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HOW OUR TOP 20 COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES LIST IS COMPILED

The Top 20 College Football Coaches List: A pressure cooker of gridiron expectations.

We’re not calling for heads to roll, but let’s be real—the heat gets turned up when your team’s floundering. This list isn’t about who’s getting fired, it’s about who’s feeling the burn.

Registered (it’s free!) members of Coaches Hot Seat get to stoke the flames (or douse them) with daily votes.

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Week 8 – 2025 COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES HOT SEAT rankings

#01

#02

Hugh Freeze, Head Football Coach at Auburn University - Coaches Hot Seat

#03

Mike Norvell, Head Coach of Florida State Seminoles - Coaches Hot Seat

#04

#05

#06

#07

Luke Fickell, Head Coach at University of Wisconsin

#08

Butch Jones, Arkansas State Head Football Coach - Coaches Hot Seat

#09

#10

Sonny Cumbie - Louisiana Tech - Coaches Hot Seat

Bubbling Under

#11

Derek Mason

Middle Tennessee

#12

Scotty Walden

UTEP

#13

Dell McGee

Georgia State

#14

Brent Brennan

Arizona

#15

Scott Satterfield

Cincinnati

#16

Lance Taylor

Western Michigan

#17

Mark Stoops

Kentucky

#18

Jay Sawvel

Wyoming

#19

Clay Helton

Georgia Southern

#20

Jonathan Smith

Michigan State

COACHES HOT SEAT RANKING

October 14, 2025 - Week 8

At Coaches Hot Seat, we rank all 136 FBS football coaches from 1 (hottest seat in America) to 136 (ice cold). Here's what makes us different: our rankings move every single week. While most sites publish once and disappear, we update weekly because college football is beautiful chaos—a coach ranked #5 can win three straight and drop to #50, while someone chilling at #100 can lose to an FCS school and rocket into the top 10 by Tuesday. We build these rankings by digging into the ugly truth through blog posts, weekly newsletters, and a mix of hard analytics with expert opinions. We factor in program expectations versus reality, recent performance, recruiting momentum, administrative support, fan pressure, and those whispered hallway conversations that actually determine job security. The hot seat doesn't send warning emails, but we track every move.

Rank	Head coach	Team	Conf	Base/Yr	Sch Yrs	Total School Wins	Total School Loss	Sch Win %	Total Career Wins	Total Career Loss	Career Win %
1	Billy Napier	Florida	SEC	$ 6,920,000	4	21	23	0.477	61	35	0.635
2	Hugh Freeze	Auburn	SEC	$ 6,500,000	3	14	17	0.452	97	60	0.618
3	Mike Norvell	Florida State	ACC	$ 7,300,000	6	36	30	0.545	74	46	0.617
4	Bill Belichick	North Carolina	ACC	$ 10,000,000	1	2	3	0.400	2	3	0.400
5	Jeff Choate	Nevada	Mtn West	$ 1,600,000	2	4	15	0.211	4	15	0.211
6	Joe Moorhead	Akron	MAC	$ 620,000	4	10	33	0.233	24	45	0.348
7	Luke Fickell	Wisconsin	Big Ten	$ 7,625,000	3	15	17	0.469	78	42	0.650
8	Butch Jones	Arkansas State	Sun Belt	$ 825,000	5	21	35	0.375	105	89	0.541
9	Justin Wilcox	California	ACC	$ 4,800,000	9	46	52	0.469	46	52	0.469
10	Sonny Cumbie	Louisiana Tech	C-USA	$ 950,000	4	15	28	0.349	17	31	0.354
11	Derek Mason	Middle Tennessee	C-USA	$ 1,000,000	2	4	14	0.222	31	69	0.310
12	Scotty Walden	UTEP	C-USA	$ 800,000	2	4	14	0.222	5	17	0.227
13	Dell McGee	Georgia State	Sun Belt	$ 850,000	2	4	14	0.222	5	14	0.263
14	Brent Brennan	Arizona	Big 12	$ 2,200,000	2	8	10	0.444	42	58	0.420
15	Scott Satterfield	Cincinnati	Big 12	$ 3,535,000	3	13	17	0.433	85	57	0.599
16	Lance Taylor	Western Michigan	MAC	$ 850,000	3	14	18	0.438	14	18	0.438
17	Mark Stoops	Kentucky	SEC	$ 9,000,000	13	79	76	0.510	79	76	0.510
18	Jay Sawvel	Wyoming	Mtn West	$ 1,100,000	2	6	12	0.333	6	12	0.333
19	Clay Helton	Georgia Southern	Sun Belt	$ 900,000	4	22	23	0.489	68	47	0.591
20	Jonathan Smith	Michigan State	Big Ten	$ 4,850,000	2	8	10	0.444	42	45	0.483
21	Dave Aranda	Baylor	Big 12	$ 3,021,003	6	35	32	0.522	35	32	0.522
22	Sean Lewis	San Diego State	Mtn West	$ 1,850,000	2	8	10	0.444	32	41	0.438
23	Sherrone Moore	Michigan	Big Ten	$ 6,000,000	2	13	7	0.650	12	7	0.632
24	Tony Sanchez	New Mexico State	C-USA	$ 600,000	2	6	11	0.353	26	51	0.338
25	Tony Elliott	Virginia	ACC	$ 4,250,000	4	16	24	0.400	16	24	0.400
26	Matt Rhule	Nebraska	Big Ten	$ 5,500,000	3	17	14	0.548	64	57	0.529
27	Lincoln Riley	USC	Big Ten	$ 10,000,000	4	31	15	0.674	86	25	0.775
28	Timmy Chang	Hawaii	Mtn West	$ 600,006	4	18	27	0.400	18	27	0.400
29	Lance Leipold	Kansas	Big 12	$ 5,750,000	5	26	31	0.456	63	64	0.496
30	Spencer Danielson	Boise State	Mtn West	$ 1,100,000	3	19	5	0.792	19	5	0.792
31	Gerad Parker	Troy	Sun Belt	$ 900,000	2	8	10	0.444	8	16	0.333
32	Thomas Hammock	Northern Illinois	MAC	$ 677,045	7	33	43	0.434	33	43	0.434
33	Kalen DeBoer	Alabama	SEC	$ 10,000,000	2	14	5	0.737	51	14	0.785
34	Jedd Fisch	Washington	Big Ten	$ 7,700,000	2	11	8	0.579	28	30	0.483
35	Jeff Lebby	Mississippi State	SEC	$ 4,510,000	2	6	12	0.333	6	12	0.333
36	Chuck Martin	Miami Ohio	MAC	$ 575,300	12	68	70	0.493	68	70	0.493
37	Clark Lea	Vanderbilt	SEC	$ 3,051,881	5	21	34	0.382	21	34	0.382
38	Mike Locksley	Maryland	Big Ten	$ 5,500,000	8	37	43	0.463	39	69	0.361
39	Scott Abell	Rice	American	$ 1,000,000	1	3	4	0.429	3	4	0.429
40	Greg Schiano	Rutgers	Big Ten	$ 4,000,000	16	97	104	0.483	97	104	0.483
41	Jay Norvell	Colorado State	Mtn West	$ 1,700,000	4	18	25	0.419	51	51	0.500
42	Tim Albin	Charlotte	American	$ 1,000,000	1	1	5	0.167	34	24	0.586
43	Willie Fritz	Houston	Big 12	$ 2,842,000	2	9	9	0.500	80	63	0.559
44	Tim Beck	Coastal Carolina	Sun Belt	$ 1,000,000	3	17	15	0.531	17	15	0.531
45	Ricky Rahne	Old Dominion	Sun Belt	$ 846,000	6	24	32	0.429	24	32	0.429
46	Eric Morris	North Texas	American	$ 1,300,000	3	16	15	0.516	16	15	0.516
47	Jake Dickert	Wake Forest	ACC	$ 4,000,000	1	4	2	0.667	27	22	0.551
48	Zach Kittley	Florida Atlantic	American	$ 1,000,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
49	K.C. Keeler	Temple	American	$ 625,000	1	3	3	0.500	15	15	0.500
50	Barry Odom	Purdue	Big Ten	$ 4,000,000	1	2	4	0.333	46	37	0.554
51	Frank Reich (Int)	Stanford	ACC	$ 4,000,000	1	2	4	0.333	2	4	0.333
52	Phil Longo	Sam Houston	C-USA	$ 700,000	1	0	6	0.000	0	6	0.000
53	Jeff Monken	Army	American	$ 2,000,000	12	85	60	0.586	85	60	0.586
54	Shane Beamer	South Carolina	SEC	$ 6,125,000	5	32	25	0.561	32	25	0.561
55	Brent Venables	Oklahoma	SEC	$ 7,100,000	4	27	18	0.600	27	18	0.600
56	Brent Key	Georgia Tech	ACC	$ 4,150,000	4	24	16	0.600	24	16	0.600
57	Joey McGuire	Texas Tech	Big 12	$ 4,104,960	4	29	16	0.644	29	16	0.644
58	Tre Lamb	Tulsa	American	$ 1,400,000	1	2	4	0.333	2	4	0.333
59	Jimmy Rogers	Washington State	Pac-12	$ 1,570,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
60	Bronco Mendenhall	Utah State	Mtn West	$ 2,000,000	1	3	3	0.500	143	91	0.611
61	Jason Eck	New Mexico	Mtn West	$ 1,100,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
62	Joe Harasymiak	UMass	MAC	$ 1,400,000	1	0	6	0.000	0	6	0.000
63	Matt Entz	Fresno State	Mtn West	$ 1,100,000	1	5	2	0.714	5	2	0.714
64	Willie Simmons	Florida International	C-USA	$ 750,000	1	2	3	0.400	2	3	0.400
65	Charles Kelly	Jacksonville State	C-USA	$ 1,000,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
66	Dan Mullen	UNLV	Mtn West	$ 3,500,000	1	6	0	1.000	109	61	0.641
67	Mark Carney (Int)	Kent State	MAC	$ 525,000	1	2	4	0.333	2	4	0.333
68	Troy Calhoun	Air Force	Mtn West	$ 3,000,000	19	136	94	0.591	136	94	0.591
69	Brian Smith	Ohio	MAC	$ 850,000	1	4	3	0.571	4	3	0.571
70	Jerry Mack	Kennesaw State	C-USA	$ 375,000	1	4	2	0.667	4	2	0.667
71	Eddie George	Bowling Green	MAC	$ 700,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
72	Matt Drinkall	Central Michigan	MAC	$ 640,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
73	Tony Gibson	Marshall	Sun Belt	$ 1,000,000	1	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
74	Dowell Loggains	Appalachian State	Sun Belt	$ 1,000,000	1	4	2	0.667	4	2	0.667
75	Ryan Carty	Delaware	C-USA	$ 536,000	4	3	2	0.600	3	2	0.600
76	Mike Uremovich	Ball State	MAC	$ 700,000	1	2	4	0.333	2	4	0.333
77	Bill O'Brien	Boston College	ACC	$ 5,000,000	2	8	11	0.421	23	20	0.535
78	Rich Rodriguez	West Virginia	Big 12	$ 3,500,000	8	62	30	0.674	138	95	0.592
79	Scott Frost	UCF	Big 12	$ 2,000,000	3	22	10	0.688	38	41	0.481
80	Charles Huff	Southern Miss	Sun Belt	$ 950,000	1	4	2	0.667	36	22	0.621
81	Jason Candle	Toledo	MAC	$ 1,125,000	11	76	43	0.639	76	43	0.639
82	Ryan Beard	Missouri State	C-USA	$ 315,000	2	3	3	0.500	3	3	0.500
83	Steve Sarkisian	Texas	SEC	$ 10,800,000	5	42	19	0.689	88	54	0.620
84	Bret Bielema	Illinois	Big Ten	$ 6,500,000	5	33	24	0.579	130	82	0.613
85	Kenny Dillingham	Arizona State	Big 12	$ 3,850,000	2	18	14	0.563	18	14	0.563
86	P.J. Fleck	Minnesota	Big Ten	$ 6,000,000	9	62	41	0.602	92	63	0.594
87	Ken Niumatalolo	San Jose State	Mtn West	$ 2,300,000	2	9	10	0.474	119	93	0.561
88	Dave Doeren	NC State	ACC	$ 5,965,377	13	91	68	0.572	114	72	0.613
89	Major Applewhite	South Alabama	Sun Belt	$ 825,000	2	8	11	0.421	23	22	0.511
90	Matt Campbell	Iowa State	Big 12	$ 4,000,000	10	69	53	0.566	104	68	0.605
91	Bob Chesney	James Madison	Sun Belt	$ 766,500	2	14	5	0.737	14	5	0.737
92	Deion Sanders	Colorado	Big 12	$ 5,500,000	3	16	16	0.500	16	16	0.500
93	David Braun	Northwestern	Big Ten	$ 3,500,000	3	16	15	0.516	16	15	0.516
94	Marcus Freeman	Notre Dame	Ind	$ 7,400,000	5	37	12	0.755	37	12	0.755
95	Pat Narduzzi	Pittsburgh	ACC	$ 6,699,551	11	76	58	0.567	76	58	0.567
96	Josh Heupel	Tennessee	SEC	$ 9,000,000	5	42	16	0.724	70	24	0.745
97	Michael Desormeaux	Louisiana	Sun Belt	$ 775,000	5	25	22	0.532	25	22	0.532
98	Brian Kelly	LSU	SEC	$ 9,975,000	4	34	12	0.739	200	74	0.730
99	Brian Newberry	Navy	American	$ 1,600,000	3	21	10	0.677	21	10	0.677
100	Rhett Lashlee	SMU	ACC	$ 3,500,000	4	33	14	0.702	33	14	0.702
101	Bryant Vincent	Louisiana-Monroe	Sun Belt	$ 600,000	2	8	10	0.444	15	16	0.484
102	Chris Creighton	Eastern Michigan	MAC	$ 590,000	12	59	80	0.424	59	80	0.424
103	Fran Brown	Syracuse	ACC	$ 3,000,000	2	13	6	0.684	13	6	0.684
104	Jeff Traylor	UTSA	American	$ 2,500,000	6	49	23	0.681	49	23	0.681
105	Blake Harrell	East Carolina	American	$ 1,300,000	1	8	4	0.667	8	4	0.667
106	Eliah Drinkwitz	Missouri	SEC	$ 6,000,000	6	43	25	0.632	55	26	0.679
107	Dabo Swinney	Clemson	ACC	$ 10,758,575	17	183	50	0.785	183	50	0.785
108	Mike Elko	Texas A&M	SEC	$ 7,000,000	2	14	5	0.737	30	14	0.682
109	Ryan Day	Ohio State	Big Ten	$ 10,196,250	6	76	10	0.884	76	10	0.884
110	Kyle Whittingham	Utah	Big 12	$ 6,325,000	22	172	87	0.664	172	87	0.664
111	Jeff Brohm	Louisville	ACC	$ 5,550,000	3	23	9	0.719	89	53	0.627
112	Kirk Ferentz	Iowa	Big Ten	$ 7,000,000	27	208	126	0.623	208	126	0.623
113	G.J. Kinne	Texas State	Sun Belt	$ 2,000,000	3	19	13	0.594	19	13	0.594
114	Tyson Helton	Western Kentucky	C-USA	$ 918,000	7	53	33	0.616	53	33	0.616
115	Kirby Smart	Georgia	SEC	$ 10,505,600	10	110	20	0.846	110	20	0.846
116	Alex Golesh	South Florida	American	$ 2,500,000	3	19	13	0.594	19	13	0.594
117	Sonny Dykes	TCU	Big 12	$ 5,000,000	4	31	15	0.674	102	78	0.567
118	Dan Lanning	Oregon	Big Ten	$ 11,000,000	3	40	7	0.851	40	7	0.851
119	Kalani Sitake	BYU	Big 12	$ 3,000,000	10	78	43	0.645	78	43	0.645
120	Jon Sumrall	Tulane	American	$ 3,000,000	2	14	6	0.700	37	10	0.787
121	Pete Lembo	Buffalo	MAC	$ 790,000	2	12	7	0.632	45	36	0.556
122	Chris Klieman	Kansas State	Big 12	$ 4,750,000	7	51	32	0.614	51	32	0.614
123	Lane Kiffin	Ole Miss	SEC	$ 9,000,000	6	50	18	0.735	112	52	0.683
124	Jamey Chadwell	Liberty	C-USA	$ 4,000,000	3	23	9	0.719	62	31	0.667
125	Mario Cristobal	Miami Florida	ACC	$ 8,000,000	4	27	16	0.628	89	76	0.539
126	Ryan Silverfield	Memphis	American	$ 1,900,000	6	48	20	0.706	48	20	0.706
127	Jim Mora	UConn	Ind	$ 2,500,000	4	22	22	0.500	68	52	0.567
128	Manny Diaz	Duke	ACC	$ 4,000,000	2	13	6	0.684	34	21	0.618
129	Curt Cignetti	Indiana	Big Ten	$ 4,000,000	2	17	2	0.895	36	6	0.857
	Brent Pry	Virginia Tech	ACC	$ 4,750,000	4	16	24	0.400	16	24	0.400
	DeShaun Foster	UCLA	Big Ten	$ 3,000,000	2	5	10	0.333	5	10	0.333
	Mike Gundy	Oklahoma State	Big 12	$ 7,625,000	20	170	90	0.654	170	90	0.654
	Sam Pittman	Arkansas	SEC	$ 6,350,000	6	32	34	0.485	32	34	0.485
	Trent Dilfer	UAB	American	$ 1,300,000	3	9	21	0.300	9	21	0.300
	James Franklin	Penn State	Big Ten	$ 8,500,000	11	104	45	0.698	128	60	0.681
	Trent Bray	Oregon State	Pac-12	$ 2,000,000	2	5	14	0.263	5	14	0.263
Rank	Head coach	Team	Conf	Base/Yr	Sch Yrs	Total School Wins	Total School Loss	Sch Win %	Total Career Wins	Total Career Loss	Career Win %

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