November 17, 2009

Rivals.com Staff

The season got under way in earnest over the weekend, so it's a bit early to be talking about coaches who might get let go at the end of the season.

Still, some football programs are making coaching changes, so we decided to put together a list of 10 coaches in Big Six leagues who are feeling the heat as this season tips off.

The 10 are listed alphabetically.

Jeff Bzdelik, Colorado
RECORD: 21-42 in two seasons
BUZZ: The Buffs won one Big 12 game last season and appear headed for another finish near the bottom this season. G Cory Higgins is a big-timer and he's one of four returning starters. Again, though, this team won one Big 12 game last season. Bzdelik has NBA experience but that hasn't helped in recruiting. While it would be surprising to see a coach fired after just three seasons, a two- or three-win season in league play may cause that to happen.

Paul Hewitt, Georgia Tech
RECORD: 154-131 in nine seasons
BUZZ: The Yellow Jackets are expected to have a big season, and that obviously would save Hewitt's job. But anything less than an NCAA bid likely means he is gone. Tech was the national runner-up in 2004, but has returned to the NCAA tournament just twice in the ensuing five seasons, bottoming out with two ACC wins last season. Tech has won 27 combined games the past two seasons but should get close to that figure this season.

Stan Heath, USF
RECORD: 21-41 in two seasons
BUZZ: There's one big reason USF is in the Big East: Its football program. The Bulls have made two NCAA tourney appearances (the last one was in 1992), and they had a middling program in Conference USA before moving into the Big East. Heath was hired by USF after he was fired at Arkansas - a rare case of a power-conference school hiring a failed coach at another power-conference school. Heath has a good reputation as a recruiter, but his X's and O's have been questioned. The Big East isn't a good place for a coach weak with his X's and O's. USF has some financial issues in its athletic department, and it's hard to see Heath being let go after just three seasons. But there's no question he should be feeling the heat.

Fred Hill, Rutgers
RECORD: 32-60 in three seasons
BUZZ: The Scarlet Knights won 11 games last season overall and just two in Big East play. But the Big East was loaded last season and Rutgers' best players were youngsters. Those youngsters are more experienced now and the Big East won't be as tough as it was last season. Thus, it's imperative that the Scarlet Knights show some signs of progress. A postseason bid of some kind may be needed for Hill to get a fifth season.

Ernie Kent, Oregon
RECORD: 219-157 in 12 years
BUZZ: Kent seems to almost live on the hot seat, though he is coming off the worst season of his Ducks tenure - a 2-16 finish in the Pac-10. Kent has guided Oregon to two NCAA regional finals; he also has coached six teams that finished with a losing record in Pac-10 play. Oregon played a lot of freshmen last season, and a more experienced group this season could have middle-of-the-pack success in the Pac-10, which is down this season. Thus, with a little luck, Kent could get off the hot seat once again.

Jeff Lebo, Auburn
RECORD: 81-76 in five seasons
BUZZ: Lebo took the Tigers to the NIT last season. But that was his first postseason bid at Auburn and it came in a down season for the SEC. The league should be much deeper this season, but Auburn looks as if it will slide back in the pack in the SEC West. Lebo is a good X's and O's guy, but hasn't had a lot of talent to work with at Auburn. He originally signed Toney Douglas, but Douglas ended up transferring to Florida State, where he was a star last season. The school recently has invested millions of dollars in upgrading its basketball facilities, and if Auburn doesn't reach the postseason in some manner this season, school officials may decide it's time to go in a different direction.

Todd Lickliter, Iowa
RECORD: 28-36 in two seasons
BUZZ: Only two Big Ten teams failed to reach the postseason in 2008-09. One was Indiana, the other was Iowa. Indiana was expected to be dreadful last season. That's not the case for the Hawkeyes, who won just five conference games, then had two double-digit scorers transfer in the offseason. Iowa, which has won 11 league games in Lickliter's two seasons, appears destined for a last-place league finish this season. And it doesn't help that Iowa lost it season-opener to UT San Antonio at home.

Sidney Lowe, N.C. State
RECORD: 52-46 in three seasons
BUZZ: Lowe was a starting guard on N.C. State's 1983 NCAA championship team, but the Wolfpack's mediocre play over the past three seasons has erased most of Lowe's goodwill among the fans. Predecessor Herb Sendek took the Wolfpack to five consecutive NCAA tournaments, but his style of play didn't endear him to everyone. But Lowe's teams at NCSU haven't sniffed the NCAAs. Losing out on mega-recruit John Wall, a Raleigh native, didn't help. Expectations are rather low this season; do the Wolfpack overachieve and help Lowe keep his job, or do they play to their billing and finish near the bottom of the ACC? In the latter scenario, it seems unlikely Lowe would keep his job.

Norm Roberts, St. John's
RECORD: 64-85 in five years
BUZZ: The Red Storm haven't won more than 16 games in any season during Roberts' tenure, though this season's team looks like it could be the best one since he arrived at the school off the Kansas staff. Roberts' New York connections were supposed to help in recruiting, but it hasn't paid off yet. You would think an upper-division finish in the Big East would be required for him to keep his job this season.

Jerry Wainwright, DePaul
RECORD: 52-72 in four seasons
BUZZ: Wainwright is a Chicago guy, and he looked like a great selection when he was hired away from Richmond in April 2005. The Blue Demons won 20 games in his second season, and it looked as if everything was going to be fine. But an 11-win season followed, and the Blue Demons won just nine games last season and went 0-18 in Big East play. Wainwright has three new assistants this season - one of the assistants he replaced was his son - but the talent is not there to contend in the Big East. A middle-of-the-pack finish likely is the best the Blue Demons can hope for. If that happens, Wainwright will be back. But another last-place finish - or something close to it - would bode ill for Wainwright.