College Football’s Biggest Disappointments of 2024

10. ACC Sleepers

Everyone was looking for a few teams in the ACC that could knock off Miami, Florida State, and Clemson and ascend to the College Football Playoff picture. Louisville, Virginia Tech, and North Carolina State were the primary schools brought up in that discussion, and each has stumbled to varying degrees. North Carolina State has been an abject disaster as the defense has fallen off a cliff, and the offense has sputtered. The Wolfpack are 0-3 in the league and just 3-4 overall. Virginia Tech is 3-3 and just 1-1 in the ACC. While they still hope to make the league title game, the Hokies have not been the team their fans had hoped to see. Louisville is 2-1 in the ACC and still in the mix, but they had back-to-back chances on the national stage, lost both games (to Notre Dame and SMU), and have no margin for error moving forward.

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2. Oklahoma State's Running Game

Ollie Gordon was the Doak Walker Award Winner in 2023, and Oklahoma State returned every major piece of its offensive line. The Cowboys were expected to continue to be able to dominate on the ground and contend for the 2024 Big 12 Championship. They averaged 4.84 yards per carry, and Gordon ran for 6.08 yards per carry. Those numbers have plummeted to 3.3 yards per carry and 3.8 yards per carry, respectively. Oklahoma State cannot stop the run (teams are averaging 5.47 yards per rush against OK State), and their ability to dominate foes on the ground has disappeared. As a result, they are tied for last in the Big 12 at 0-3.

3. Utah Utes

The Utah Utes were the preseason favorite for the Big 12 Championship after migrating from the PAC-12. Through half of the season, those dreams are all but over, and the Utes will struggle to make a decent bowl game. Cam Rising has been hurt again, and the Utes are just 1-2 in the Big 12 with a net score of -18 (51 points for and 69 points against). This past week, Utah lost to an Arizona State squad they beat by more than 50 points a week ago.

4. California Nightmare

The Big Ten welcomed a West Coast contingent to the conference as the league expanded to 18 teams. Oregon knocked off Ohio State and sits tied atop the league, and Washington is squarely in the middle. Still, the California schools that began the expansion have disappointed. UCLA is just 1-5 and 0-4 in the league, and the USC Trojans are now 1-3 in the Big Ten after an overtime defeat by Penn State. The two are a combined 1-7 in the conference, and they share the basement with Maryland and Purdue. The schedule does not let up for either of them, and questions about Lincoln Riley’s future are being asked.

5. Jayhawks Regression

Lance Leipold has steadily built the Kansas Jayhawks football program from one of the nation’s worst to a team that went to back-to-back bowl games and won nine games in 2023. The Jayhawks had a high-powered offense and returned their star running back, and quarterback, and hopes were high that KU could contend for a Big 12 Championship. Unfortunately, the wheels have fallen off Leipold’s Kansas wagon, and the Jayhawks are 1-5. Kansas lost its offensive coordinator to Penn State, and the attack suffered. Plus, they have allowed 105 points through three Big 12 games. This does not mean Kansas is back to being a perennial cellar-dweller, but the 2024 season has been a significant letdown.

6. Auburn Flops Under Freeze

The Auburn Tigers were supposed to be better in year two under Hugh Freeze. Freeze knew they were not ready to contend for an SEC title just yet, and they chose not to pursue a transfer quarterback until next offseason when the roster was a bit more mature and ready to compete. Missing a bowl game altogether and looking worse in year two than they did in year one was not in the cards, though. Auburn is now 2-4, and they are tied with Mississippi State at 0-3 in the SEC. Auburn has scored only 48 points in the league, placing them right with Oklahoma as the SEC’s worst offense. Freeze isn’t on the hot seat yet, but they must start showing real progress soon.

7. Young QBs Struggle

Before this season, much was made of young quarterbacks who were ready to become stars. The ascendancy to stardom has not gone as planned for some. Nico Iamaleava is averaging only 8.5 yards per attempt, and he’s only on pace for around 2,400 yards and 14 touchdown passes. Head coach Brent Venables benched Jackson Arnold, and he will likely be playing quarterback somewhere besides Norman next season. Kansas State’s Avery Johnson has only thrown for 1,103 yards and has thrown five interceptions in a shaky start to the season. Stardom could still be in the cards for each player, but a better second half of the campaign will be needed for their teams to reach the level they had hoped to.

8. Sun Belt Stalwarts Fall

The Sun Belt is one of the more entertaining and competitive Group of Five leagues, and in the past decade, the two best teams in the league have typically been Troy and Appalachian State. The Mountaineers have won the league title or been in the Sun Belt Conference Championship Game six times since 2016, and Troy has won the league three times since 2017. To see Appalachian State at the bottom of the East division and 0-3 in the Sun Belt while giving up 134 points in the league and then Troy at 0-2 and just 1-5 overall and at the bottom of the West division has been shocking. Both conference stalwarts being in the basement is a real surprise.

9. Michigan's Offense

Michigan’s offense was expected to take a step back after losing Blake Corum, JJ McCarthy, and a few excellent offensive linemen. Even the most pessimistic UM fan would have had a hard time predicting the quarterback play to be as uninspiring as it has been thus far in 2024. Michigan averages only 23.5 points per game, and they have thrown for just 690 yards with six interceptions. Davis Warren got the first crack and was then sidelined for Alex Orji. The junior averaged 3.4 yards per attempt and only completed 53.5 percent of his passes, so Jack Tuttle was given the reins. Tuttle lost his first start at Washington and was only 10 for 18, but it was deemed good enough to get the starting job, at least for now. The Wolverines are one-dimensional, and if they don’t find a bit of passing success, they could be headed for a seven or eight-win season.

10. ACC Sleepers

Everyone was looking for a few teams in the ACC that could knock off Miami, Florida State, and Clemson and ascend to the College Football Playoff picture. Louisville, Virginia Tech, and North Carolina State were the primary schools brought up in that discussion, and each has stumbled to varying degrees. North Carolina State has been an abject disaster as the defense has fallen off a cliff, and the offense has sputtered. The Wolfpack are 0-3 in the league and just 3-4 overall. Virginia Tech is 3-3 and just 1-1 in the ACC. While they still hope to make the league title game, the Hokies have not been the team their fans had hoped to see. Louisville is 2-1 in the ACC and still in the mix, but they had back-to-back chances on the national stage, lost both games (to Notre Dame and SMU), and have no margin for error moving forward.

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