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College coaches on the hot seat at the halfway point of the 2017 season
Sep 16, 2017; College Station, TX, USA; Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin on the sidelines against UL Lafayette at Kyle Field. Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports

College coaches on the hot seat at the halfway point of the 2017 season

We are at the halfway point of the college football season, which makes it a good opportunity to see who out there has underwhelmed thus far. Several coaches entered the season squarely on the hot seat and needed strong showings to continue in their current positions. Others have gotten off to tough starts and added their names to an ever-growing list. Some have even turned it around a bit and stopped the vultures from circling.

The men on the list come from a variety of schools with a variety of expectations. Some are expected to not only challenge for conference titles, but for national championships. Others just need to have winning seasons and bowl appearances.

With a bevy of big-name coaches unemployed right now and some outstanding assistants chomping at the bit to claim one of those cherished head coaching gigs, the pressure is on. So let's look at 20 FBS head coaches who are feeling the hit as the season hits its midpoint.

 
1 of 20

Steve Addazio, Boston College

Steve Addazio, Boston College
Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Steve Addazio is a victim of circumstance and bad timing. Boston College hasn't had the kind of offensive talent it's previously enjoyed and is currently playing in one of the toughest divisions in college football — the ACC's Atlantic Division. Still, this is Addazio's fifth year at BC, and it doesn't seem like the Eagles are able to hang with the ACC's top-tier teams. He's 26-31, and his best ACC finish is third in the Atlantic in his first year. 

 
2 of 20

Chris Ash, Rutgers

Chris Ash, Rutgers
Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

Look, winning at Rutgers is going to be difficult, especially since the school has joined the Big Ten. However, you have to at least be respectable. The Scarlet Knights lost 56-0 to Ohio State in their last game, which continues an awful trend against top teams. In 2016, Rutgers lost by scores of 58-0 (Ohio State), 78-0 (Michigan), 49-0 (Michigan State) and 39-0 (Penn State). Ash is only in his second season, but Rutgers has yet to win a conference game and lost by single digits just three of those 11 games.

 
3 of 20

David Bailiff, Rice

David Bailiff, Rice
John Glaser-USA TODAY Sports

Bailiff has seen the best of times at Rice and the worst of times. Right now is not the best of times. Since leading the Owls to three straight bowl games, Rice has gone 9-21. This season, they have been blown out by Stanford, Houston, Pitt and Army. Conference USA isn't as daunting, but Rice isn't expected to be a title contender. If Bailiff and his staff can't right the ship, it will start to feel that the Owls are more of the three-win team they were last year and not the C-USA champion they were in 2013.

 
4 of 20

David Beaty, Kansas

David Beaty, Kansas
Jaime Valdez-USA TODAY Sports

Beaty is just 3-26 in his third season in Lawrence with exactly one win over an FBS school. Kansas has $350 million in facility improvements on the horizon, and this constant losing isn't a good look to have for the future. Beaty needs to win and needs to win now, which is problematic in a rather tough Big 12 this season. When you lose 65-19 to Texas Tech at home, like the Jayhawks just did, it doesn't seem as if things are getting any better.

 
5 of 20

Bret Bielema, Arkansas

Bret Bielema, Arkansas
Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

It is tough being a coach in the SEC West, but when you take the job you are expected to be successful. Bielema has had marginal success after a rough start. The Razorbacks have gone just 27-29 with him at the helm and just 10-24 in conference play. Arkansas faces Alabama and Auburn in the next two weeks to start a grueling remainder of the schedule. If the team continues to look like it did against South Carolina last Saturday, Beilema could be out. 

 
6 of 20

Todd Graham, Arizona State

Todd Graham, Arizona State
Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Year six of the Graham era in Tempe has been a roller-coaster. The Sun Devils have competed in every game but lost three of their last four contests. After two 10-win seasons, Arizona State has finished with a sub-.500 record the last two years. Up next is a nightmare stretch where the Sun Devils face Washington, Utah, USC, Colorado and UCLA. Graham must find a way to win a few of those games if there is going to be a year seven.

 
7 of 20

Paul Haynes, Kent State

Paul Haynes, Kent State
Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Haynes needed a solid 2017 season to show he was the man to lead the Golden Flashes into the future. It just hasn't happened. Their lone win was over Howard, and the team is just 13-40 since he has taken over. Haynes took over just after Kent State played for the MAC title, and the team hasn't been close to contention since. Haynes probably needs a miracle.

 
8 of 20

Butch Jones, Tennessee

Butch Jones, Tennessee
Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

Butch Jones is up against the ropes. He has brought talent to Knoxville, but it hasn't resulted into much on the field. His seat was pretty warm heading into 2017, but after losing to Florida on a last-second touchdown, a lackluster win over UMass, then losing 41-0 to Georgia (mix in a rant against the media), Jones's seat couldn't be any hotter.

 
9 of 20

Brian Kelly, Notre Dame

Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

Unless you are consistently in New Year's Day bowls or the College Football Playoff, a Notre Dame coach always feels some heat. Kelly has cooled that off some by beginning the season 5-1 with Notre Dame's lone loss a 20-19 defeat to No. 7 Georgia. However, the schedule is getting tougher. USC, N.C. State and Miami are on the horizon with Navy and Stanford closing out the schedule. Keeping up the good work would give Irish fans some hope that Kelly is righting the ship. Tailspin like the team did last season and he could be out. 

 
10 of 20

Brad Lambert, Charlotte

Brad Lambert, Charlotte
Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

Look, give Lambert kudos for starting a program from scratch that became an FBS school in just three years. However, the 49ers are really struggling in their third year in Conference USA play. They are 0-6 and seemingly further away from capturing their first bowl bid than they were when they made the jump. Lambert is sure to get more leeway due to having to build the 49ers from nothing, but the school wants to see progress and not a winless season.

 
11 of 20

Jim Mora, UCLA

Jim Mora, UCLA
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Despite arguably having the most talent he's had in his six seasons at UCLA, Mora's Bruins continue to underwhelm. Coming off a bad 4-8 season, hopes were high for a UCLA resurgence, but it hasn't exactly happened that way. The Bruins are 3-2 and lost both true road games, and the defense is giving up a ton of points. The schedule gets brutal down the stretch (at Washington, at Utah, at USC), and if the Bruins can't hang in those games, Mora's job could be in real trouble. 

 
12 of 20

Barry Odom, Missouri

Barry Odom, Missouri
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Usually a college coach in his second season isn't in immediate danger of getting fired, but Odom could be an exception. Missouri has really struggled under him (5-12, 2-9 in SEC play) and has just had two really bad losses. Losing 51-14 to Auburn was bad, but that followed a 35-3 loss to Purdue the previous game. It's one thing to lose but another to look so unprepared. 

 
13 of 20

Ed Orgeron, LSU

Ed Orgeron, LSU
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Coach O is in his first full season in Baton Rouge, but it has gotten ugly quick. After getting blown out at Mississippi State, the Tigers somehow managed to lose at home to Troy. Yes, Troy. He also had a radio show go a bit off the rails. One thing that could keep Orgeron at LSU is his buyout, which is rather large, and the school already paid Les Miles $9 million to go away. Tiger fans may be willing to chip in on that if LSU's season keeps falling apart.

 
14 of 20

Matt Rhule, Baylor

Matt Rhule, Baylor
Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports

You would think this is a bit of an exaggeration, and it may be. Rhule was wooed away from a successful run at Temple, and both he and the school knew this was going to take time. But Baylor has lost to Liberty and Texas-San Antonio and is currently sitting at 0-5. Times were tough in Waco, but it wasn't like Rhule was working with a team absent of talent. He most likely gets another year at the very least, but if the Bears stay winless (and what if they lose to Kansas?) then things may get quite a bit warmer.

 
15 of 20

Mike Riley, Nebraska

Mike Riley, Nebraska
Jaime Valdez-USA TODAY Sports

Nebraska is teetering. In Mike Riley's 2.5 years in Lincoln, the Cornhuskers haven't exactly taken back their place among the national elite. The university fired AD Shawn Eichorst in late September, and football was a key reason why, which isn't good news for Riley. Nebraska was just slammed at home by Wisconsin, the school it needs to emulate in the Big Ten West. Ohio State and Penn State remain on the schedule, which gives him two opportunities to show the administration that he is moving the program forward. Or they could expose him even further.

 
16 of 20

Rich Rodriguez, Arizona

Rich Rodriguez, Arizona
Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports

Apathy has set in in Tuscon. The Wildcats are sloshing through yet another season, and reaching a bowl game may be tenuous at best. Attendance has been an issue, and AD Dave Heeke wasn't the guy who brought Rodriguez in. With drama around the athletic department right now, the school may feel it is the best time to cut bait with him and start fresh to re-energize the fan base. Unless, of course, Rich-Rod can turn it around quickly.

 
17 of 20

Tony Sanchez, UNLV

Tony Sanchez, UNLV
Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

UNLV went against the grain by hiring a high school coach to take over the football program in 2015. Sanchez was a hugely successful high school coach, and the hope was he could replicate it at the college level. It hasn't happened like that. The Rebels are just 9-20 since 2015, and there are times where Sanchez has looked like a high school coach at the college level. The Mountain West is navigable, but Sanchez may need to six wins to be comfortable.

 
18 of 20

Lovie Smith, Illinois

Lovie Smith, Illinois
David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

Smith will always be on the hot seat at Illinois, just as he was with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And like with the Buccaneers, his time in Champaign could end rather quickly. He has impossible expectations despite taking over a program that was in disarray and that has been to just six bowl games in 22 years. Smith knows about the passion Illinoisans have for football so he knows he needs to improve on the 5-12 start to his tenure. 

 
19 of 20

Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M

Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports

There is no shame in losing to Alabama, and A&M has turned around the season a bit after that meltdown against UCLA to open the year. Still, Sumlin is squarely on the hot seat, and the school's administration doesn't seem outgoing in support of him. In the SEC West, there is an abundance of opportunities to impress, and the Aggies certainly have the chance to do so. Sumlin may have to win a bulk of the remaining games if he wants his seat to cool down at all.

 
20 of 20

Mark Whipple, UMass

Mark Whipple, UMass
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Whipple had a lot of success at UMass when it was in the FCS's Atlantic 10. The move back to FBS hasn't been as smooth. Whipple's Minutemen have gone 8-34 over the last four seasons, including an 0-6 start to 2017. Sure, they've been in every game, but that's not enough for Whipple to keep his job.

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