Winners and losers in college football: Florida and Florida State top the list of the most disappointing teams

Florida State's terrible start is unique.

The Seminoles became the ninth team in the AP Poll era to start the season 0-3 after being ranked in the top 10 of the preseason poll following a 20-12 loss to Memphis on Saturday. The Seminoles had three first-half turnovers in the loss as the Memphis defense was unafraid of Florida State's passing game.

What sets FSU apart from the other eight preseason top-10 teams is its opponents. Florida State is the first team in the group to have all three losses come against unranked teams. The other eight teams all lost to at least one ranked opponent in their season opener.

Florida State began the season with hopes of winning the ACC and making the College Football Playoff. Now the Seminoles just hope to get into a bowl game. Florida State needs to go 6-3 in its final nine games to get into a bowl game.

If history is anything to go by, this will not be an easy task. Only three of the last eight top 10 teams that started 0-3 were able to finish victorious.

It's a tough time in Tallahassee, and the symbolism couldn't have been clearer when a fire alarm went off at the end of coach Mike Norvell's postgame press conference.

Florida State isn't the only team that's had a terrible start. Here are some of the other teams that have been disappointing in the first three weeks of the season.

Florida (1-2): Florida's demanding schedule made a successful season a major challenge ahead of the 2024 season. And Florida is lucky that Florida State is winless, otherwise the Gators would be the most disappointing team in college football.

Florida had no chance at home on Saturday, losing 33-20 to Texas A&M. Coach Billy Napier played both Graham Mertz and DJ Lagway at quarterback, and neither played well. Mertz hit a pick-6 in the second half that extended the Aggies' lead to 26 and ended any hope of a miraculous Florida comeback.

The Gators have been ineffective and undisciplined against both Miami and Texas A&M this season. That's a terrible combination. Next week's game against Mississippi State is a big test. Either the Gators get back to .500 and have some hope, or the season falters at 1-3.

Kansas (1-2): The Jayhawks lost 23-20 to UNLV on Friday night after losing at Illinois in Week 2. Kansas' offense looks much different with former assistant coach Andy Kotelnicki now calling plays for Penn State. QB Jalon Daniels was the preseason best player in the Big 12 in 2023, but has six interceptions through the first three games of 2024 and has completed just 55% of his passes. KU scored 35 points per game last season despite Daniels being out for long periods with a back injury. The Jayhawks have scored a total of 37 points in their two games against FBS opponents this season.

And if you need a video to sum up KU's loss to UNLV, you've come to the right place.

Michigan (2-1): The Wolverines are the only team on this list with a winning record, and there's one reason Michigan is disappointing: quarterback play.

The good news is that starter Davis Warren caught every pass attempt in Saturday's 28-18 win over Arkansas State. The bad news is that three of Warren's 14 passes were caught by Red Wolves players.

Warren threw for just 122 yards and it's clear that the quarterback position is Michigan's biggest weakness this season. After winning the QB competition over Alex Orji, Warren threw six interceptions in three games and managed just 444 yards. Orji probably isn't the right choice to jumpstart the passing game either. He's attempted just six passes all season and will be used primarily in rushing situations.

It's surprising that Michigan hasn't specifically sought out a transfer QB following JJ McCarthy's departure for the NFL. And if neither Warren nor Orji make a big jump soon, the most important position on offense will be what keeps Michigan from competing for the Big Ten title.

Here are the rest of this week’s winners and losers.

winner

No. 9 Oregon: The Ducks looked much better against Oregon State than they did against Idaho and Boise State. Oregon defeated rival Oregon State 49-14 on Saturday in a game that showed why Dillon Gabriel is a Heisman contender. Gabriel threw 20 of 24 passes for 291 yards and two touchdowns and also scored one run for 54 yards. The win is Oregon's first against Oregon State since 2018 in a rivalry that thankfully continued despite the Pac-12's dissolution.

Washington State: The Cougars scored a point for the rest of the Pac-12 in a 24-19 win over Washington. Washington State stopped Washington on an option play on the short side of the field on fourth down and goal from the 1-yard line with 1:07 left.

Washington ran this option play with quarterback Will Rogers, a player not exactly known for his running ability and entering the game with -300 career rushing yards (in college football, sack yardage against quarterbacks counts).

The Huskies then committed two offside penalties after using their last two timeouts. The second penalty allowed Washington State to run out the clock.

Pitts: The Panthers know how to play dramatic. After beating Cincinnati with a late field goal in Week 2, Pitt scored a 1-yard touchdown by Derrick Davis Jr. with 34 seconds left to win the Backyard Brawl 38-34 against West Virginia. Eli Holstein threw for 301 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 59 yards, while there were three lead changes in the second half.

Pitt led 24-17 midway through the third quarter before West Virginia scored 17 straight points to build a 10-point lead with 4:55 left. The Panthers cut the lead to seven with 3:06 left and quickly got the ball back for the game-winning drive after forcing a three-and-out.

State of Arizona: The Sun Devils picked up a nice 31-28 win at Texas State on Thursday night and are now 3-0. The win in San Marcos came after ASU beat Mississippi State in Tempe (Texas State beat UTSA 49-10 in Week 2). RB Cam Skattebo scored twice after rushing for 262 yards on 33 carries against the Bulldogs. Arizona State's Big 12 schedule is tough; the Sun Devils have four games against higher-ranked opponents and play only two teams that aren't bowl-bound in 2023. But there are real signs of life in Kenny Dillingham's second season as coach.

loser

Purdue: The Boilermakers were Notre Dame's comeback. The Fighting Irish managed nearly 400 yards of offense in the first half alone and won 66-7. Purdue was projected to finish last in the Big Ten preseason poll, and Saturday's game showed nothing to suggest that prediction was wrong. The Boilermakers managed just 162 total yards and lost the ball twice, while Notre Dame averaged eight yards per carry.

South Carolina: It hurts to blow a 17-point lead at home, especially when you're averaging six yards per run and have touchdowns of 75 and 66 yards. And that's exactly what happened in the Gamecocks' 36-33 loss to No. 16 LSU. South Carolina had a chance to send the game into overtime as time expired, but Alex Herrera's 49-yard field goal went wide.

Coach Shane Beamer was quick to blame his team's 13 penalties for 123 yards as one of the reasons for the loss. South Carolina's lack of a passing attack could continue to be the team's undoing. LaNorris Sellers was hampered by an ankle injury, but he and Robby Ashford completed just 11 of 20 passes for 155 yards, and Sellers threw an interception.