2011 Preseason Coaches on the Hot Seat

Planned Changes:

* Howard Schnellenberger (FAU) - Howard Schnellenberger has announced he will retire after this season.


Special Cases:

* Everett Withers (North Carolina) - North Carolina unexpectedly fired Butch Davis a month before the season. Davis had his share of compliance issues, but timing was strange. Everett Withers was named the interim coach for the season. The school will likely reopen the coaching search at the end of the season, much like Vanderbilt did last year.

* Luke Fickell (Ohio State) - Luke Fickell was named the head coach after Jim Tressel resigned. Although much like North Carolina, Ohio State might also reopen its coaching search after the season.


The Hottest Seats:

* Mike Locksley (New Mexico) - Mike Locksley continues to be a terrible hire. The Lobos are 2-22 under him, and they need to show improvement in his third year.

* Paul Wulff (Washington State) - Paul Wulff continues to be a terrible hire. I was amazed he survived this past offseason. He'll need a big year to make it to his fifth season.


Getting Warmer:

* Jim Grobe (Wake Forest) - Jim Grobe could be facing some pressure despite all of the good things he's done for the program. He's 8-16 in the past two seasons and his teams have continually gotten worse since the glorious 2006 season. Four teams dropped 48+ points on Wake including Stanford with a high of 68. If he wins less than five games this season, then he'll lose his overall winning record at Wake Forest.

* Turner Gill (Kansas) - Turner Gill had a terrible first year. Coaches are rarely fired after two years, but let's see how his second season turns out.

* Ron Zook (Illinois) - Ron Zook is perpetually on the hot seat. I'm expecting a good season from the Illini, so I bet he'll be back in 2012.

* Steve Fairchild (Colorado State) - Steve Fairchild took the Rams to the New Mexico Bowl in his first season, but has finished 3-9 the past two years. Another bad season will have his seat a lot warmer.

* Mark Richt (Georgia) - I think Mark Richt will be fine, mainly because I think the Bulldogs will be much better. All he needs to do is avoid another bad season.

* Bob Toledo (Tulane) - Bob Toledo has had four straight losing seasons and has an overall record of 13-35 at Tulane. He is in a very difficult situation at Tulane, but another bad season may persuade the administration to go in a different direction.

* Neil Callaway (UAB) - Neil Callaway has had four straight losing seasons. He replaced defensive coordinators in the offseason to shore up the weakest link of the team under his tenure. If new DC Tommy West can't make noted improvements in his first year, both may be looking for a new job.


Retirement Watch:

* Joe Paterno (Penn State) - Joe Paterno is perpetually on retirement watch.

* Mack Brown (Texas) - Mack Brown won't be forced out, but another bad season and he may consider retirement.

* Dennis Erickson (Arizona State) - I had Dennis Erickson on Retirement Watch last year, but he's back in 2011. The Sun Devils are getting a lot of talk as a sleeper in the Pac-12. If they don't live up to expectations, things could get a little strained in Erickson's fifth season.

* Mike Price (UTEP) - Mike Price keeps doing enough to stick around, but he continues to be on retirement watch.