Top College Football and Basketball Rankings 26 to 50: Georgia, Ohio State, Oklahoma

Look, football is bigger than basketball - it just is.

There's a reason why you haven't seen the major conferences falling all over themselves to add UConn.

All of the schools on this part of the 2024 Hoops and Helmets list were at least functional at college basketball. They all had winning seasons in hoops, but none of them made the NCAA Tournament - which, unfortunately for the great sport, is all that really matters.

They all went to a bowl game, though. Get to one, and at least there was some semblance of fun throughout the football season - even if you were disappointed at how things shook out (cough ... Florida State and Georgia).

And yes, even the basketball side had enough wins to make it enjoyable.

2024 Hoops and Helmets: Bowl Game, Winning Basketball Season

50 UCF Knights

Basketball: 17-16
Hoops: 12th in Big 12. Lost to BYU in Big 12 Tournament 2nd Round. Lost to USF in 1st Round of NIT.
Football: 6-7
Helmets: T9th in Big 12. Gasparilla Bowl, 39-17 loss to Georgia Tech.
2023 Ranking: 59, 2023 AAC: 5

49 Arkansas State Red Wolves

Basketball: 20-17
Hoops: 4th in Sun Belt. Lost to Louisiana in Sun Belt Tournament Quarterfinal.
Football: 6-7
Helmets: T2nd in Sun Belt West. Camellia Bowl, 21-19 loss to Northern Illinois.
2023 Ranking: 132, 2023 Sun Belt: 14

48 Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns

Basketball: 19-14
Hoops: 5th in Sun Belt. Lost to Appalachian State in Sun Belt Tournament Semifinal.
Football: 6-7
Helmets: 5th in Sun Belt West. New Orleans Bowl, 34-31 loss to Jacksonville State.
2023 Ranking: 36, 2023 Sun Belt: 2

47 Syracuse Orange

Basketball: 20-12
Hoops: 7th in ACC. Lost to NC State in ACC Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 6-7
Helmets: T11th in AAC. Boca Raton, 45-0 loss to USF.
2023 Ranking: 61, 2023 ACC: 8

46 Bowling Green Falcons

Basketball: 20-14
Hoops: 5th in MAC. Lost to Kent State in MAC Tournament Semifinal.
Football: 7-6
Helmets: 3rd in MAC East. Quick Lane Bowl, 30-24 loss to Minnesota.
2023 Ranking: 113, 2023 MAC: 8

45 Virginia Tech Hokies

Basketball: 19-15
Hoops: 8th in ACC. Lost to Florida State in ACC Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 7-6
Helmets: T4th in ACC. Military Bowl, 41-20 win over Tulane.
2023 Ranking: 97, 2023 ACC: 12

44 Boston College

Basketball: 20-16
Hoops: 11th in ACC. Lost to Clemson in ACC Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 7-6
Helmets: T9th in ACC. Fenway Bowl, 23-14 win over SMU.
2023 Ranking: 119, 2023 ACC: 15

43 Utah Utes

Basketball: 22-14
Hoops: 6th in Pac-12. Lost to Colorado in Pac-12 Tournament 2nd Round. Got to NIT Final Four.
Football: 8-5
Helmets: T4th in Pac-12. Las Vegas Bowl, 14-7 win over Northwestern.
2023 Ranking: 38, 2023 Pac-12: 3

42 UNLV Rebels

Basketball: 21-13
Hoops: 4th in MW. Lost to San Diego State in Mountain West Semifinal. Lost to Seton Hall in 3rd Round of the NIT.
Football: 9-5
Helmets: T1st in MW. Lost Mountain West Championship to Boise State. Guaranteed Rate Bowl, 49-36 loss to Kansas.
2023 Ranking: 94, 2023 MW: 7

41 Ohio Bobcats

Basketball: 20-13
Hoops: 3rd in MAC. Lost to Akron in MAC Tournament Semifinal.
Football: 10-3
Helmets: 2nd in MAC East. Myrtle Beach Bowl, 41-21 win over Georgia Southern.
2023 Ranking: 43, 2023 MAC: 2

40 Kansas State Wildcats

Basketball: 19-15
Hoops: 10th in Big 12. Lost to Iowa State in Big 12 Tournament Quarterfinal. Lost to Iowa in the first round of the NIT.
Football: 9-4
Helmets: T4th in Big 12. Pop-Tarts Bowl, 28-19 win over NC State.
2023 Ranking: 4, 2023 Big 12: 1

39 Appalachian State Mountaineers

Basketball: 27-7
Hoops: 1st in Sun Belt. Lost to Arkansas State in Sun Belt Tournament Semifinal. Lost to Wake Forest in 1st Round of the NIT.
Football: 9-5
Helmets: 2nd in Sun Belt East. Lost Sun Belt Championship to Troy. Cure Bowl, 13-0 win over Miami University.
2023 Ranking: 91, 2023 Sun Belt: 8

38 LSU Tigers

Basketball: 17-16
Hoops: 9th in SEC. Lost to Mississippi State in SEC Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 10-3
Helmets: T2nd in SEC West. ReliaQuest Bowl, 35-31 over Alabama.
2023 Ranking: 69, 2023 SEC: 10

37 Iowa Hawkeyes

Basketball: 19-15
Hoops: 6th in Big Ten. Lost to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament 2nd Round. Lost to Utah in the 2nd Round of the NIT.
Football: 10-4
Helmets: 1st in Big Ten West. Citrus Bowl, 35-0 loss to Tennessee.
2023 Ranking: 19, 2023 Big Ten: 4

36 Oklahoma Sooners

Basketball: 20-12
Hoops: 9th in Big 12. Lost to TCU in Big 12 Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 10-3
Helmets: T2nd in Big 12. Alamo Bowl, 38-24 loss to Arizona.
2023 Ranking: 110, 2023 Big 12: 10

35 Memphis Tigers

Basketball: 22-10
Hoops: 5th in AAC. 3-6 late season run costly. Lost to Wichita State in first AAC Tournament game.
Football: 10-3
Helmets: 4th in AAC. Liberty Bowl, 36-26 win over Iowa State.
2023 Ranking: 23, 2023 AAC: 2

34 Ohio State Buckeyes

Basketball: 22-14
Hoops: 10th in Big Ten. Lost to Illinois in Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal. Lost to Georgia in 3rd Round of the NIT.
Football: 11-2
Helmets: 2nd in Big Ten East. Cotton Bowl, 14-3 loss to Missouri.
2023 Ranking: 30, 2023 Big Ten: 7

33 Toledo Rockets

Basketball: 20-12
Hoops: 1st in MAC. Lost to Kent State in MAC Tournament Quarterfinal.
Football: 11-3
Helmets: 1st in MAC West. Lost MAC Championship to Miami University. Arizona Bowl, 16-15 loss to Wyoming
2023 Ranking: 37, 2023 MAC: 1

32 Troy Trojans

Basketball: 20-12
Hoops: 3rd in Sun Belt. Lost to Texas State in Sun Belt Tournament Quarterfinal.
Football: 11-3
Helmets: 1st in Sun Belt West. Won Sun Belt Championship over Appalachian State. Birmingham Bowl, 17-10 loss to Duke.
2023 Ranking: 33, 2023 Sun Belt: 1

31 Ole Miss Rebels

Basketball: 20-12
Hoops: 7th in SEC. Lost to Texas A&M in SEC Tournament 2nd Round. Lost to Houston in NCAA Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 11-2
Helmets: T2nd in SEC West. Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, 38-25 win over Penn State.
2023 Ranking: 84, 2023 SEC: 13

30 SMU Mustangs

Basketball: 20-13
Hoops: 6th in AAC. Lost to Temple in AAC Tournament 2nd Round.
Football: 11-3
Helmets: T1st in AAC. Won AAC Championship over Tulane. Fenway Bowl, 23-14 loss to Boston College.
2023 Ranking: 86, 2023 AAC: 7

29 Liberty Flames

Basketball: 18-14
Hoops: 4th in CUSA. Lost to UTEP in CUSA Tournament Quarterfinal.
Football: 13-1
Helmets: 1st in CUSA. Won CUSA Championship over New Mexico State. Fiesta Bowl, 45-6 loss to Oregon.
2023 Ranking: 60, 2023 Independent: 3

28 USF Bulls

Basketball: 25-8
Hoops: 1st in AAC. Lost to UAB in AAC Tournament Semifinal. Missed NCAA Tournament. Lost to VCU right away in NIT.
Football: 7-6
Helmets: T5th in AAC. Boca Raton Bowl, 45-0 win over Syracuse.
2023 Ranking: 131, 2023 AAC: 11

27 Florida State Seminoles

Basketball: 17-16
Hoops: 9th in ACC. Lost to North Carolina in ACC Tournament Quarterfinal.
Football: 13-1
Helmets: 1st in ACC. Won ACC Championship over Louisville. Orange Bowl, 63-3 loss to Georgia.
2023 Ranking: 71, 2023 ACC: 9

26 Georgia Bulldogs

Basketball: 20-16
Hoops: 11th in SEC. Lost to Florida in SEC Tournament 2nd Round. Final Four in the NIT.
Football: 13-1
Helmets: 1st in SEC East. Lost SEC Championship to Alabama. Orange Bowl, 63-3 win over Florida State.
2023 Ranking: 3, 2023 SEC: 3

2024 Hoops and Helmets
Losing Seasons In Both Sports
No Bowl Game, Winning Hoops
Bowl or NCAA Tournament, Not Both
Bowl Game, NCAA Tournament
2024 Hoops and Helmets Top 10

AAC | Big 12 | CUSA | MAC
Mountain West | SEC | Sun Belt
ACC | Big Ten coming after Final Four