In 2010, 132 assistant coaches are making $250,000 or more, up from 106 last year. 26 coaches are making over $400,000, up from 13 coaches last year. And 4 assistants are making over $700,000 per year.

The higher salaries can likely be attributed to the recent trend of schools hiring a “coach in waiting”. Schools like Texas paid a high salary to assistant Will Muschamp to keep him at the schools for years. Muschamp did decide to leave Texas for Florida to be it’s head coach. West Virginia recently went down the “coach in waiting” path in hiring Dana Holgorsen, who will make $800,000 next year before taking over as head coach in 2012.

Now that we’ve had Minnesota fire Tim Brewster and North Texas fire Todd Dodge, the list of openings is ready to grow. Chances are most schools will wait until the end of the season before making any changes. But as we see every year, there is a list of coaches that are seemingly on the hot seat.

The 2010 list has changed some already as coaches who appeared on their way out have put together strong seasons. But others aren’t so lucky and are still on the radar…

2010 College Football Coaching Hotseat:

	1) Tim Brewster - Minnesota
	2) Todd Dodge North Texas
	3) Mike Locksley New Mexico Locksley will return to UNM depite only 2 wins this year. UNM has too much money invested in his contract to cut bait.
	4) Dan Hawkins Colorado
	5) Neil Callaway - UAB
	6) Bob Toledo - Tulane
	7) Stan Parrish - Ball St.
	8) Paul Wulff - Washington St. WSU will retain Wulff for another season
	9) Bill Stewart WVU Stewart will retire after this season
	10) Rich Rodriguez – Michigan Fired, replaced by Brady Hoke

2010-2011 College Football Coach Changes

Steve Roberts – Arkansas State (replaced by Hugh Freeze )

Stan Parrish – Ball State (replaced by Pete Lembo )

Dan Hawkins – Colorado (replaced by Jon Embree )

Randy Edsall – Connecticut (replaced by Paul Pasqualoni )

Urban Meyer – Florida (replaced by Will Muschamp )

Bill Lynch – Indiana (replaced by Kevin Wilson )

Doug Martin – Kent State (replaced by Darrell Hazell )

Rickey Bustle – Louisiana (replaced by Mark Hudspeth )

Ralph Friedgen – Maryland (replaced by Randy Edsall )

Randy Shannon – Miami (Fla.) (replaced by Al Golden )

Michael Haywood – Miami (O.) (replaced by Don Treadwell )

Rich Rodriguez – Michigan (replaced by Brady Hoke )

Tim Brewster – Minnesota (replaced by Jerry Kill )

Todd Dodge – North Texas (replaced by Dan McCarney )

Jerry Kill – Northern Illinois (replaced by Dave Doeren )

Dave Wannstedt – Pittsburgh (replaced by Michael Haywood and then Haywood replaced by Todd Graham )

Brady Hoke – San Diego St. (replaced by Rocky Long )

Jim Harbaugh – Stanford (replaced by David Shaw )

Al Golden – Temple (replaced by Steve Addazio )

Todd Graham – Tulsa (replaced by Bill Blankenship )

Robbie Caldwell – Vanderbilt (replaced by James Franklin )

Bill Stewart – West Virginia (replaced by Dana Holgorsen (2012)

* Coach at a struggling school is fired by school.
* Top conference schools seeking coaches look at lower conferences/programs to take their head coach.
* Some might take a top assistant from a top program.
* Lower conferences look at head coaches with success at an ever lower level, top assistants from higher programs, and the occasional “retread” coach who has bounced around.

But there is nothing that can pull a coach up from the lower levels and make them more appealing to an upper conference school, than a successful season and the media exposure from an NCAA tourney run.

Every year we see an example of this. Perhaps it’s a coach like Mark Turgeon who took a strong run at Wichita St. and turned it into a job at Texas A&M.; Or even Gregg Marshall who had success in the Big South at Winthrop and turned it into a Wichita St. job (although even he’ll admit he was aiming higher than that). You had John Beilein at Richmond leave the A10 program for WVU of the Big East.

But the example that probably sticks out the most is the case of Steve Merfeld. As the coach at Hampton in 2001, his 15th seed team upset the #2 seed Iowa St. team. Everyone remembers him jumping with his players in celebration, at one time with his legs locked around one of them in a warm embrace that looked similar to a love scene from the movie “Road House”. Merfeld took that win by his MEAC team and parlayed it into a head coaching job at Evansville of the Missouri Valley Conference. For a MEAC coach, that is quite a jump.

Many of these stories end happily like Bill Self who kept moving up from Oral Roberts, to Tulsa, to Illinois and then to Kansas, where he is the current #1 overall seed. Or Turgeon who has his Texas A&M; program poised for a tourney run. Some end like Merfeld who is no longer an NCAA D1 head or assistant coach.

So this year will be no exception: a coach from a current NCAA tournament team will likely be leaving that program after this season to become the head coach at a higher level school. And in an industry that focuses on “what have you done for me lately”, one can’t blame a guy for maximizing his profit potential by getting that larger payday now.

So without further ado, here are 20 head coaches coaches to keep an eye on this tournament….

Mark Turgeon – Texas A&M; coach

After 3 straight seasons in the NIT, advancing a round each time, and a 2006 NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance, even a tough 2007 season wasn’t enough to stop Big 12 school Texas A&M; from hiring Turgeon. And he hasn’t disappointed, getting NCAA tourney bids in each of his 3 seasons. The question now is how long can Texas A&M; keep Turgeon. Oregon could take a hard look as he’s a former assistant there. And then there are other basketball focused programs in the country like those in the ACC as well as the SEC & Big 12 that could poach Turgeon.

Tony Barbee – UTEP coach
When the UMass job became available when Travis Ford left, former UMass coach John Calipari urged Barbee to stay at UTEP and keep himself out of contention at UMass. In return, Calipari sad he’d do what he could at Memphis to make sure Barbee was his heir. It didn’t work out that way. UMass hired Kellogg and it’s been a tough rebuilding period. Memphis passed on Barbee and instead promoted recruiting and AAU guru Josh Pastner. It seemed that Barbee was the odd man out. But it’s worked in his favor. He now finds himself in the mix for virtually all the current jobs. Openings like Charlotte might even be too low for Barbee at this point. He’s already considered in the mix for the Auburn position as well as DePaul.

Randy Bennett – St. Mary’s coach
Bennett has been the coach at St. Mary’s the past 9 seasons and made quite a name for himself. With the success he’s had in the WCC, finishing 2nd or 3rd the past 7 years…along with his recruiting in Australia, Bennett has become an annual candidate for Pac-10 openings. In most years, he might top the list at Oregon. But with the Nike/Oregon hope of landing a big fish to help open a new arena, Bennett might lack the flash Oregon seeks. But Bennett has clearly put himself in a position to turn down most jobs, like those in the WAC or Mountain West. If the right MWC job opened, perhaps Bennett would make the move. But right now, he’s happy where he’s at and more importantly, in control of his own career.

Brad Stevens – Butler coach
Stevens entire coaching career has been at Butler. when Todd Lickliter left for Iowa, Stevens was promoted. And in return for this job, Stevens has delivered with 3 NCAA tournament bids with seasons with wins of 30, 26 and 28 thus far for 2010. Stevens is as hot a name as there is. But seeing the struggles of his mentor Lickliter might make him think twice about leaving. It might take a very good and seemingly stable opportunity for Stevens to jump ship. And why be a servant at a power school when you can be king at a great mid-major program? Money and a new challenge would be the only reasons to leave.

Ben Jacobson – Northern Iowa coach
Jacobson has been coaching UNI for the past 4 seasons, and won the Missouri Valley the past 2 years. Like Stevens at Butler, Jacobson was promoted when his mentor left for the Iowa St. job. And like Stevens, Jacobson has seen his mentor struggle. After a 28-4 record this year, Jacobson has positioned himself as a top candidate for the Iowa position. If Iowa went another route, Jacobson would still find himself near the top of other Big Ten or Big 12 schools lists if he came even clo
se to replicating what he’s done this season.

Lon Kruger – UNLV coach
There isn’t much room to go up when you’re already at UNLV. The Mountain West school is in the tournament as an 8 seed this year, and already transcends any “mid-major” label. Kruger is a name you’ll hear often with any Pac-10 or Big 12 openings. And like Mark Fox at Nevada last year, Kruger is clearly a coach that is not limited to any one region. Kruger could be a candidate at Oregon and it’s safe to assume any other Pac-10 jobs this season or next.

Chris Mooney – Richmond coach
Mooney just completed his 5th season at Richmond after a single year as head coach at Air Force. And he’s doing great things for the Spiders program, getting an at-large 7 seed this year. Mooney is a Philadelphia native and a former Princeton player. So if an ACC, SEC or Big East school extended interest, Mooney would have to listen. Mooney has likely done enough already to get on some schools radar, like Rutgers or even Villanova as a future replacement for Wright should he ever leave. But another strong season at Richmond and Mooney could find himself with even more options.

Fran Dunphy – Temple coach
It’s hard to imagine the Philadelphia native ever leaving the city. He left Penn for Temple, and that alone was a major change as he had coached at Penn from 1987-2006. But this industry isn’t about loyalty, it’s about opportunity. And if a Big East school like Rutgers offered Dunphy a sizable salary raise, Dunphy might be tempted to take it while he’s a hot commodity. Perhaps in the ideal world, Temple would offer the same type of salary he could get elsewhere…or Villanova looks to Dunphy is Jay Wright ever left.

Steve Donahue – Cornell coach
Donahue has served as Cornell coach since 2001 and turned the program around. After the first 4 years finishing 5th-7th in the Ivy League, Cornell rose to 2nd-3rd the next 3 seasons, and has won the Ivy League the past 3 years. It once seemed like he’d leave Cornell to return to Penn where he was an assistant. But these past few years have put Donahue on a higher level. Whether it’s this season or next, one can expect Donahue to be on the radar of A10, Big East, Big Ten and ACC schools. If his Cornell team can upset a talented Temple team in the first round, his phone might start ringing a bit early.

Mike Rice – Robert Morris coach
The former Fordham player and assistant has learned from some of the best as an assistant with Phil Martelli at St. Joseph’s and Jaime Dixon at Pitt. Since arriving at Robert Morris 3 years ago, Rice has gotten his team to the NIT the 1st year, and NCAA bids the past 2 years. Rice is not long for Robert Morris. Schools like Fordham in the A10 will likely come calling this year. The question for Rice will be should he stay at Robert Morris until a “power conference” job comes calling in the Big East or Big Ten, or move on to another school beforehand. If Jaime Dixon were to leave Pitt for another program or the NBA, Rice would likely be a top candidate.

Fran McCaffery – Siena coach
The fact that Siena has kept McCaffery this long is a surprise in itself. When at UNC-Greensboro, McCaffery was a top candidate for Atlantic 10 schools such as UMass and St. Bonaventure. When those schools went other directions, McCaffery went to Siena. And Siena has benefited. Since taking over in 2005, McCaffery has just been a gem. He’s had 4 straight 20 win season and advanced to the NCAA second round the past 2 tournaments. Siena has a history of grooming coaches to move on, such as Louis Orr (left for Seton Hall) and Paul Hewitt (left for Georgia Tech). McCaffery has a good thing going at Siena, so it’s unlikely that he’d leave for an A10 program like St. Bonaventure now. But if one like URI, Dayton or Charlotte called, he’d have to listen. The same goes for any potential Big East openings like St. John’s. And we’ve already seen one Siena coach, Paul Hewitt, go from Siena to Georgia Tech of the ACC. So a move to that level wouldn’t be surprising.

Billy Kennedy – Murray St.
Hopefully the Murray St. fans have appreciated the time they’ve had with Kennedy for the past 4 years, as the program has finished either 1st or 2nd in the OVC. Now he finds himself a hot candidate for current and future higher level conference jobs in the region. Schools like Louisiana-Lafayette already have some level of interest as he’s well aware of the region (was former head coach at Louisiana schools Centenary and SE Louisiana).

Blaine Taylor – Old Dominion coach
This is the 9th season at ODU for Taylor, and his team will participate in the NCAA tournament for the 3rd time. As a former Montana coach and Stanford assistant, Taylor is a name that has been mentioned not just with east-coast openings, but also some out west such as the the last Colorado St. and Stanford hirings. Taylor can make himself a hot name this year with a tournament victory. And based on the success some C
AA coaches have had since moving on, Taylor could be the next CAA coach to defect.

John Groce – Ohio coach
Groce was a hot name most of his time as an assistant at Ohio St, where he served for 4 years after stints at Xavier, Butler and NC State. When Ohio offered him their job in 2008, Groce accepted. After an initial rebuilding year, Groce has Ohio in the tournament, which has only improved his resume. Now with head coaching experience, Groce is a name you will likely see mentioned in coming years for any Big Ten openings. For the right fit, you could even see Groce become a candidate for higher profile Atlantic 10 or Missouri Valley jobs now.

Bob Marlin – Sam Houston St. coach
Marlin came to Sam Houston St. after serving as an assistant at Alabama. In 2003, he took his team to the NCAA tournament and will do so again this year. Marlin has coached his teams to 6 (20) win seasons over his SHSU coaching tenure. Marlin would likely hope that he could find the level of success at SHSU to warrant a job in the SEC as he’s a Mississippi St. alum. But it’s more likely that he’d leave for a Sunbelt level job to strengthen his profile. Marlin is rumored to be a potential candidate for the current Louisiana-Lafayette opening.

Mike Lonergan – Vermont coach
Lonergan took over at Vermont in 2005 after being an assistant at Maryland. The Vermont program had already had NCAA tournament success as the representative from the America East conference. In 2005, Vermont upset #4 Syracuse in the NCAA tournament as the #13 seed. Lonergan is a name you might hear for a number of programs already, mostly at places like UNCW of the CAA. He might even gain some interest in the A10 at Charlotte. But a couple wins an Lonergan could get on the radar of programs at even the Big East level. Stranger things have happened.

Todd Bozeman – Morgan St. coach
You can spin this any way you’d like. Perhaps it was a deal with the devil. And maybe it’s a story of a guy who did wrong, paid the price and is redeeming himself. Bozeman left as coach at California after admitting that he paid 2 players $30,000 over two years. After being “banished” to the NBA as an assistant for 10 years, Bozeman returned to head coaching in 2006 at Morgan St. His team has finished first in the MEAC the past 3 years, getting NCAA bids the past 2 seasons. If a program feels Bozeman has paid it’s price, they could come calling. A move to the SoCon, CAA, A10, CUSA or WAC would be considered an upgrade. We’ve seen coaches with tarnished reputations get even better jobs that some of those that could come calling.

Greg Kampe – Oakland coach
Kampe has been the head coach at Oakland since 1984. For as much as one would like to think it was because of loyalty, Oakland just wasn’t the level of program that drew much interest from other schools with openings. After remaining at Oakland in the mid-90′s after 4 straight NCAA bids, Kampe has been a rock at Oakland. This year, he’s got his 1st place Oakland team in the tournament. While he’s not a name you’d see for any high profile jobs, Kampe is a coach who could test his skills at a Missouri Valley or MAC level school. Expect some interest at those levels.

Others:


Murry Bartow – ETSU coach
Bartow might fall into the “retread” category as he was the coach at UAB prior to ETSU. But with 3 seasons with 20 or more wins, and back-to-back NCAA tourney bids, Bartow could turn his current job at an Atlantic Sun school to one in the SoCon or CAA.

Bob Williams – UC Santa Barbara coach
More of a long shot. UCSB would need to do some real damage in the tournament this year for him to get on anyones radar. 2 NCAA bids in 12 years. But a strong year in the Big West again in 2011 could have him poised for a WCC or WAC level opening.

Johnny Jones – North Texas coach
The former Alabama assistant has been at UNT for 9 season now. The past 4 years they’ve finished near the top of the Sunbelt, with 4 straight seasons with 20 or more wins. While Jones might not seem like a candidate to move up to say, CUSA, the WAC or SEC, he’s a guy who could easily put himself in position to draw some attention with an NCAA upset later this week.

Mike Young – Wofford coach
Young has been at Wofford since 2002, never finishing above 4th in the Southern Conference. But this year Wofford is in 1st place and in the NCAA tournament. And that’s usually enough to spark some interest. The level of interest however, might not be enough warrant any calls from the CAA or Sunbelt.

Tom Moore – Quinnipiac coach
Coach Moore has turned around the QU program. The former Uconn assistant had his team poised for an NCAA bid, but lost in the final to Robert Morris. But he still got his team in the NIT tournament. Moore has some potential baggage due to reported violations while at UConn. But if he gets past those, don’t be surprised to see Moore take over for Calhoun at Uconn (has 4 years left on Uconn contract).

Too Obvious to Be Included:

Each year we look at the college coaching situation and try to forecast what schools might be making any changes. In doing so, we look at industry trends such as recent on-court success as well as the coaches role in generating interest in the program. Note that there are a number of factors that come into play when making coaching changes such as how many years a coach has left on their contract, what their salary is and ability to hire a new coach for the same role. Many of the coaches you see below will indeed be around for years to come because of those reasons as their schools attempt to give them more time to find a higher level of success.

As coaching changes are made, you can read about them on the 2010 college basketball coaching changes article.

Here are a few names to keep an eye on this off-season:

Benny Moss – UNCW coach (4th season)
The once proud UNCW program has taken a big step back since the Wainwright and Brownell days of coaching. After a tough first season, UNCW seemed back in 2007 when they finished tied for 2nd in the CAA. UNCW followed up that season by finishing in last place in 2008-2009 and currently is in the bottom 4 this season.
FIRED on 1/28/10

Tom Penders – Houston coach (6th season)
Things have not been great for Penders. In his 6 seasons, he’s failed to get an NCAAbid and hasn’t gotten his team an NIT bid the past 3 years. Some are expecting Billy Gillespie to be a top candidate should Penders be let go.
RESIGNED

Fred Hill – Rutgers coach (4th season)
Rutgers fans and admins had hoped having a NJ guy would turn the program around faster. That hasn’t been the case as Rutgers is currently winless in the Big East this season. Rutgers would owe Hill almost $2 million is fired though, so it would have to be a big name coach take over to justify that cost. The Providence Journal has gone so far as to claim URI coach Jim Baron a potential candidate for the Rutgers job…which is not yet open. UPDATE: FIRED

Norm Roberts – St. John’s coach (6th season)
Roberts has gotten plenty of time as a NY native at the Queens school. There were rumblings last year that he might be out but Roberts got another season. This year has not been bad as the school has a 12-7 record. But at 2-5 in Big East play, it might take some more wins to assure Roberts returns next season. This is the final year of Roberts original contract.
FIRED

Derek Waugh – Stetson coach (9th season)
Stetson hasn’t had a .500 season in 3 years. But such a record might be a result of being forced to play a tough OOC schedule. Stetson did have an 11-5 A-Sun record 2 seasons ago and Waugh might get a few more years due to that.

Pat Kennedy – Towson coach (6th season)
Towson has been one of the bottom 4 CAA teams each of the past 4 seasons. After 6 years at Towson, this may be the final season we see Kennedy s a head coach.

Dave Dickerson – Tulane coach (5th season)
Dickerson’s tenure at Tulane has yet to produce the results many expected. There are other issues at play though including the general economic issues with the school, related Katrina effects, etc. But eventually, Dickerson will need to win some games in CUSA. Since taking over, Tulane has finished near the bottom each season.
FIRED

Bobby Washington – Grambling St. coach (Interim season)
Grambling is 4-11 this season under Washington. In most cases, that wouldn’t be enough to get the full time position.

Ernie Kent – Oregon coach (12th season)
Last year was a tough one for Kent as it appeared the school would rahter have had Mark Few as coach. in the off-season, the school brought in Mike Dunlap as the top assistant. The result has been a 10-9 season thus far for Oregon. Expect Oregon to reach out to Few again this year. And don’t be surprised if Dunlap is the coach next season. Kent’s contract runs through 2012. Update: 3/7/10 – Kent Reportedly Fired

Orlando Early – ULM coach (5th season)
ULM has hardly impressed anyone these past 3 years. After a strong 2nd season as coach with an 18-14 record, ULM has struggled to stay out of the Sunbelt basement.
RESIGNED

Robert Lee – ULL coach (6th season)
ULL has only had one .500 season with Lee as coach. And with the Sunbelt schools making some splashes with their hirings, ULL might be looking for what they consider an upgrade as well. Update: 3/8/10: Lee Fired by ULL

Jeff Jackson – Furman coach (4th season)
The SoCon is a tough conference to climb out of the basement and that has been Jackson’s job. It hasn’t gone all that great as Furman has yet to finish a season with a .500 record.

Mike Dement – UNCG coach (5th season)
This is Dement’s second stint as coach of UNCG. But the fans were hoping this stint would be more like that of Fran McCaffery. UNCG has finished at or near the bottom of the SoCon the past few years. Dement should be on notice.

Charles Ramsey – EMU coach (5th season)
Ramsey’s team showed improvement during the 2007-2008 season, finishing 14-17. But since that year, the program has struggled.

Jim Whitesell – Loyola (IL) coach (5th season)
Loyola has yet to get out of the bottom 3 in the Horizon since a strong 2nd season under Whitesell in 2006-2007. With the success in the Horizon, expect Whitesell to be on alert.

Jerry Slocum – Youngstown St. coach (5th season)
Slocum has yet to turn around the YSU program. Their best season over the past 4 years was a 14-17 campaign.

Joe Jones – Columbia coach (7th season)
With the recent changes at Penn and Darmouth, Columbia remains the only program which might make a change. The standards have changed in the Ivy with success at Cornell, Harvard and historically Princeton. Jones has yet to finish a season with a record at or above .500.
RESIGNED

Paul Hewitt – Georgia Tech coach ( 10th season)
Hewitt has had 2 losing seasons in a row heading into this season. His team has done better with only 5 losses thus far, but will that be enough. Hewitt really needs to finish with an above .500 ACC record to have less worries. UPDATE: After a late push in the ACC tourney, Georgia Tech has opted to retain Paul Hewitt.

Ed DeChellis – Penn State coach (6th season)
Penn St. has been in the middle of the Big Ten standings the past few years under DeChellis…which is a big accomplishment when you’re Penn St. This year has been a step backwards with a 0-7 Big Ten record thus far. There might be some who call for a change at Penn St. if they have the right coach in mind. But I’d expect DeChellis to return next season.
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Steve Roccaforte – Lamar coach (4th season)
Roccaforte inherited the position from legend Billy Tubbs. The Roccaforte years have been less impacting. Lamar struggled in 2006-2007 but improved to 19-11 in 2007-2008. Last year Lamar finished next to last and this season they are 10-10.

Todd Lickliter – Iowa coach (3rd season)
Lickliter was the Golden Boy from Butler who was supposed to take Iowa to the next level that Steve Alford couldn’t. Things haven’t worked out that way in 3 seasons as Iowa has been near the bottom of the conference standings all 3 seasons. Iowa might give him another season but an off-season change would not be surprising to see. Lickliter is on the books through 2014 at $1.2 million per season. UPDATE: Fired on 3/15

Greg McDermott – Iowa State coach (3rd season)
Iowa St. has had a tough run this season. The previous 2 have been quite poor too as Iowa St. has finished near the bottom of the Big 12. McDermott will likely get another season to prove himself but he made this list regardless. McDermott is guaranteed $4.65 million over the 6 years, so his buyout would be quite high. Update: 3/7/10: McDermott given vote of confidence for 2011

Kevin McKenna – Indiana St (3rd season)
Indiana St. hasn’t had the most success these past few years. Indiana St. might look to make a change after next season.

Greg Graham – Boise St (8th season)
Time might have run out for Graham at Boise St. BSU could look at coach Larry Krystkowiak. UPDATE: Graham Fired on 3/12

Some other sames to keep an eye on for next season…

Monte Ross – Delaware coach (4th season)
Delaware just hasn’t turned the corner under the tutelage of Ross who came over as an assistant at St. Joeseph’s. UD finished last in the CAA his first year, improved to .500 in the CAA his second season, but then dropped to 13-19 last year and last place in the CAA this season.

Joe O’Brien – Idaho St. coach (4th season)
O’Brien has had his team in the middle of the Big Sky pack since becoming coach. But there has been little improvement over those years. If Idaho St. made a move, it would not be too big of a shock. O’Brien had his contract extended last year through 2012.

Charlie Coles – Miami (OH) coach (14th season)
He’s the winningest coach in the history of the MAC. And it’s rare to see a change made when a coach has been with a program for so long for 14 seasons. But Miami (OH) has had only a handful of over-.500 seasons of late, commonly with 15-17 win seasons and finishing near the bottom of their MAC division. This season has been tough as the Redhawks are 6-13. It’s not a change you are likely to see, but a name that sadly needs to be added to the list. But only a situation where the coach willingly accepts a move to another area of the athletic department and has a say in who takes over.

Rand Chapell – Central Arkansas (7th season)
It’s always tough when a program upgrades from D2 to D1. But Central Arkansas has finished last or next to last in it’s first 3 seasons in the Southland and on pace to finish low again this year.
UPDATE: Fired on 3/7/10

Randy Monroe – UMBC coach (6th season)
UMBC won the America East in 2007-08, fell below .500 last year, and are 1-19 this season as of today.

Eddie Payne – USC Upstate coach (8th season)
The school will likely retain Payne as they are still quite new to the D1 scene. The current 3-16 record isn’t all that bad when you put it in perspective.

Dave Balza – FGCU coach (9th season)
Recent transition to D1 is alw
ays part of an coaching change decisions. But FGCU has been at the bottom of the A-Sun the past 3 years.

Brian Katz – Sacramento St coach (2nd season)
Katz is a Sac St. alum and will likely get a couple more years to turn things around. Sacramento St. has been at the bottom of the Big Sky each year since before Katz came on board. So any improvement later this season or next year might be enough.

Gregg Nibbert – Presbyterian coach (21st season)
Presbyterian is a recent D1 upgrade and has had the same coach for 21 years. It’s doubtful they would make a change even with the school at the bottom of the Big South with a 3-18 overall record. If there isn’t improvement over the next few years, you will really see him on the list.

Matt Brady – JMU coach (2nd season)
This might be a name to keep an eye on next season. JMU had a great 1st year with Brady but has taken a step back this season. The 2010-2011 season will be an important one as JMU plans for the future.

Rod Barnes – Georgia St. coach (3rd season)
You might not hear any talk until after the 2010-2011 season regarding Barnes. But eventually, performance will come into play more than the “buzz” of his name. Georgia St. finished in last place his 1st season and the bottom half last year (and currently this season as well).

Ben Braun – Rice coach (1st season)
Rice was in last place in CUSA before Braun and are in last place this season. Expect Braun to get at least 3 seasons to improve the program.

Matt Doherty – SMU coach (4th season)
Expectations were high with Doherty after his runs at UNC and then success at FAU. But it will eventually take performance for Doherty to keep his job. SMU has finished 2nd to last in his 1st year, 2nd to last his 2nd season, last place last season, and currently only 1-3 in CUSA play this year.

Mark McCarthy – ECU coach (3rd season)
ECU has yet to have any basketball impact in CUSA under McCarthy, finishing in 9th or 10th place his first 2 seasons. This year, ECU is currently 7-13 and only 1 win from being in last place.
FIRED

Chuck Martin – Marist coach (2nd season)
Marist has had a tough 2 seasons under Martin. He’ll be back next season but after that, it’s anyone’s guess.

Jimmy Patsos – Loyola (MD) coach (6th season)
Loyola had some moderate early success with Patsos, including a 19-14 record in 2007. The past 2 seasons have been a step backwards. Keep an eye on this name next season.

Jeff Reynolds – Air Force coach (3rd season)
Reynolds inherited the position 3 years ago. But these past 2 seasons have been less than stellar. Air Force is a tough job, so it’s likely that Reynolds will be given 5-6 years total to turn things around.

Heath Schroyer – Wyoming coach (3rd season)
Shroyer came to Wyoming to turn things around and he did so in his 2nd season when the team finished 19-13 (7-9 in MWC). This season has been a step back thus far. He]ll be fine this year, but 2011 will be an important one.

Don Friday – St. Francis (PA) coach (2nd season)
Perhaps too early to add Friday to the list as he’ll likely get 2-3 more seasons to revamp the program.

Howie Dickenman – Central Connecticut St. coach (14th season)
There have been a number of NEC schools who have made coaching changes that have paid off of late. During the time, CCSU has remained a sub-.500 team. After 14 seasons with the same coach at his alma mater, it might be time to promote Dickenman to an Associate AD role and bring in some new blood.

Emmett Davis – Colgate coach (12th season)
He’s the winningest coach in school history. But his teams have struggled the past 2 seasons. Davis is safe for now, mostly because of all his good work over 11 years. But he’ll need to improve his program the next couple of years.

Roger Reid – Southern Utah coach (3rd season)
These haven’t been the best 1st 3 years for Reid at Southern Utah, failing to reach 12 wins both seasons. This season has been equally unkind.

Steve Cleveland – Fresno St. (5th season)
After a strong 2nd season, Cleveland’s Fresno teams lost momentum. This season, they have improved to an 11-10 record and are on pace for an above .500 record. Cleveland should be safe this season and back in 2011.

Bob Nash – Hawaii coach (3rd season)
Nash will likely get a couple more years to get things going. But in his 1st 3 years, his best season was a 13-17 record. UPDATE: Fired on 3/08

Kirk Earlywine – EWU coach (2nd season)
EWU has been near the bottom of the Big Sky since before Earlywine became head coach. So even some improvement should be enough for Earlywine to remain coach for a couple more years. Update: Earlywine extended through 2010-2011 season.

Craig Robinson – Oregon St. coach (2nd season)
Robinson lead a turnaround in his first season with a 13-17 record. But this year has been an 8-11 effort thus far. He’ll likely remain coach for next season. But if his team finishes with less than 13 wins this year, in a weak Pac-10, Robinson might be gone. Many expect Robinson to use OSU as a steppingstone for a higher profile job. But the struggles this year might keep him from moving on. Update: Robinson extended through the 2015-2016 season. Consider him off this list.

Doc Sadler – Nebraska coach (4th season)
Sadler is 67-47 as head coach at Nebraska and has yet to break .500 in the Big 12 since he took over. His time to do so might be running out. Sadler has a $500,000 buyout.

Original article posted on 1/27/10

2009 College Football Coaching Hirings: 

Cincinnati: As expected, Cincinnati has hired CMU coach Butch Jones to replace Brian Kelly. Others considered were in-house candidates such as Associate Head Coach Kerry Coombs, and offensive coordinator and offensive Line coach Jeff Quinn. Also on the list are Temple coach Al Golden and ECU coach Skip Holtz. The popular choice was CMU coach Butch Jones, who took the CMU job when Kelly left for Cincy. One guy who won’t be coach is Houston’s Kevin Sumlin who rejected an opportunity to interview.

Some early ECU football coach candidates included NFL Jaguars QB coach Mike Shula, Temple coach Al Golden, Bowling Green coach Dave Clawson, Oklahoma DC Kevin Wilson,  FSU linebackers coach Greg Hudson, Liberty coach Danny Rocco, Grambling St. coach Rod Broadway.  Others mentioned included former Clemson coach Tommy Bowden and Virgina Tech DC Bud Foster,  Phil Fulmer, Jeff Bower, Terry Bowden and Kirby Smart. Many would not have mind seeing former coach Steve Logan return. MTSU coach Rick Stockstill rejected an offer to coach ECU.

Florida State: promoted Jimbo Fisher to head coach to replace the retired Bobby Bowden

Kansas: has hired Buffalo coach Turner Gill to replace Mark Mangino, who resigned 
A few names topped the list: Jim Harbaugh is the first choice…but why would he leave Stanford for Kansas when so many better options will exist as soon as next year? Tommy Tuberville is interested but it’s not sure yet if the school is. Buffalo coach Turner Gill and ECU coach Skip Holtz are the next group. Uconn coach Randy Edsall, formenr Tennessee coach Phil Fullmer, Houston coach Kevin Sumlin, Minnesota coach Tim Brewster is another name going around.

Louisiana – Monroe: Todd Berry, the former UNLV offensive coordinator, has replaced Charlie Weatherbie. Terry Bowden also interviewed for ULM.

LA Tech: Sonny Dykes to replace Derek Dooley who resigned
Early candidates included interim coach Frank Scelfo, assistant coach Tommy Spangler, Oklahoma St. assistant Joe DeForest, Texas assistant Major Applewhite. Others mentioned included North Alabama coach Terry Bowden, Jacksonville Jaguars wide receivers coach Todd Monken, Houston co-offensive coordinator Jason Phillips. SEC Assistants Gus Malzhan and Tyrone Nix claimed not to be candidates.

Louisville: Louisville hired Charlie Strong who was at the top of their list to replace Steve Kragthorpe. Phil Fullmer was rumored to have been considered but Charlie Strong was the only true candidate.

Marshall: Has hired WVU assistant Doc Holiday to replaced the fired coach Mark Snyder.
CMU’s Butch Jones was the top target but he was on the Kansas and Cincinnati lists and eventually replaced Kelly at Cincy. Former Marshall assistant (Wake Forest assistant) Brad Lambert was considered as well as Florida St. offensive line coach Rick Trickett and current interim coach Rick Minter.

Memphis: hired LSU assistant Larry Porter to replace Tommy West

Notre Dame: Brian Kelly will replace the fired Charlie Weiss. Uconn coach Randy Edsall was considered and alumni pushed for Tommy Tuberville, but ultimately the man expected to get the job did.

San Jose St.: hired Duke Defensive Coordinator Mike MacIntyre to replace the retired Dick Tomey has retired. Interested candidates included SJSU DC Keith Burns, University of San Diego coach Ron Caragher, former SJSU coach Terry Shea, 49ers assistant Tom Rathman, Nevada defensive coordinator Nigel Burton and Yale coach Tom Williams.

Texas Tech: hired Tommy Tuberville to replace fired coach Mike Leach
Baylor coach Art Briles seemed to be a top target along but said he is staying at Baylor. Sonny Dykes, the Arizona OC was a popular pick as were Houston coach Kevin Sumlin and Tommy Tubberville. But appears that currect Texas Tech DC Ruffin McNeill, USM coach Larry Fedora and NY Jets RB Coach Anthony Lynn are all set to interview. Former Clemson coach Tommy Bowden is expected to interview as well.

UNLV: Montana coach Bobby Hauck will replace the fired coach Mike Sanford
It was a 2 man race between Montana coach Bobby Hauck and  former New Mexico/TCU/Alabama/Texas A&M; coach Dennis Franchione. Arizona OC Sonny Dykes andformer Boise St. & Arizona St. coach Dirk Koetter, were considered also.

USC: Lane Kiffin replaced Pete Carroll who resigned to take Seattle Seahawks job

Some early candidates included USC alums Jack Del Rio and Jeff Fisher. Herm Edwards was brought up as well. Some other names we heard were Norm Chow, Jim Harbaugh, Steve Sarkisian, Chris Peterson, Gary Patterson and even Carl Smith. Mike Riley, like Del Rio and Fisher took themselves out of the running in one way or another.

USF: Skip Holtz replaces the fired coach Jim Leavitt
The firing seemed to be less of a result of the alleged incident with a player and more about Leavitt’s attitude about the issue. Expected candidates included Florida defensive line coach Dan McCarney, former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville and Michigan offensive coordinator Calvin Mage. Others include ECU coach Skip Holtz and former Clemson coach Tommy Bowden, former Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer., USM coach Larry Fedora, Houston coach Kevin Sumlin, Miami OC Mark Whipple.

Virginia:  Virginia has hired Richmond coach Mike London to replace Al Groh. Charlie Strong (Florida assistant) was considered; rumors (longshots) had Boise St. coach Chris Peterson a candidate.  Others included Miami OC Mark Whipple, ECU coach Skip Holtz, Temple coach Al Golden, UConn coach Randy Edsall.

Western Kentucky: Richmond coach Mike London was on the list but they chose Stanford RB coach Willie Taggert

Also read the 2009 College Football Coaching Hotseat

A solid hire after Dykes was passed over with the Texas Tech job. Only ECU is without a coach in the FBS ranks.

Just about a done deal. Kiffin will bring with him Monte Kiffin as DC along with former USC coach Ed Orgeron.

The Tennessee opening will be an attractive one. The usual names will be thrown around like Skip Holtz, Kevin Sumlin, Gary Patterson, and other non-BCS school coaches. But you should see some interest from some Big East and ACC head coaches. Of course top assistants and retreads will be interested, but don’t expect Phil Fulmer’s phone to be ringing.

Regardless, it looks like this could happen. USC should have it’s choice of it’s next coach should Pete Carroll leave.

USF has fired coach Jim Leavitt.

The firing seems to be less of a result of the alleged incident with a player and more about Leavitt’s attitude about the issue. Expected candidates include Florida defensive line coach Dan McCarney, former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville and Michigan offensive coordinator Calvin Mage. Others include ECU coach Skip Holtz and former Clemson coach Tommy Bowden.