Three Big 12 Coaches Listed on Yahoo Sports Hot Seats List
While it’s no secret that West Virginia head coach Neal Brown has been a repeat occupant of the hot seat for a while now, Yahoo Sports listed two other Big 12 coaches as potential members of the hot seat.
Senior reporter Ross Dellenger recently ranked coaches on a three-point scale as members in the warm seat, hot seat, and sizzling seat with one member of the league falling into each category.
Dellenger listed Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian as the first coach from the Big 12 in danger of losing his job and listed Sark in the warm seat category due to a lack of success on the field.
“As one sports agent put it, “the Texas coach is always on the hot seat.” Off the field (always croot’n!), the Longhorns are landing big fish (the 2023 class ranked third only behind Alabama and Georgia). However, recruiting has never been UT’s problem. On the field, things have gotten better (5-7 to 8-5), but Year 3 for Sark feels like a critical step before Texas heads into the SEC in 2024. If fired, Sark would be owed about 70% of his remaining salary, or about $13 million.”
The next coach mentioned in Dellenger’s list is a semi-new Big 12 coach with some deep ties to the league in years past. Dellenger placed Houston coach Dana Holgorsen in the hot seat saying, “The Cougars reeled off 12 wins in Holgorsen’s third season in 2021 and despite an eight-win season last year, this feels like a critical season for Houston in its first year in the Big 12. Remember, UH dumped Major Applewhite after his second season ended with… eight wins. The Cougs expected championships in hiring Holgorsen, but the hurdle got taller with the Power Five move. It won’t be cheap to cut him. In 2022, he signed a new contract through 2027. His buyout would be in the realm of $15 million.”
Neal Brown became the last coach mentioned on the list and it should come as no surprise that the Mountaineers HC landed in the sizzling seat.
“As one person put it, Brown is “coaching for his life.” While that’s a bit sensationalized, it further emphasizes that Brown’s seat is the hottest among FBS coaches entering the 2023 season. With new AD Wren Baker hired last fall and an outgoing president in Gordon Gee, a coaching change feels imminent if Brown can’t, at the very least, get the Mountaineers bowling. He’s never lost more than seven games at the school — but he’s done that three times in four seasons. His buyout is expected to be around $13 million.”
While head coaches revolve on a semi-regular basis each season in the Big 12, the three coaches listed on Dellenger’s list are dealing with some weighty expectations beyond just winning football games.
