Florida State has joined a shameful group that no program ever wants to be a part of

To say it has hit the fan in Tallahassee would be putting it lightly. It went to hell in a hand basket faster for Florida State than you can say D.J. Uiagalelei. The reigning ACC champions not only have no shot whatsoever of getting back to Charlotte to defend their league title, but the Seminoles are not even getting to a bowl game. After losing to in-state rival Miami, the Noles have fallen to 1-7 on the season.

To put that in perspective, Florida State just "accomplished" something that has happened only six other times in the last 15 years. The 2024 Seminoles are the seventh team to come off a top-six finish the year prior and not achieve a winning record the following season. Of the group of teams they are joining, I remember every single one of these colossal collapses over the last two decades.

Behold! The non-magnificent seven... Which of these surprises you the most or totally forgot about?

• Florida State Seminoles: No. 6 in 2023; 1-7 so far in 2024
• TCU Horned Frogs: No. 2 in 2022; 5-7 in 2023
• Baylor Bears: No. 5 in 2021; 6-7 in 2022
• Michigan State Spartans: No. 6 in 2015; 3-9 in 2016
• Arkansas Razorbacks: No. 5 in 2011; 4-8 in 2012
• Ohio State Buckeyes: No. 5 in 2010; 6-7 in 2011
• Texas Longhorns: No. 2 in 2009; 5-7 in 2010

For me, it would have to be 2011 Ohio State in the wake of TattooGate. I thought that team went 7-6...

Either way, there is something interesting to be gleaned from this latest data entry point of suck.

2024 Florida State joins an unlucky group of seven college football teams

I distinctly remember all seven of these teams looking the part in year one before falling off the proverbial cliff the season prior. 2009 Texas and 2022 TCU played for national championships. 2015 Michigan State made the College Football Playoff. 2021 Baylor won 12 games. As for 2010 Ohio State and 2011 Arkansas, I remember them being elite college football teams when I was at Georgia.

All seven of these teams finished the following year below .500 for differing reasons. However, there seems to be one common thread loosely tying them all together: Great player retention. Recruiting would be a blanket statement, but 2011 Ohio State was different due to scandal. The same principle applies to 2012 Arkansas. As for the other five, a lack of on-field talent is why they circled the drain.

Texas got decadent under Mack Brown. Mark Dantonio started to mail it in with recruitment during the latter stages of his impressive coaching career at Michigan State. Dave Aranda won with Matt Rhule's players at Baylor. Sonny Dykes is showing that his first year in Fort Worth was the anomaly for TCU. As for Mike Norvell, if you live by the transfer portal, you can die by the transfer portal at Florida State.

Another takeaway I have from this group of underperforming teams is how often it happens. At least once a year, a team ranked inside of the top-10 to start will finish outside of it. There will be at least two in Florida State and Michigan this year. However, it seems that every other season a BCS/New Year's Six/College Football Playoff team will go from being on top of the world to getting toppled on.

Overall, it just goes to show just how competitive this sport really is, especially at or near the top of it. The best team in a conference hardly ever loses to the one at the bottom of it. However, there seems to be more parity in college football than we even realize. Not as much as in the NFL, but some. Whether that is NIL, the transfer portal or each team getting more national exposure plays a part in it.

For 2025 Florida State, there is only one direction to go in, and that would have to be up, right?