke for the first time in the program’s history.
The Seminoles have had problems at essentially every single position group offensively. Before his injury, DJ Uiagalelei was not playing well, and the receivers have consistently dropped crucial passes—most notably during last Friday’s loss to Duke. The offensive line has also been a significant issue, contributing to an almost non-existent run game. Statistically, Florida State ranks 128th in the nation in offensive yards per play, 125th in total offensive PPA (Predicted Points Added), and 128th in offensive success rate. While the defense has been solid, the offense has struggled to the point where winning games is nearly impossible. With the upcoming schedule including Miami and Notre Dame, the Seminoles’ season—and their hopes of reaching a bowl game—are likely all but over.
Michigan (4-3)
Photo by Associated Press
While Michigan hasn’t been nearly as disastrous as the Seminoles, they still have been extremely disappointing following their National Championship win last season. After losing Head Coach Jim Harbaugh, starting quarterback JJ McCarthy, as well as a program record 12 other players to the NFL Draft, the Michigan Wolverines were set for a bit of a rebuilding season in 2024. Promoting offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore to head coach raised hopes that Michigan would remain a playoff contender, but after a 4-3 start and with their three toughest games still to come, the outlook for the rest of the season looks bleak.
Much like Florida State, Michigan's defense has held strong. Will Johnson, Mason Graham, and Kenneth Grant are all projected to be early selections in the 2025 NFL Draft, and for the most part, have kept the Wolverines' standard set by the prior group. The offense, however, has been a different story. Michigan has had a revolving door of quarterbacks, starting with Davis Warren, then Alex Orji, and most recently turning to sixth-year senior Jack Tuttle. Regardless of who is under center, the results have been dreadful. The trio has combined for a 6-9 touchdown-interception ratio, and Tuttle's 208-yard performance in Saturday’s loss to Illinois was the most passing yards Michigan has managed in a game this season. The struggles don’t rest completely on the quarterbacks; outside of tight end Colston Loveland, no Michigan receiver has more than 106 receiving yards on the year, further emphasizing how ineffective the passing attack has been.
Moving forward, Michigan faces top-ranked Oregon, and challenging road matchups against undefeated Indiana and fourth-ranked rival Ohio State. With a 4-3 record, their upcoming games against rivals Michigan State and Northwestern become must-win if the Wolverines hope to secure bowl eligibility in 2024.
Oklahoma (4-3)
Photo by The Free Press
The Oklahoma Sooners have had a rude awakening in their inaugural season in the SEC. I was bullish on Oklahoma heading into 2024, confident that with their talented receiving corps, sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold would have a breakout season. On top of that, I expected head coach Brent Venables to field one of the best defenses in the country in his third year, with plenty of returning talent from last year’s squad. Unfortunately for Sooners fans, it hasn’t played out that way.
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the defense has not been the issue. Oklahoma’s defense has been stellar, holding Tennessee’s offense in check and limiting Texas until turnovers put the game out of reach. However, on the offensive side of the ball, it has been essentially as bad as it could possibly be, culminating in a horrendous 35-9 home loss to South Carolina where the offense turned the ball over on the first three drives of the game. Statistically, Oklahoma’s offense has been even worse than Florida State’s, ranking 130th in offensive PPA, 129th in offensive success rate, and 132nd in yards per play. It has been truly abysmal, though the defense has managed to keep their bowl hopes alive.
The main problem for Oklahoma’s offense has been a combination of horrendous offensive line play and a growing list of injuries. For example, in recent games, the Sooners have been without their top five preseason wide receivers. No matter how well you recruit and build depth, if you are missing your top five guys at wide receiver, it is very difficult to form a competent passing attack. Add in a struggling offensive line that has had difficulty blocking even the weakest teams on Oklahoma’s schedule, and you can see why this group has been so bad this season.
Looking ahead, the schedule doesn’t get any easier for Oklahoma. Despite already facing two top-ten teams, four of their five remaining games are against top-25 opponents, three of which are on the road. The Sooners will need a massive turnaround on offense if they hope to salvage this season.
Oklahoma State (3-4)
Photo by Spencer Heaps
Staying in the state of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma State Cowboys have been a major disappointment in 2024. I was also very high on the Cowboys preseason due to the large amount of returning production on both sides of the ball, and Head Coach Mike Gundy who has a proven track record of winning football games. However, this season has not been one of those years, and in fact, it’s shaping up to be one of the worst teams Gundy has ever fielded in his tenure at Oklahoma State.
The warning signs appeared early, in their second game of the year against Arkansas. Despite winning the game in double overtime, Oklahoma State was outplayed and probably should have lost. Arkansas put up an astounding 648 yards on the Cowboys defense and if not for three turnovers, missed field goals, and failed fourth-down conversions, Arkansas would have easily come away with the win. After narrowly escaping that game, the Cowboys went on to lose four straight Big 12 games, three of which were lopsided.
Unlike the other teams on this list, Oklahoma State has had problems on both sides of the ball. Defensively, they cannot stop the run. Utah ran for nearly 250 yards, Kansas State for 300, BYU for 255, and West Virginia shredded them for 389 yards on the ground. This defense looks unphysical and, given how consistent these struggles have been, it’s hard to see them turning it around. Ironically, on offense they haven’t been able to establish any form of a run game. Ollie Gordon was hailed as one of the top running backs in the country coming into this season, but he’s averaging just four yards per carry—down from six a season ago. This, as well as the continued struggles at quarterback as the Cowboys bounce back and forth between Alan Bowman and Garrett Rangel create a dreadful situation offensively.
Looking ahead, it’s hard to see how Oklahoma State turns this around. While I still have faith in Mike Gundy’s coaching ability, this group has been exposed in the Big 12 week after week. That said, the Big 12 is one of the most balanced conferences in the country, so there isn’t a game left on their schedule they couldn’t win. The question is whether they can fix enough of their issues to string together the victories needed to reach a bowl game in 2024.
