Neal Brown's seat gets hotter after WVU forces out AD

West Virginia athletic director Shane Lyons is resigning after being forced out by the university, according to a Monday morning report from WVMetro News.

That development will certainly increase the pressure on head football coach Neal Brown, who was already reportedly on the hot seat. 

Prior to Saturday's game against Oklahoma, Pete Thamel reported on College Gameday that both Lyons and Brown could be in jeopardy if the season continues to go in the wrong direction. Saturday's win over Oklahoma improved the Mountaineers to 4-6, but the departure of Lyons can't be a good sign for Brown's long-term future. 

According to the Metro News, Lyons resigned on Sunday morning following a tense meeting with School president E. Gordon Gee. Gee reportedly wanted Lyons to give up the athletic director responsibilities and remain with the school as an Associate Vice President. 

Lyons hired Brown prior to the start of the 2019 season and signed him to a new contract extension in 2021. At the time, Brown had only managed an 11-11 record.  

The Mountaineers have struggled under Brown's watch, owning a 21-24 record and only one winning season in his first three full years. They would need to sweep their remaining two regular season games (both against top-25 teams Oklahoma State and Kansas State) and a bowl game to finish with a winning record this season. 

The only winning record under Brown has been a 6-4 mark in the 2020 COVID year. 

Firing Brown would cost the Mountaineers a $17 million buyout, which is not an easy pill for the school to swallow. But given that a new athletic director is on the way, and the football program has stalled out under Brown, it seems to only be a matter of when, and not if, that change gets made. 

West Virginia was a consistent top-25 team for two decades prior to Brown's arrival and had just four losing seasons in the 29-year run between 1990 and 2019.

With one more loss this season they will have three in four years under Brown.