Anonymous Coaches Weigh in on College Football's Hot Seats
Even after a cycle that saw a quarter of the college football programs in the country undergo a coaching change, fascination remains with who's on the hot seat and who's not.
My colleague Steven Lassan published a ranking back in March of the 10 coaches sitting on the hottest seats heading into 2026. As the offseason marches on, not much has changed in these coaches' situations to inspire confidence in their job stability for the year ahead. But you don't have to take our word for it. Several coaches shared their opinion in the anonymous scouting reports featured in Athlon Sports' 2026 College Football Preview magazine.
Some of the names mentioned shouldn't come as a surprise. You won't find Florida State's Mike Norvell and Wisconsin's Luke Fickell far from the top of any hot seat list in the industry. Accordingly, both of them were mentioned by coaching counterparts. But a few of the coaches mentioned - and some who were not - might raise an eyebrow.
See what fellow coaches had to say about some high-profile hot seat situations below.
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Maryland
"I get the sense that they would like (head coach) Mike Locksley to work out. They're not trying to get rid of him, but it may just get to a point where they've gotta do what they've gotta do."
The Terrapins didn't fire Mike Locksley last fall despite an eight-game losing streak to end the season. Instead, Maryland committed to increasing financial support for a program that's had an influx of talent in recent years without results to match.
The Terps have kept top local talent, like quarterback Malik Washington and edge rusher Zion Elee, home. But they have also been largely uncompetitive in Big Ten play, going 1-8 against conference opponents and 4-8 overall in back-to-back years. Those on-field struggles have Locksley firmly on the hot seat heading into 2026.
Locksley is 37-49 across eight seasons at the helm in College Park, a record that includes a 1-5 mark as the interim coach back in 2015. Another season without appreciable progress might force the administration to make a change with two years left on Locksley's contract.
Wisconsin
"Truthfully, I was surprised that both Wisconsin and Maryland decided to run it back with their head coaches. I wasn't really impressed with either one of those teams. It almost felt like they didn't really know who the next guy was gonna be, so they decided they'd rather have a year to prepare a move like that."
The Badgers hadn't missed a bowl game in back-to-back seasons since the early 1990s until the last two years under Luke Fickell. Since hiring Fickell away from Cincinnati, where he took the Bearcats to the four-team CFP, Wisconsin has been uninspiring and largely uncompetitive.
Fickell took the team bowling in his debut, but the Badgers are trending in the wrong direction since then. They went 5-7 in 2024 and 4-8 in 2025, the team's worst record this century. Wisconsin was shut out in back-to-back games last October and finished 135th nationally in scoring average.
Similarly to Maryland, the Badgers committed to providing Fickell the support necessary to turn things around in liue of ponying up a hefty buyout. He'll try to do so through the transfer portal with a new-look backfield of quarterback Colton Joseph (Old Dominion) and running back Abu Sama III (Iowa State). But if that patience doesn't lead to more wins, Wisconsin could be one of the first jobs to open up in the fall.
Florida State
"The volatility with (coach) Mike Norvell is something that I've never seen. Norvell is a really good coach, but one of the hardest things in football is fighting complacency. I think once things started going well, they gave in an inch here and there, then you look back in a year and you see that you gave up a mile."
Mike Norvell's tenure in Tallahassee has been a rollercoaster. There was the high of 2023, when the Seminoles went undefeated in the regular season and won the ACC championship. And then there was the low of 2024, when Florida State went 2-10 and beat just one FBS opponent.
There's no question Norvell is on the hot seat. What is up for debate is whether the 'Noles are in a position to fork up $50 million to fire him if FSU goes sub-.500 once again. Norvell is 38-34 across six strange seasons in the ACC. And it was that success from 2022-23 that earned him the contract extension that put the Seminoles in this predicament.
Talent is not an issue for Florida State, which retained 1,000-yard wide receiver Duce Robinson and still brought in one of the best groups of newcomers in the conference. But the Seminoles' schedule is unforgiving with dates against the ACC's best, plus a pair of SEC squads. A third consecutive losing season would likely spell the end of Norvell's time at FSU.
Rutgers
"Schiano is an excellent coach. He works incredibly hard. But at some point, it's a results business, so I would imagine that the rubber meets the road in the next year or so if they can't make a turn."
Greg Schiano is the Scarlet Knights' all-time leader in wins and a New Jersey legend. But his second tenure in Piscataway has also hardly stacked up to his first. Rutgers missed a bowl game last season for the first time since 2022 and the third time in the last six years.
It's hard to say Schiano's seat is hot or even especially warm - he's one win victory shy of 100 for his career and he's been the face of the program for the better part of two decades. That being said, Schiano would do well to lead the Scarlet Knights back to a bowl game this fall.
Rutgers has elite skill position talent in running back Antwan Raymond and wide receiver KJ Duff to help ease the transition for either quarterback AJ Surace or transfer Dylan Lonergan (Boston College). The schedule also breaks well for the Scarlet Knights with a manageable nonconference schedule and all of their hardest Big Ten games at home. Schiano's stature in the program and the projected cost to part ways make a divorce unlikely, but this anonymous coach is keeping their eyes on the Garden State.
Syracuse
"They let some good players go, and I know they changed ADs, but I think (coach Fran Brown) is in good shape there. I don't think they're a place that wants to spend a lot of money to get rid of a coach unless they just bomb it."
Fran Brown built up a lot of goodwill with his 2024 debut. The Orange smashed expectations, winning 10 games for the first time since 2018 behind a high-flying offense.
Syracuse looked to be off to another strong start last fall, headlined by an upset over Clemson, before quarterback Steve Angeli tore his Achilles. The Orange lost nine in a row from there, including a historic blowout to Notre Dame.
As the anonymous coach said, Syracuse did see some talent walk out the door in the transfer portal. There's also no telling what Angeli's status will be, which is why the Orange added insurance under center in the former of Amari Odom (Kennesaw State) and Malachi Nelson (UTEP). But 'Cuse should still be better in 2026. And even if on-field results fall short of expectations again, Brown should have another year or two to prove that 2024 was no aberration.
Related: Athlon Sports 2026 College Football Preview Magazine Available Now
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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 5:00 AM.