Who are the ten coaches on the hot seat after Week 7 of the college football season?
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College Football Coaches Hot Seat Top 10: Week 7
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The coaching firings have slowed down, and that’s obviously a good thing on a human level, and also for the struggling teams that have about six more weeks to go before the season is almost over.
That doesn’t mean there aren’t a slew of head coaches who need to win immediately.
The College Football Coaches Hot Seat Top 10 rankings are done in two ways. First are five coaches who aren’t going to get fired this year unless something crazy happens, but could desperately use a momentum change.
This isn’t always a bad thing or a negative ranking – several coaches on this list turned things around fast, like four of the five who were on it last week.
The second part are the coaches who had better crank up a run of wins, or else.
Starting with the five who won’t get fired, but could use something a few wins …
Five college football coaches who won’t get fired and aren’t on any hot seat, but could use a big win
5. Matt Campbell, Iowa State
Up Next: Oklahoma (Sept. 29)
Not only is Campbell not on any hot seat, but he’s on the hot list for just about every available open head coaching gig. There’s one big problem at the moment though – his team is in last place in the Big 12.
His is the only team to not have a Big 12 win.
The defense is great, the team played well against Texas, and all four losses this year were by one score. And, of course, Iowa State beat Iowa, so all is right with the world.
There’s no pressure whatsoever on him job-wise – Iowa State will do just about anything to keep him around – but up next is Oklahoma, West Virginia, at Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and at TCU. Iowa State has to win three of those five just to get to a bowl game.
4. Butch Jones, Arkansas State
Up Next: at Louisiana
It gets lost that he was actually good at Tennessee until it all fell apart in 2017.
He came up with a few nine-wins seasons and won three bowl games in three tries, and then he became a top assistant before taking on the Arkansas State job. 2-10 last year, the Red Wolves are 2-5 this season with tough games against Louisiana, South Alabama, and Troy ahead.
Three of the five losses were close, but it would be a big plus to show signs of something positive for the future over he next six weeks.
3. Jim Leonhard, Wisconsin
Up Next: Purdue
It’s almost certainly his gig no matter what, but that’s not 100% certain yet.
The win over Northwestern was great, but the overtime loss to a scuffling and mediocre Michigan State was hardly a plus.
The Badgers are 3-4, and while he won’t be blamed if the rest of the season fails to come up out of the nosedive, winning three of the last five games – Purdue, Maryland, at Iowa, at Nebraska, Minnesota – to get to a bowl game would do wonders.
If not, there are several programs – (cough) Nebraska (cough) Colorado – that might be very interested.
2. Tony Elliott, Virginia
Up Next: at Georgia Tech (Oct. 20)
It’s not just that Virginia is losing in a mediocre ACC, it’s that it’s boring.
Last season’s Cavaliers were a high-flying fun show with QB Brennan Armstrong and company winging it all around the yard. This year’s team can barely score 17 points on Louisville.
He’s just getting started and he has yet to do his thing with the program, but the second half is rough with at Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Pitt, Coastal Carolina, at Virginia Tech.
Winning four of those games wouldn’t be asking for the world for most teams, but the 2-4 Cavaliers just need to come up with their first win in a month to get going.
1. Ken Wilson, Nevada
Up Next: San Diego State
The longtime Nevada assistant went off to the Pac-12 for several years. He came in from Oregon to try building the program back up after former head coach Jay Norvell left for Colorado State – another Mountain West job – for what was considered a better deal.
That didn’t sit all that well with Nevada fans, especially since Norvell took a slew of top players with him.
Wilson’s team started out 2-0, lost in a shootout with Incarnate Word from the FCS, and then lost on the road to Iowa and Air Force – no big deal.
Then came the emotional return of Norvell with a winless and injury-riddled Colorado State team. It was a big moment for Nevada football, and for Wilson, and everything seemed to work in an ugly game except for the 17-14 final score in the loss.
Follow that up with a 31-16 loss to a Hawaii team that’s among the worst in the country, and Nevada is on a five-game losing streak with five of the Mountain West’s best teams coming up.
– 5 college football coaches who had better win now, or else
