In your opinion, who is canned this year and who survives to 2022?
Philip Montgomery, Tulsa: He’s done some good things in seven seasons — there were two really strong seasons mixed in — but he’s headed for his fifth losing year. Tulsa got off to a brutal start to 2021, losing to FCS UC Davis and dropping four of its first five games. The Golden Hurricane just lost at home to a 1-6 Navy team to drop to 3-5. Tulsa has games at Cincinnati and SMU; a bowl game seems very unlikely. Temperature check: Hot.
Scott Frost, Nebraska: The losses just … keep … coming. On Saturday it was to Purdue, who beat Nebraska in Lincoln to make bowl eligibility seem an almost impossibility — the Huskers dropped to 3-6 and have Ohio State, Iowa and Wisconsin left. Getting to four wins now seems like a reach. New AD Trev Alberts is going to have a tough case to make to give Frost more time after this year without at least one upset win.
Frost is 10-22 in Big Ten play in four years; more than half of those defeats have come to unranked opponents. And that damning stat in one-score games? it keeps getting worse. He’s now 5-18. Temperature check: It’s gone from warm to hot.
Manny Diaz, Miami: This one is really complicated. It seemed like his athletic director Blake James (also on the hot seat) did a lot of media two weeks ago and appeared to distance himself from his coach. Since then, Miami has knocked off two top 20 teams and freshman QB Tyler Van Dyke has emerged as a godsend, throwing seven touchdowns and just one interception while torching the two top-ranked ACC defenses.
Given how banged up the Canes are, this mini-run has been impressive. The Canes lost their previous two games by a combined five points. If Miami can win out in November— no opponents with winning records remain — Diaz and his staff would make a compelling a case for more time, especially considering his buyout is believed to be north of $8 million, according to sources. Additionally, there are assistants on multi-year deals, so any coaching search would likely mean an investment of some $20 million for 2022 if Miami is paying market rate for a new staff. Temperature check: Still hot, but has cooled some.
Dino Babers, Syracuse: He got a nice 21-6 win over Boston College to move to 5-4. He should be OK, barring a November collapse. Babers has infused a lot of juice into what was a completely listless program, although Cuse’s final three opponents all are .500 or better. He has a big buyout and that should also help his cause. Temperature check: Warm, but has cooled a lot in the past two weeks.
Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech: Fuente almost got canned last year and now Tech is struggling to get bowl eligible. The Hokies (4-4) just beat Georgia Tech to notch their first win in five tries against FBS opponents. Fuente also has what has been described by sources as “frosty relationships” with key people at Tech. Word is, this could be Billy Napier from Louisiana or Sonny Dykes from SMU’s job next year. Temperature check: Very hot.
Marcus Arroyo, UNLV: He’s still searching for his first career win and is 0-14. This time it was a blowout loss at Nevada. The Rebels had played their last four opponents — all pretty good teams — close, losing by eight points or less. The AD who hired him left for Missouri. Arroyo really needs a win somewhere. Best hope: at New Mexico or against Hawaii. Temperature check: Warm and getting warmer.
Herm Edwards, Arizona State: ASU got embarrassed at home Saturday by a Washington State program that had been dealing with all sorts of tumult. The issues inside the Sun Devils program, stemming from the recruiting scandal the NCAA is digging into that surrounds Edwards and his top assistant, Antonio Pierce, seems to have seeped onto the field on Saturdays. Colleague Doug Haller had a strong column exploring whether the team has quit on Edwards. Temperature check: Hot and getting hotter.
Chip Kelly, UCLA: His fourth season started with a bang with a big win over LSU after he overhauled a roster with only a scholarship number in the mid-50s in his first spring and just seven offensive linemen. Much of that enthusiasm has since waned. The Bruins are 5-4 coming off getting mauled at Utah, 44-24. With home games remaining against Colorado and Cal, 7-5 looks like the floor and 8-4 is still possible. The one factor that could work against him if the Bruins flop in the last month: The athletic director in charge at UCLA now, Martin Jarmond, isn’t the guy who hired him. Temperature check: Warm.
Dan Mullen, Florida: AD Scott Stricklin is firmly in his corner, backing the coach he worked with in their days at Mississippi State. However, Mullen is losing much of the fan base. The problems both on the field and in recruiting have become glaring. Florida got blown out by a much more talented Georgia team to make it 2-7 against the Gators’ last nine Power 5 opponents. In the past three years, Mullen’s teams are also 2-7 against Top 25 teams — shocking for a program with such resources and history. And, those two losses don’t include defeats against beleaguered LSU teams fielding half a roster both times. Oh, and Mullen also has an NCAA show cause penalty. At the very least he’s probably to need to make major staff changes. It’s likely the Gators will finish 8-4. He’ll probably be safe, unless Florida has another embarrassing loss or two along the way. Temperature check: Warm but getting a lot warmer.
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Philip Montgomery, Tulsa: He’s done some good things in seven seasons — there were two really strong seasons mixed in — but he’s headed for his fifth losing year. Tulsa got off to a brutal start to 2021, losing to FCS UC Davis and dropping four of its first five games. The Golden Hurricane just lost at home to a 1-6 Navy team to drop to 3-5. Tulsa has games at Cincinnati and SMU; a bowl game seems very unlikely. Temperature check: Hot.
Scott Frost, Nebraska: The losses just … keep … coming. On Saturday it was to Purdue, who beat Nebraska in Lincoln to make bowl eligibility seem an almost impossibility — the Huskers dropped to 3-6 and have Ohio State, Iowa and Wisconsin left. Getting to four wins now seems like a reach. New AD Trev Alberts is going to have a tough case to make to give Frost more time after this year without at least one upset win.
Frost is 10-22 in Big Ten play in four years; more than half of those defeats have come to unranked opponents. And that damning stat in one-score games? it keeps getting worse. He’s now 5-18. Temperature check: It’s gone from warm to hot.
Manny Diaz, Miami: This one is really complicated. It seemed like his athletic director Blake James (also on the hot seat) did a lot of media two weeks ago and appeared to distance himself from his coach. Since then, Miami has knocked off two top 20 teams and freshman QB Tyler Van Dyke has emerged as a godsend, throwing seven touchdowns and just one interception while torching the two top-ranked ACC defenses.
Given how banged up the Canes are, this mini-run has been impressive. The Canes lost their previous two games by a combined five points. If Miami can win out in November— no opponents with winning records remain — Diaz and his staff would make a compelling a case for more time, especially considering his buyout is believed to be north of $8 million, according to sources. Additionally, there are assistants on multi-year deals, so any coaching search would likely mean an investment of some $20 million for 2022 if Miami is paying market rate for a new staff. Temperature check: Still hot, but has cooled some.
Dino Babers, Syracuse: He got a nice 21-6 win over Boston College to move to 5-4. He should be OK, barring a November collapse. Babers has infused a lot of juice into what was a completely listless program, although Cuse’s final three opponents all are .500 or better. He has a big buyout and that should also help his cause. Temperature check: Warm, but has cooled a lot in the past two weeks.
Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech: Fuente almost got canned last year and now Tech is struggling to get bowl eligible. The Hokies (4-4) just beat Georgia Tech to notch their first win in five tries against FBS opponents. Fuente also has what has been described by sources as “frosty relationships” with key people at Tech. Word is, this could be Billy Napier from Louisiana or Sonny Dykes from SMU’s job next year. Temperature check: Very hot.
Marcus Arroyo, UNLV: He’s still searching for his first career win and is 0-14. This time it was a blowout loss at Nevada. The Rebels had played their last four opponents — all pretty good teams — close, losing by eight points or less. The AD who hired him left for Missouri. Arroyo really needs a win somewhere. Best hope: at New Mexico or against Hawaii. Temperature check: Warm and getting warmer.
Herm Edwards, Arizona State: ASU got embarrassed at home Saturday by a Washington State program that had been dealing with all sorts of tumult. The issues inside the Sun Devils program, stemming from the recruiting scandal the NCAA is digging into that surrounds Edwards and his top assistant, Antonio Pierce, seems to have seeped onto the field on Saturdays. Colleague Doug Haller had a strong column exploring whether the team has quit on Edwards. Temperature check: Hot and getting hotter.
Chip Kelly, UCLA: His fourth season started with a bang with a big win over LSU after he overhauled a roster with only a scholarship number in the mid-50s in his first spring and just seven offensive linemen. Much of that enthusiasm has since waned. The Bruins are 5-4 coming off getting mauled at Utah, 44-24. With home games remaining against Colorado and Cal, 7-5 looks like the floor and 8-4 is still possible. The one factor that could work against him if the Bruins flop in the last month: The athletic director in charge at UCLA now, Martin Jarmond, isn’t the guy who hired him. Temperature check: Warm.
Dan Mullen, Florida: AD Scott Stricklin is firmly in his corner, backing the coach he worked with in their days at Mississippi State. However, Mullen is losing much of the fan base. The problems both on the field and in recruiting have become glaring. Florida got blown out by a much more talented Georgia team to make it 2-7 against the Gators’ last nine Power 5 opponents. In the past three years, Mullen’s teams are also 2-7 against Top 25 teams — shocking for a program with such resources and history. And, those two losses don’t include defeats against beleaguered LSU teams fielding half a roster both times. Oh, and Mullen also has an NCAA show cause penalty. At the very least he’s probably to need to make major staff changes. It’s likely the Gators will finish 8-4. He’ll probably be safe, unless Florida has another embarrassing loss or two along the way. Temperature check: Warm but getting a lot warmer.
Updated CFB hot seats! Nebraska, Miami, Virginia Tech and more: Bruce Feldman’s temperature checks, from cold to hot
Gauging the pressure on college football coaches across the country, according to industry insiders, sources, coaches and more.
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