Texas head coach Tom Herman has been on the proverbial hot seat this year.
As the 2020 season approached, Herman had replaced a vast majority of his coaching staff. The offensive line, defensive line and running back coaches were the only holdovers from the previous staff.
Beginning a season with no spring football and a very truncated fall camp, it was rare to assume that Herman would be on the hot seat. In Dennis Dodd’s annual hot seat rankings, he put six coaches under the win or be fired category.
Scott Frost (Nebraska), Chip Kelly (UCLA), Randy Edsall (Connecticut), Clay Helton (USC), Dana Dimel (UTEP) and Derek Mason (Vanderbilt) were all included. According to Dodd, Herman was not at that level of frustration yet.
Herman came in at level four (start winning now). He was listed along with Kevin Sumlin (Arizona), Manny Diaz (Miami Fl), Will Muschamp (South Carolina) and Phillip Montgomery (Tulsa). Not great company, but many felt as if each of them would be awarded another year. Since then, the hot seat for Herman started to heat up quickly.
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The excitement was evident surrounding the hires of Mike Yurcich and Chris Ash as Herman’s new coordinators. It was quarterback Sam Ehlinger’s year to finally take the step up towards a hopeful Heisman contender. The Oklahoma Sooners — who have controlled the Big 12 the past five seasons — were expected to take a step back with an inexperienced quarterback.
The Sooners did in fact take a step back this year, but it was the Longhorns who didn’t step forward. After demolishing UTEP in the season opener on Sept. 12 in Austin, the wheels started to come off as they threw gasoline under the seat of Tom Herman and lit a match.
Texas traveled to Lubbock to take on the Texas Tech the following week. With minutes left in regulation, the Longhorns were down 15 points. They needed a miracle from quarterback Sam Ehlinger, he eventually came through in the clutch to led Texas into overtime for a 63-56 win. Too close for comfort.
Following the scare in Lubbock, Texas would lose back-to-back games to TCU and Oklahoma. Texas was an onside kick away from starting 0-3 in the conference, it didn’t boast confidence in the staff. Frustrations and whispers became louder.
With their backs against the wall, the Longhorns won the next three games. However, the unpleasant fanbase won’t shy away from Herman being on the hot seat unless Texas is able to win the Big 12 title this season.
How important are the next three games in regards to Herman’s future in Austin?