Eight saddest college football fanbases after Week 12

College Football Playoff hopefuls are dropping by the week as the ever-merciless month of November in the sport continues to exact its toll and the field of playoff contenders shrinks.

That reality has a lot of fans feeling the sting of what-if after Week 12.

Here are the eight saddest fanbases after another wild week around college football.

1. Louisville

A little more than a week ago, Louisville was ranked No. 15 in the CFP rankings, had just one loss and was chasing both a potential ACC title and playoff berth.

That's all gone now.

The 29-26 overtime loss at home to middling Cal last week did a lot of the damage, and just a brutal finish Friday night in a 20-19 loss to Clemson finished the Cardinals off.

In this case, the what-ifs go much deeper than just the outcome, but also encompass all the miscues, mental mistakes, and one very curious coaching decision that led to it.

A missed extra point early in the second quarter loomed decisive in the end, but that didn't have to be the case.

Louisville led 19-13 in the fourth quarter and forced a Clemson fumble on fourth-and-goal from the 1, but a quick three-and-out and punt had the Tigers driving again moments later. This time, they'd punch in the touchdown on another fourth-and-goal from the 1 to go up 20-19.

The Cardinals still had every chance to win the game and keep their goals alive. On the next series, they got to the Clemson 26 and in range for a go-ahead field goal before quarterback Miller Moss did the one thing he couldn't afford to do -- take a 6-yard sack to move that field goal to a 50-yarder. Cooper Ranvier, who missed the PAT earlier, missed again.

Still, Louisville had a shot.

It forced a quick Clemson punt, and a low snap that couldn't be handled gave the Cardinals the ball at the Tigers' 23-yard line with 2:31 left, already in prime field goal range. They just had to avoid blowing it completely.

But no ... An immediate false start and then a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Lance Robinson for shoving after the play set the Cardinals back. Moss completed a 14-yard pass to make it a more manageable 46-yard game-winning field goal try, but instead of letting Ranvier complete a redemption narrative -- he is 17 of 20 on field goals this season, after all -- coach Jeff Brohm decided to call on Nick Keller, who had attempted only three FGs all season. He yanked it wide right.

That's how Louisville saw its playoff hopes collapse in the span of seven days -- an overtime loss at home and a calamity of errors and decisions. Rough.

Seven saddest college football fan bases after Week 12. — South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer looks up during the second quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

2. South Carolina

Nothing could have saved South Carolina's lost season at this point, but upsetting the undefeated No. 3 team in the country on the road certainly would have counted for something.

Alas ...

The Gamecocks blew a 30-3 halftime lead, never scored again and lost 31-30 for the biggest comeback in Texas A&M's program history. Somehow, that incredible first half only provided the setup for further disappointment and frustration for South Carolina fans who have watched their team tumble from No. 13 in the preseason AP top 25 poll to 3-7 overall and 1-7 in the SEC.

That second-half collapse Saturday involved a failed fourth-and-1 try from the Texas A&M 30-yard line, three quick punts and another turnover on downs to seal it as the Gamecocks got completely shut down after halftime when even one score would have made the difference.

3. Texas

Texas fans had bought back in, even if the Longhorns' four-game winning streak was littered with red flags.

(Needing overtime to beat both Kentucky and Mississippi State and allowing 21 straight fourth-quarter points to Vanderbilt to nearly squander a huge lead at home).

But nonetheless, they had improbably gone from preseason No. 1 to out of the AP top 25 entirely to No. 10 in the CFP rankings entering the big showdown at No. 5 Georgia on Saturday.

The Bulldogs didn't just end Texas' playoff hopes, though -- they devoured them in a 35-10 win.

The Longhorns finally found the end zone late in the third quarter to cut their deficit to 14-10, but then Georgia went 10 plays and 73 yards for a touchdown and pulled off a successful onside kick, which led to another immediate touchdown drive to make it 28-10.

The look Texas coach Steve Sarkisian's face after the onside kick said it all.

GEORGIA RECOVERS THE ONSIDE KICK 😱 pic.twitter.com/dQCcAcRXdi
— ESPN (@espn) November 16, 2025

A season that began with national championship expectations will now fall short of even a playoff berth.

Alabama loses to Oklahoma. — Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide now have saw their CFP path get a little more complicated with a loss to Oklahoma on Saturday. | Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images

4. Alabama

We must preface by saying Alabama had just won eight straight games, including four over ranked opponents, before Saturday.

But we also know Crimson Tide fans don't have much patience for anything but winning, and the 23-21 loss to Oklahoma at home is not sitting well.

It also has major ramifications.

Alabama (8-2) dropped six spots to No. 20 in the AP top 25 poll, and it remains to be seen where it will land in the new CFP rankings on Tuesday. The Crimson Tide certainly remains very much in the playoff chase, but its margin for error is now slim or nil.

Alabama closes against Eastern Illinois and at rival Auburn, and should end up 10-2, which would likely secure a playoff spot for the Tide. However, it's very likely that Alabama will end up in the SEC championship game. Would it then need to win (against potentially unbeaten Texas A&M) to avoid getting knocked out of the playoff? No three-loss team earned a CFP at-large berth last season, but this would be an interesting case.

Ultimately, the SEC championship game is likely to be determined by a tiebreaker. If Alabama, Georgia, and Ole Miss win out and stay in a three-way tie for second behind the Aggies, as they did not play each other.

Alabama fans might be in a weird spot of hoping their team doesn't make the conference championship game and risk a third loss.

Meanwhile, QB Ty Simpson went into the weekend with the third-best Heisman Trophy odds, but he's fallen to almost off the board after throwing a pick-6 and losing a costly fumble in that loss.

5. South Florida

It was all there for South Florida. The toughest games seemed behind it, get past a solid but overrated Navy team that's best win was ... over Temple (?) ... take care of UAB and Rice and the Bulls would be in the AAC championship game one win from likely claiming the CFP berth reserved for the highest-ranked Group of Five champion.

But the Midshipmen and their triple-option offense befuddled South Florida to no end Saturday in a 41-38 loss.

The Bulls did everything offensively to mount a rally, reeling off 22 fourth-quarter points, but the defense had zero answers while allowing Navy to score 17 fourth-quarter points and continually answer time and again.

South Florida (7-3, 4-2) is now behind four ACC teams with one conference loss, and that's probably moot anyway, as No. 21 James Madison of the Sun Belt has the inside track on the Group of 5 CFP berth.

Seven saddest fanbases in college football after Week 12. — Duke Blue Devils quarter back Darian Mensah (10) drops back for a pass against Virginia Cavaliers defensive lineman Jacob Holmes (23) during the first quarter at Wallace Wade Stadium. | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

6. Duke

This is sort of two-fold ...

Duke's former head coach, Mike Elko, is the toast of college football while leading No. 3 Texas A&M to a 10-0 start, while Manny Diaz was expected to build on what Elko built in two seasons in Durham. All looked good last year when the Blue Devils went 9-4 for the second time in three years and then paid big NIL money to land Tulane QB transfer Darian Mensah.

But now Duke is 5-5 and was effectively eliminated from the ACC race Saturday without much of a fight, losing 34-17 at Virginia after going down 31-3 despite being favored to win.

7. Michigan State

The Spartans have made this list a few times this year, though we try not to pick on the same group week after week.

But Michigan has now lost seven straight, is winless in the Big Ten, and wasn't even competitive with another team mired in a lost season, losing 28-10 at home to Penn State on Saturday.

There's not much more to say than it's clear the fanbase has given up on second-year coach Jonathan Smith, and it's fair to wonder if the players have too.

After going on the road in Iowa next week, the Spartans will have one more chance to score a conference win in their finale vs. equally spiraling Maryland.

Regardless, the program is assured of its fourth straight season finishing with 5 or fewer wins.

8. Cincinnati

This may not be fair because, ultimately, Cincinnati has had a successful season, taking a major step forward after going 3-9 and 5-7 in coach Scott Satterfield's first two seasons.

But when the Bearcats got to 7-1 and No. 17 in the AP top 25 poll, fans had to allow themselves to think about a Big 12 title and second CFP berth for the program.

That's all off the table now. The 45-14 loss at Utah was a humbling end to the Bearcats' seven-game winning streak, but it was their first conference loss, so everything was still technically in reach ... before a 30-24 loss at home to Arizona on Saturday.

And redshirt-junior QB Brendan Sorsby, who has been excellent most of all of this season, threw an interception on the first play of the game and another in the second quarter to match his season INT total in one half.

Cincinnati still has to play No. 12 BYU and at TCU and will now just hope to avoid ending what was a very positive season on a down note.