7 College Football Coaches Who Felt The Hot Seat Warm Up After Week 2

There was a grand total of 78 college football games on the slate in Week 2, and fans were treated to a number of nail-biting contests, surprising upsets, and definitive statement wins as the season really started to take shape.

There was a handful of coaches who headed into the year on the hot seat, and you could argue some other notable names joined their ranks thanks to what unfolded by the time Week 2 wrapped up.

There’s still plenty of time for college football teams who suffered some setbacks in the second official week of the season to rebound, but there are a few programs that are trending in the wrong direction as things currently stand.

Most of the coaches on this list will have the chance to escape the hot seat by the time the year comes to a close, but that doesn’t mean things aren’t getting a bit uncomfortable.

Marcus Freeman—Notre Dame

Notre Dame was once again expected to compete for a national championship this season, and the Fighting Irish once again saw the odds of that dream coming to fruition plummet after ending up on the wrong side of a shocking upset to Northern Illinois.

Marcus Freeman entered the 2024 season with a 19-7 record in his first two full seasons at Notre Dame. He may be a competent head coach, but the man who also lost to Marshall and a 3-9 Stanford team in 2022 is once again facing plenty of questions about whether or not he has what it takes to return the program back to its former glory.

The Fighting Irish can turn things around after the loss to NIU, but if they don’t end up making the College Football Playoff, Freeman may not be sticking around South Bend for much longer.

Deion Sanders—Colorado

Colorado had nothing to lose and nowhere to go but up by hiring Deion Sanders as head coach, and while they got off to an impressive start last season, they stumbled in the second half en route to finishing at 4-8.

The Buffaloes were one of the biggest wild cards in the country heading into the 2024 season, and they faced their first real test of the year when they faced off against Nebraska on Saturday before failing it in a 28-10 loss on the road.

The amount of attention (and money) Coach Prime has brought to Boulder means his job is still pretty secure, but if Colorado doesn’t manage to make a bowl, there’s a conversation to be had about whether or not he’s really the right fit for the gig.

Sam Pittman—Arkansas

Sam Pittman headed into the 2024 season knowing he was coaching for his job and that every single loss he suffered brought him closer to losing it.

Arkansas wasn’t expected to beat Oklahoma State on Saturday, and the Razorbacks deserve plenty of credit for turning the game into a tightly contested showdown where the Cowboys ultimately walked away with the 39-31 win in double overtime.

Does Pittman also deserve credit for making the contest a close one? Sure, but a loss is still a loss, and the fact that Arkansas is staring down what promises to be a brutal SEC schedule doesn’t bode too well for his future in Fayetteville.

James Franklin—Penn State

Penn State entered the week at No. 8 and remained there with a 34-27 win over Bowling Green. However, the victory didn’t inspire much confidence when you consider the Nittany Lions were trailing the Falcons for a good chunk of the first half and only won by a touchdown in a game where they were favored by more than 35 points.

Franklin has had more than a decade to prove he has what it takes to take Penn State to the next level, and while his 90–39 record at the helm is nothing to scoff at, the team’s inability to consistently live up to (admittedly lofty) expectations has been a sore point for fans seeking their first national championship since 1986.

He’s had plenty of chances, but at this point, it’s fair to wonder how many more he’ll be given.

 

Hugh Freeze—Auburn

Hugh Freeze took full advantage of his shot at redemption at Liberty following the scandal that led to his ouster at Ole Miss, and he upgraded in a big way when Auburn hired him ahead of the 2023 season.

However, he posted a disappointing 6-7 record in his inaugural campaign and suffered a major setback on Saturday when the Tigers lost to Cal in a 21-14 upset where the Golden Bears were 11.5-point underdogs.

Freeze’s predecessor, Bryan Harsin, only lasted two seasons before he was kicked to the curb after failing to post a winning record. There’s still plenty of time to right the ship, but his successor could end up befalling the same fate if he isn’t able to rebound.

Dave Aranda—Baylor

Baylor wasn’t expected to beat a Utah team that headed into their showdown ranked at No. 11, and the Bears were able to cover the spread in a game where they were listed as 14.5-point underdogs.

However, Dave Aranda hasn’t really dazzled while attempting to prove the teams’ 12-2 showing in 2021 wasn’t a fluke. At that point, Baylor was still benefitting from players Matt Rhule had managed to lure to the school, but the Bears have gone 6-7 and 3-9 since then.

It may be a bit too early to press the panic button given the aforementioned expectations, but this is a situation that’s worth keeping an eye on as the season progresses.

Kirk Ferentz—Iowa

This one is admittedly accompanied by an asterisk. The 2024 season marks Kirk Ferentz’s 26th as the head coach at Iowa, and there’s virtually no chance the program shows him the door before he decides to enter a well-earned retirement.

With that said, the Hawkeyes didn’t look great in their 20-19 loss to Iowa State on Sunday.

Iowa had won seven of the last eight matchups in that historic rivalry, and while it seemed like they’d finally addressed their offensive woes after Brian Ferentz was mercifully relieved as the team’s OC based on how they looked in Week 1, the Hawkeyes dropped out of the Top 25 thanks in no small part to struggles on that front.

Again, Ferentz doesn’t actually have to worry about a hot seat, but he still deserves some scrutiny.