As the opening weekend of the 2026 season reaches its Saturday night close, several coaches around the country find their names connected to the college football hot seat, with some teetering on the edge of being removed early in the year.
Whether it was bad play calling, behind-the-scenes drama, or fan bases losing faith, these college coaches need to get their act together soon before they find themselves unemployed.
David Aranda, Baylor
No head coach made his fan base more irate in Week 1 than Baylor Bears’ David Aranda, following the school’s loss to Auburn despite a potential fourth-quarter comeback.
After striking out on multiple drives following a late first-half touchdown, the Bears found the red zone in the fourth and needed just a field goal to head into overtime. Aranda instead opted to call for a two-point conversion in an attempt to end the game in regulation time.
That call backfired when Baylor couldn’t convert, resulting in a 17-16 loss to Auburn in Atlanta. Questions immediately arose about whether Aranda’s offense would be successful in 2026, with Week 1 leaving fans with a far-from-positive outlook.
Greg Schiano, Rutgers
Want to know one of the quickest ways to get on the college football hot seat? Lose to a team that your program paid $1.5 million to play to kick-start the season. Which is exactly what the Rutgers Scarlet Knights did against the UMass Minutemen, who upset the Big Ten program on Thursday night.
Following the disappointing season opener, Rutgers fans immediately took to social media, calling for the firing of head coach Greg Schiano, who’s been with the program since 2020.
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Schiano took full responsibility for the loss in his post-game presser, saying, “I didn’t have [the players] ready to play, I’m in charge of all the coaches. I’m in charge of all the players. So when you come out and lay an egg like we did opening night.
“We thought we had a great training camp,” Schiano continued. “Never saw it coming, and you know we’re doing this a long time. Never saw it coming.”
Bill O’Brien, Boston College
If Bill O’Brien’s seat wasn’t hot following last season’s 2-10 record, it’s on fire now following the Boston College Eagles’ Week 1 loss to Cincinnati. Finding little offense in the first half, BC fans called for O’Brien to be removed immediately at the game’s conclusion, with the Eagles headed for a repeat of 2025.
This is far from the start O’Brien intended for the 2026 season, especially after bringing in a slew of transfers to hopefully change the tide on Chestnut Hill.
With Rutgers next on their schedule, a loss to the Scarlet Knights may be the final nail in the coffin for O’Brien at Boston College. Both teams’ coaches will be coming into the contest on the college football hot seat, so it may just be a “loser gets fired” type of game in Week 2.
Sonny Dykes, TCU
Expectations were high for Sonny Dykes and the TCU Horned Frogs heading into the 2026 season, but the Big 12 outfit started the year with a shock defeat to the Bill Belichick-led North Carolina Tar Heels.
Given that the head coach is already in muddy waters following a locker room incident that left wide receiver Dozie Ezukanma in the hospital with a concussion and a brain bleed, a 15-10 loss in Dublin only added insult to injury, no pun intended.
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Now with his back against the wall, Dykes will need to flip the script as soon as possible if he hopes to at least get through the remainder of the season with his job still intact.
Other Head Coaches on the College Football Hot Seat
- Matt Rhule, Nebraska
- Chris Creighton, Eastern Michigan
- Joe Moorhead, Akron
- Deion Sanders, Colorado
- Chuck Martin, Miami (OH)
- Eric Morris, Oklahoma State
