5 most costly losses in college football Week 3: Coaches in Florida are sweating it out on hot seats now

College football is virtually done with non-conference play and some conferences already started their slates. However, some teams were in desperate need of a win Saturday and didn't get it.

Now, back home and preparing for Week 4, these five squads had the most to lose from falling short in their games this past weekend.

5. Memphis def. Florida State 20-12

Ok, it's getting a bit pathetic now how bad Florida State really is this year. Memphis is a good team, no doubt, they were selected as a favorite to represent the Group of Five conferences in the expanded College Football Playoff. But the Seminoles made some unfortunate history with this loss.

Florida State became the first team since Arizona State in 1976 to start a season 0-3 after having gone undefeated the year before, according to ESPN's telecast. They're also the sixth team in the last 50 seasons to be ranked in the preseason Top 10 and have such a bad start after three weeks. Head coach Mike Norvell should probably start packing up unessential items in his office, he's probably not going to be needing it much longer.

4. No. 6 Missouri def. No. 24 Boston College 27-21

Missouri would've been on this list regardless of the outcome on Saturday. A loss certainly would've been costly to its SEC and playoff chances but the tight win puts Boston College squarely in the spotlight today. This was a gigantic opportunity for the Eagles to make a statement after such a surprisingly emphatic start to their season.

Now, despite falling to a superior-ranked opponent, Boston College enters ACC play with little to no room for error if it wants to challenge Miami for the ACC crown, let alone aim for an at-large bid to the playoff. It's certainly not over for the Eagles, either. College football fans have seen how dangerous quarterback Thomas Castellanos is. The rest of the ACC is officially on notice and they can all be burned at any time.

3. Texas A&M def. Florida 33-20

Boy, Billy Napier just can't seem to buy a break for his career. It seems like ancient history that he recruited and developed Anthony Richardson into the NFL-caliber starter he is today. Unfortunately for Napier, college football is a sport of "what have you done for me lately?"

The score line does not indicate whatsoever how much of a blowout the Aggies had opened up on the Gators. By halftime it was 20-0 Texas A&M and only late in the game did Florida mount an ill-fated comeback. Napier is another coach who will need to start emptying his office. At this point, the boosters may all come together and start pooling cash for his buyout.

2. Pittsburgh def. West Virginia 38-34

The 2024 "Backyard Brawl" was an all-time classic with both teams trading blows all four quarters. Unfortunately for the Mountaineers, this will go down as one of the worst-blown leads in the program's history. With less than five minutes to play in regulation, West Virginia led 34-24. Pittsburgh then mounted two quick touchdown drives and bottled the Mountaineer offense for its next two drives to end the game.

The rivalry game was revived after a decade-long hiatus due to conference realignment just a couple of seasons ago, and this edition is sure to quell any fears of a dip in quality play. However, West Virginia fans will now have to live with Pittsburgh fans lauding the win over their heads for at least another 365 days, given the rivalry game was played rather early compared to other years.

1. Toledo def. Mississippi State 41-17

The SEC was served its own MAC-attack on Saturday when Toledo absolutely embarrassed Mississippi State at home. The shocker came on the heels of Northern Illinois knocking off a Top 5 Notre Dame team in Week 3. However, this game left most pundits wondering if Mississippi State is just that bad or if Toledo was just that good (it's probably the former).

The kicker out of all of this (and probably the most embarrassing thing for the Bulldogs) was that Mississippi State actually paid Toledo $1.2 million to play this game. And to add insult to injury, the award for toughest remaining schedule in the SEC goes to: You guessed it, Mississippi State. Good luck withstanding the rest of the season, Bulldog fans.