This week, things blew up for several teams. None more notable than Dave Doeren (North Carolina State). This week Doeren and Shane Beamer (South Carolina) joined the hot seat tracker. We’ve also added a new section: Lame Ducks. These are coaches who are practically done. This early in the season, coaches could play their ways off this list, but it’d require a remarkable turnaround.
Lame Ducks: Greg Schiano, and Dabo Swinney. Swinney likely will get the respect of being allowed to retire this offseason and go away without being fired. Schiano, however, will not get that distinction and I believe he is the most likely first coach to be let go this season.
Mike Norvell – Florida State
Norvell is a mainstay this season on this list. For a few minutes, it looked like Norvell had found something that was going to turn the team around. However, Alabama took over and things got ugly quickly. After firing their Athletic Director, the President and Board will make these decisions until a new AD is named. We could see movement mid-season in Tallahassee. Their bye week comes after games against Louisville and Miami (Fl), don’t be surprised if the move is made around then.
FSU career record: 39-36 | Season record: 1-2
Dave Doeren – NC State
This is now a warm seat. If you didn’t see the ending to the NC State vs. Vanderbilt game, it was a complete debacle. However, a lot of that isn’t on the coaching staff. You see that exact play ran frequently late in games without any issues. The QB has to be more aware and hold onto the ball with both hands. However, the loss shines a light on what has been an overall disappointing tenure in Raleigh for Doeren, who could be staring down the barrel of a 2nd losing season in 3 years.
NC State career record: 96-72 | Season record: 1-2
Bill Belichick – North Carolina
After collapsing late against a lackluster Clemson squad, more scrutiny will be placed on the legendary head coach. This situation will continue to be something to monitor, especially if the losses start to pile up. There is too much off-field drama to have a mediocre on-field product.
UNC career record: 6-9 | Season record: 1-2
Shane Beamer – South Carolina
Yes, Shane said, “I know what the narrative is going to be for the media. You guys got to write your stories, but this isn’t gonna tell the story of this team. This team’s different from last year’s team.” This happened right after blowing a 16-0 lead this weekend. However, it’s not a stretch to make the connection. This team has enough money to where they should be better than they are right now.
South Carolina career record: 35-31 | Season record: 2-1
Bill O’Brien – Boston College
Beating Maine by just 6 points when you know you’re on the hot seat is a great way to make sure your seat gets hotter. Their remaining games are Virginia Tech (home), SMU (road), Pittsburgh (home), Georgia Tech (road), Duke (road), Florida State (home), Notre Dame (road), Syracuse (home), and Miami (Fl) (road). A generous projection would have them beating Syracuse, and Florida State. However, they will likely be underdogs in all but the Syracuse game this year. Unless the Eagles shock some people, this will be Bills final season.
Boston College career record: 11-17 | Season record: 2-1
Luke Fickell – Wisconsin
The Badgers have taken care of business the last two weeks after their collapse against Notre Dame. With that, and other results nationwide, Fickell’s seat is cooling a bit. However, Big Ten play starts this week with a bang and the Badgers head into Happy Valley. A seven-win season is what I project for the Badgers. The question is: Will that be enough to save Luke’s job?
Wisconsin career record: 19-22 | Season record: 2-1
Just off the list: Shane Beamer (South Carolina), Mike Locksley (Maryland).
The first one to fall could very well be Norvell just with the turnover in administration there. Keeping it in the ACC, Belichick could also go anytime, but due to the off-the-field issues.
Who do you think gets let go first?