College Football Hot Seat Coaches: Win NOW, Or Else
These five coaches will likely hang on to their respective jobs with an okay final record, but they all need to put together a strong string of wins NOW.
5. Neal Brown, West Virginia
Up Next: Baylor
At the moment, West Virginia might be the tenth-best team in a ten team league that calls itself the Big 12.
Part of the problem is the league itself – everyone else is good. And West Virginia is good, too. It played well in the loss to Pitt, the shootout loss to Kansas seems fine now, and losing at Texas is losing at Texas. However, Brown is now 19-21 overall and 2-3 this year.
There isn’t a sure-thing win the rest of the way. He could desperately use a win over Baylor this week, and another former Mountaineer head man could use a win, too.
4. Dana Holgorsen, Houston
Up Next: at Memphis
First, he took over as a Power Five-caliber head coach who was going to help usher the program into Power Five status. It’s off to the Big 12 next season, but it was supposed to be – if everything broke the right way – this year’s Cincinnati.
He went 7-13 in his first two years – going way young in 2019 when the season appeared to be lost – and then came a terrific 12-2 2021. This year? 2-3, and it could’ve easily have been 0-5 with the UTSA and Rice games too close for comfort.
On the flip side, Houston could’ve been – let’s say – 4-1 with stronger play. Now Holgorsen gets three road games int eh next four, but the remaining schedule isn’t that bad.
With what’s left – at Memphis, at Navy, USF, at SMU, Temple, at East Carolina, Tulsa – there’s no excuse for this team to not come close to running the table.
3. Bryan Harsin, Auburn
Up Next: at Georgia
It’s just a rough situation.
The base never really took to him, offseason issues and headlines didn’t help, and on the field the struggles offensively have made the screaming deafening. The team fought in the 21-17 loss to LSU, but even at 3-2 there’s a problem with a schedule storm coming.
At Georgia – especially after its performance against Missouri – is NOT the team you want to face if you’re having trouble scoring. However, maybe it’s the exact right team.
Win, and everything changes. Lose, and at Ole Miss, Arkansas, at Mississippi State, Texas A&M, and that trip up the road to Tuscaloosa might drop like a hammer.
2. Scott Satterfield, Louisville
Up Next: at Virginia
There was a problem last season with a second straight losing season. There was a problem coming into the season with a 31-7 loss to Syracuse. There was hope with a 2-2 start and a supposed layup against Boston College. One 34-33 loss later to one of the ACC’s worst teams, and now just getting to six wins and a bowl will require a heavy lift.
A loss at Virginia this week might be a bit too much to salvage the season with Pitt, Wake Forest, James Madison, at Clemson, NC State, and at Kentucky to close.
1. Jeff Scott, USF
Up Next: at Cincinnati
He’s 4-22.
USF wasn’t that horrible before he took over, and it was going to take an overhaul to improve and make a splash. But the team hasn’t beaten an FBS team this year, the only win was over Howard, and even with a 31-28 loss to Florida, every game has been rough.
The trip to Cincinnati this week will probably be another ugly loss, and if there’s not a major upset somewhere, the date at Temple might be the only shot at another win.
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