CFW Preseason 2026 - The Hot Seat Coaches

 CFW Preseason 2026 – The Hot Seat Coaches

Names like Norvell, Aranda, Fickell

and Beamer top the Hot Seat list

 

That would be Florida State’s Mike Norvell, Baylor’s Dave Aranda, Wisconsin’s Luke Fickell and South Carolina’s Shane Beamer. You can add seven other names to that list, but those four are the hottest seats. And USA Today sports columnist Blake Toppmeyer predicted FSU’s Norvell would be the first coach fired this season.  

 

Last year, 19 head coaches were fired. Most likely, there won’t be that many this year.

 

 

Coaches on the Hot Seat – 2026

 

Let’s begin in the Big Ten, where three coaches are feeling the heat. Perhaps none more than Wisconsin’s Luke Fickell. Fickell was the hot coach out of Cincinnati a few years ago. He took the Bearcats to the four-team College Football Playoff. But the past three years have not been so good for Fickell, which means they haven’t been so good for Wisconsin. In three years, Fickell’s record at Wisconsin is 17-21. Last year, the Badgers were a dismal 4-8 (2-7 in Big Ten play).

 

The second coach in the Big Ten on a very hot seat is Maryland’s Mike Locksley. Locksley has had seven years to turn around the Maryland program, and he is yet to do it. He’ll likely only have one more chance. In his seven years in College Park, Locksley is 37-49. Last year the Terrapins were a sad 4-8 (1-8 in Big Ten play).

 

The third and final hot seat coach in the Big Ten is Nebraska’s Matt Rhule. Rhule has struggled to reignite the fire in Lincoln. He may be down to his final match. In three seasons, Rhule is 19-19. Last year the Huskers were 7-6 (4-5 in Big Ten play). They lost their last three games, including a 44-22 pasting from Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl.

 

Two Big Ten coaches are on a warm seat. They are USC’s Lincoln Riley and Rutgers’ Greg Schiano.

 

The ACC has two coaches who are definitely on the hot seat. The hottest seat in the ACC belongs to Florida State’s Mike Norvell. After six seasons in Tallahassee, Norvell is 38-34. Those numbers don’t fly with FSU fans. Last year, the Seminoles were 5-7 (3-5 in ACC play). This year, I’m afraid it’s do or die for Norvell.

 

Boston College’s Bill O’Brien is the other ACC coach on the hot seat. After two seasons in Chestnut Hill, O’Brien is 9-16. The situation got worse last year when the Eagles finished 2-10 (1-7 in ACC play). BC won its first and last game, losing nine-straight games in between.

 

Three ACC coaches are sitting on a warm seat. They are North Carolina’s Bill Belichick, NC State’s Dave Doeren and Syracuse’s Fran Brown.

 

In the Big 12, two coaches are sitting on a lot of heat. First and foremost of the two is Baylor’s Dave Aranda. After six seasons in Waco, Aranda is sitting on the negative side of things with a 36-37 record. Last year, Baylor was 5-7 (3-6 in Big 12 play). The Bears lost five of their final six games. Aranda is definitely living on borrowed time.

 

Cincinnati coach Scott Satterfield is perched on a hot seat – very hot. Following three seasons with the Bearcats, Satterfield is 15-22. Last year Cincinnati was 7-6 (5-4 in Big 12 play). But the Bearcats lost their last five games, including a 35-13 drubbing from Navy in the Liberty Bowl.

 

One coach in the Big 12 is sitting on a warm seat. That would be none other than Deion Sanders.

 

The SEC definitely has two coaches on the hot seat. The hottest seat of the two belongs to South Carolina’s Shane Beamer. Beamer can’t seem to buy a break in Columbia. After five years with the Gamecocks, he is 33-30. Last year South Carolina was a poor 4-8 (1-7) in SEC play. Gamecock fans aren’t happy.

 

The other SEC coach with a hot fanny is Mississippi State’s Jeff Lebo. In two seasons, he has gotten off to a rough start in Starkville. Under Lebo, the Bulldogs are 7-18. Last year, they finished 5-8 (1-7 in SEC play). Miss State ended the season losing its last four games.

 

Three SEC coaches are on the warm seat list. They are Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer, Oklahoma’s Brent Venables and Tennessee’s Josh Heupel.

 

Only two Group of Six coaches are on the hot seat as the 2026 season begins. In Conference USA, Derek Mason of Middle Tennessee State is definitely feeling the heat – a lot of it. In two season’s Mason has a 6-18 record. Last year the Blue Raiders were 3-9 (2-6 in C-USA play).

 

C-USA has one coach on the warm seat. He is Tony Sanchez of New Mexico State.

 

Then, in the Mid-American Conference, Akron’s Joe Morehead is suffering from the heat. In four years, Morehead has a 13-35 record. Last year the Zips finished 5-7 (4-4 in MAC play). Morehead needs to show some improvement this season.

 

The only MAC coach on the warm seat is Eastern Michigan’s Chris Creighton.

 

Amazingly, four Group of Six conferences have no one on the hot seat. Two of those four conferences – the American Conference and the Pac-12 – not only have no one on the hot seat, but also they have no coach on the warm seat.

 

The other two conferences may have no one on the hot seat, but they have a slew of coaches on the warm seat. In the Mountain West Conference UTEP’s Scotty Walden, Nevada’s Jeff Choate, San Jose State’s Ken Niumatalolo and Wyoming’s Jay Sawvel are all positioned on warm seats.

 

The Sun Belt Conference has an unbelievable seven coaches perched on the warm seat. They are South Alabama’s Major Applewhite, Arkansas State’s Butch Jones, Louisiana’s Michael Desormeaux, Georgia State’s Dell McGee, Louisiana Tech’s Sonny Cumbie, Troy’s Gerald Parker and ULM’s Bryant Vincent.

 

Which hot seat coaches will survive, and which ones will take a dive? Stay tuned!

 

Tomorrow we will take a look at college football’s best quarterbacks, entering the 2026 season.

 

Touchdown Tom

August 19, 2026

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