Three SEC head coaches enter 2024 season on the hot seat

Numerous head coaches start the season at the helm of their respective programs every season but are relieved of their duties because of poor performance, it’s inevitable. In 2024, it will surely happen, but the question is: who is on the hot seat?

Recently, Scooby Axson of USA TODAY Sports named 10 head coaches who will enter the 2024 college football season on the hot seat. On the list are three current SEC head coaches.

First on the list is Vanderbilt Commodores head coach, Clark Lea.

It’s tough to win at Vanderbilt. Maybe they are in the wrong conference, but when coaches take this job, they are fully aware their time on the sideline, at least at this school, could be short. The Commodores lost their last 10 games in 2023, giving up at least 31 points in each game. Not only could they not stop anyone, but they also couldn’t move the ball, making that the exact recipe to get you fired sooner rather than later with another coach enjoying the upgraded stadium and facilities.

Next is Florida Gators head coach, Billy Napier, who has not impressed fans in his time in Gainesville.

With the financial resources, the tradition, and the rich recruiting soil of the Sunshine State, this should be one of the nation’s premier programs. Instead, Napier, with an 11-14 record in his first two campaigns, has quickly turned Gator Nation into an afterthought. And with the schedule backloaded with national title-contending teams (Georgia, Texas, LSU, Ole Miss and Florida State), the powers that be at Florida might be cranking up the buyout machine in no time to thus begin another cycle in desperately trying to get back to the top of the sport.

Finally, Sam Pittman of the Arkansas Razorbacks is named as a head coach who will enter the season on the hot seat.

Hiring former motorcycle-riding head coach Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator seems to be a step in the right direction, if anything, to breathe some life and attention into the program. Still, Arkansas has the unfortunate task of being in the SEC, and navigating that schedule is almost impossible. Quarterback KJ Jefferson and running back Raheim Sanders headed to the transfer portal, leaving ex-Boise State quarterback Taylen Green to take the reins. It’s bowl game or bust for the Razorbacks, and even that might not be enough to save Pittman’s job.

This list of hot-seat head coaches will change greatly as the 2024 season progresses, as some will exceed expectations and others will fall flat.