The Biggest Disappointments of the 2023 College Football Season So Far
Through six weeks of the 2023 college football season, we have a pretty good idea of which teams look the strongest. We can also tell which teams have badly underperformed this year.
Every college football team enters a given season with certain expectations based on talent it has returning, what its schedule looks like, coaching staff, etc. So far this season, we've seen a number of teams perform worse than expected.
Let's run through the biggest disappointments of the 2023 college football season.
South Carolina Gamecocks
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The Gamecocks finished last year 8-5, including two upset victories over Tennessee and Clemson to close out the regular season. Both losses knocked both the Vols and Tigers out of the playoff hunt.
Although South Carolina lost to Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl to end the season, expectations were high entering Shane Beamer's third year in charge.
Entering Week 7, though, the Gamecocks are 2-3, with losses to North Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee on their resume. Against the Tar Heels and Bulldogs, South Carolina started strong in the first half only to crumble in the second.
The Gamecocks also folded early on the road against Tennessee two weeks ago before losing 41-20.
South Carolina has a chance to get back on track at home against Florida on Saturday following a bye this week. The Gamecocks are 2.5-point favorites, and Gators head coach Billy Napier is 1-7 on the road over the last two seasons.
Even with a win over Florida, though, South Carolina will have to fight to make it to a bowl game. It has remaining road games against Missouri and Texas A&M to close out October before four straight home games.
Finishing the season entirely at home is certainly an advantage, but only Jacksonville State and Vanderbilt look like definite wins. The Gamecocks close the season with games vs. Kentucky and Clemson.
TCU Horned Frogs
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TCU was the Cinderella story of 2022. Entering the season with 200-1 odds to make it to the playoff, it not only did that but also shocked Michigan in the semifinal.
Although the Horned Frogs lost a lot of that team in the NFL draft, they were expected to be competitive inside the Big 12. But through five weeks, it's clear this is a big rebuilding year for head coach Sonny Dykes and Co.
TCU is 3-3 on the season and entering Saturday's game against 4-1 BYU riding a two-game losing skid to West Virginia and Iowa State.
The Horned Frogs were at the mercy of Colorado's start to its magical run this season. Although the Buffaloes entered as 21-point underdogs, they upset TCU, 45-42.
Dykes' team rebounded nicely with three straight wins over Nicholls State, Houston and SMU, but it has lost two straight to WVU and Iowa State.
The most glaring things that stand out in those two losses? Miscues on special teams and turnovers. In the loss to West Virginia, TCU missed three field goals.
Against Iowa State, the Horned Frogs coughed up four turnovers. Starting quarterback Chandler Morris, who left the game with a knee early in the third quarter, threw two. Backups Josh Hoover and JP Richardson threw three picks between them.
With remaining games against BYU, Kansas State, Texas and Oklahoma, TCU may struggle to make a bowl this year. It's certainly a step back from a dream season in 2022, even with the roster turnover it has had to deal with.
Clemson Tigers
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Clemson was supposed to be much improved in 2023. After two straight years of missing out on the playoff, changes had to be made.
And it looked like Dabo Swinney was on the right track.
The Tigers head coach made a huge offseason hire in landing offensive coordinator Garrett Riley from TCU. With sophomore quarterback Cade Klubnik leading the unit, and four returning starters along the offensive line, there were high expectations for the offense. On defense, the unit returned eight starters from an impressive 2022 group.
By Week 4, though, Clemson was already out of the playoff hunt. The writing was on the wall as early as Week 1, when it got blown out 28-7 by Duke, despite the offense getting 29 first downs and outgaining its opponent offensively 422-to-374 yards.
Clemson can still finish with eight, nine or even 10 wins this season—a finish other fanbases would welcome. While the playoff expansion next season will help the Tigers moving forward, it's clear there are still plenty of issues for them to resolve.
Swinney went outside his comfort zone of internal hires by bringing in Riley. In order for Clemson to be nationally relevant again, he needs to further embrace modernization in the game such as the transfer portal and using NIL to build recruiting classes.
We'll see if a third straight season sitting at home during the playoff makes him do just that.
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Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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Before Notre Dame fans start yelling, I had high hopes for the team at the start of the season. Quarterback Sam Hartman seemed set to have a big impact, and the schedule looked like it set up nicely for the Fighting Irish to make a serious playoff run.
However, thanks to losses to Ohio State and then-No. 25 Louisville last Saturday, Notre Dame is out of the playoff hunt.
Against Ohio State in Week 4, Notre Dame lost at home thanks to a gutsy scoring drive by the Buckeyes in the game's final 1:26.
Louisville entered last week's game undefeated, but the Irish were still 6.5-point road favorites. But the Cardinals scored 16 points in the final quarter to win 33-20.
This season isn't a total failure in South Bend, though. The Irish can still make a New Year's Six bowl. Upsetting rival USC this Saturday night might not be a bad consolation prize, either.
However, Notre Dame already being out of the playoff race by Week 7 isn't what was expected of this team at the start of the year.
LSU Tigers
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LSU had legit College Football Playoff aspirations entering the season after winning the SEC West in Brian Kelly's first season in charge and returning a lot of its starters from last season.
In just six weeks, though, the Tigers are out of both the SEC West and playoff hunts.
In Week 1 against then-No. 8 Florida State, LSU led 17-14 at halftime, but the defense imploded in the second half. It gave up 31 unanswered points before scoring a touchdown in the final two minutes to cut the Seminoles' lead to 21.
Sure, one loss didn't ruin LSU's playoff hopes, but the Tigers' 55-49 defeat to Ole Miss in Week 5 certainly did.
The most glaring problem for LSU is how it looks defensively. The unit ranks 124th in total defense, allowing 445.7 yards per game and is 113th in scoring defense nationally.
Offensively, the Tigers are fifth nationally in scoring defense, putting up 44.8 points per game and rank third in total offense. Quarterback Jayden Daniels has put up some big numbers, and he has thrown two more touchdowns (19) than he did all last season.
But when you have a defense that gives up 6.69 yards per play, it's hard to win games if your defense can't get off the field. The Tigers allow their opponents to convert on 45.57 percent of third down attempts.
LSU still has to play Auburn, No. 11 Alabama, Florida and Texas A&M this season. If the defensive struggles continue, it could be a long season for the Tigers.
Teams That Could be Trending in Wrong Direction
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For some teams, it might be too early to call them disappointments, but there are a few that look like they have the potential to fall apart before the end of 2023.
Miami Hurricanes
It's been a rough week for head coach Mario Cristobal and the Miami Hurricanes.
Last week, they were shocked by Georgia Tech in dramatic fashion. Miami had a 20-17 lead, and had the ball inside the game's final two minutes. Instead of taking a knee to run out the clock, the Hurricanes kept running plays.
On 3rd and 10 with 33 seconds left, Miami running back Don Chaney fumbled, which Georgia Tech recovered. Then, Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King hit Christian Leary for a 44-yard touchdown to take a 23-20 lead with two seconds left.
Miami has big games left against North Carolina, Clemson, NC State, FSU and Louisville on its schedule. Losing any of those in a fashion as it did to Georgia Tech might heat up Mario Cristobal's seat heading into 2024.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
It's no secret Nebraska is a former powerhouse that has struggled over the last decade. It's still early in the season, but through six games the Huskers are 3-3 under first-year head coach Matt Rhule.
Nebraska opened its season losing on the road to Minnesota, 13-10. In Week 2, the Huskers lost 36-14 against Colorado in Boulder. Two consecutive wins over Louisiana Tech and Northern Illinois were expected. With a 45-7 loss to Michigan and a 20-7 win over Illinois in the last two weeks, it's a bit hard to predict what Nebraska will do the rest of the season.
The Huskers still have to play Northwestern, Purdue, Michigan State, Maryland, Wisconsin and Iowa this season. If they play like they did the first two weeks of the season, another bowl-less season is a possibility.
Texas A&M Aggies
The jury is also out on how this season will end for Jimbo Fisher and Texas A&M.
They are 4-2, with losses to Miami on the road and vs. Alabama. The defeat by the Crimson Tide may look worse than the Miami one, even with the Canes' stumble last week.
TAMU faced a struggling Alabama at home and led 17-10 at halftime, but the Tide's offense came alive in the second half to claim a 26-20 win.
Texas A&M looks like it has one win it can pencil in on its schedule remaining—against Abilene Christian on Nov. 18. Other than that, it still has to play Tennessee, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and LSU.
If the Aggies fail to make a bowl for a second consecutive season, Fisher's seat will get even hotter after a 5-7 year in 2022.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
