10 College Football Coaches Who Could Start 2012 on Hot Seat with Bowl Loss

With 70 of the 120 teams of the FBS participating in a bowl game after the 2011 season, simply reaching the postseason doesn’t do much to bolster coaches’ job security.

Yes, when more than 50 percent of the entire field goes bowling it just isn’t the “ah ha” moment that it used to be.

The following slideshow pinpoints 10 college football head coaches who have gotten their 2011 product to a bowl game, but if they walk away with a loss, they’ll be looking at a long offseason filled with doubt followed by a 2012 with varying expectations that need to be met to stay employed.

The reasoning behind each coach being on this list is unique as the coach himself, but one thing rings true for each and every one of these gridiron leaders: They need to win regardless of the venue, the year or the opponent.

And at present that means only one thing…win the bowl game.

Todd Graham, Pittsburgh

The 2011 postseason coaches’ carousel has proven that even second year head coaches aren’t immune from being dismissed after only 24 games on the job.

This puts guys like Pittsburgh’s Todd Graham in a precarious position.

Graham took over at Pitt in 2011 for Dave Wannstedt, who got canned after going 8-5 in 2010 with team that had huge expectations that went mostly unmet.

Presented in the light of this very real fact, Graham’s 6-6 finish in 2011 seems quite dangerous especially if the Panthers go 6-7 by virtue of losing to SMU in the BBVA Compass Bowl scheduled for Jan. 7.

Sure, the Mustangs are 7-5 and a fine football team, but at the end of the day, this is a Big East team versus a C-USA squad, and no matter how you slice it, if the Ponies win, it looks like an upset (at least on the surface).

Coming into 2011 many prognosticators had Pitt as the winner of the Big East, and despite injuries and the other logical components of the actual campaign, a sub .500 finish via a bowl loss to a non-BCS team won’t do anything to boost confidence in Graham.

I think Graham is an excellent coach and a good long-term fit at Pittsburgh, but he needs to win the Compass Bowl to keep everybody happy.

Tom O’Brien, NC State

NC State’s 9-4 season in 2010 somewhat shades that the Wolfpack struggled to a 16-21 finish in Tom O’Brien’s first three seasons in Raleigh.

These stats also put NC State’s 2011 season into perspective; a 5-5 record with two games left to go which ultimately resulted in the fortuitous 7-5 mark achieved via back-to-back close out wins over No. 7 Clemson and a poor Maryland team.

It’s tough to say that O’Brien is at risk and that a loss to Louisville in the upcoming Belk Bowl would add to this shakiness (especially since NC State will finish with a winning record regardless of the outcome), but if the Wolfpack lose and then struggle next season, then the inevitable questions will begin.

Every program wants to win championships, and when it looks like a team is moving backwards rather than forwards, coaching seats begin to warm up.

Jimbo Fisher, Florida State

After busting out with a 10-4 record and a Chick-fil-A Bowl win in his inaugural season as the head coach at Florida State in 2010, Jimbo Fisher appeared to be the benefactor of all the stars aligning for a magical 2011 run.

But, three consecutive early season losses later, the preseason Top 10 ranked Seminoles were 2-3 and looking to rescue a season on the brink.

We all know now that Florida State was only one bizarre loss away to Virginia from winning seven consecutive games to close out the season, but still the 8-4 campaign has to be seen from the perspective of the preseason hopes.

Fisher should have plenty of time to work things out at Florida State, but a loss to Notre Dame in the upcoming Champs Sports Bowl could put just another kernel of doubt in the fertile minds of the followers of Chief Osceola.

Florida State is a program that is used to winning, and they are a hungry, anxious people who haven’t won an ACC title since 2005; Fisher will have to produce sooner or later.

Mack Brown, Texas

It’s almost surreal that a guy who has won six Big 12 South titles, two Big 12 crowns and a national championship is a solid candidate for a coaching hot seat.

But, it’s hard to dismiss the feelings that Mack Brown is slipping.

And, it’s not just the 5-7 finish in 2010 and the 7-5 mark in 2011; it’s also that nagging notion that this isn’t Texas Longhorn football anymore.

If Texas isn’t in the serious hunt for a Big 12 title next season, then Brown’s days in Austin are numbered, and if he doesn’t manage to lead the Longhorns to a win versus Cal in the upcoming Holiday Bowl, then the process just speeds up.

And this is all true regardless of the fact that Texas is a very young team slammed with key injuries.

Gary Pinkel, Missouri

In reality, Gary Pinkel may be the guy who least deserves to be on this list, but he’s worth mentioning for several reasons.

First, the 2011 Missouri team was preseason ranked No. 21 in the AP, and after a 7-5 finish that included some less-than-convincing performances, you have to wonder if this is the beginning of a performance slide in Columbia.

And this leads to the second reason…any potential slide may be nearly impossible to prevent given Missouri’s impending move to the SEC next season.

Yes, if you are beginning to lose your footing as a coach, a new slot in the SEC doesn’t necessarily offer the solid ground necessary to stay standing.

There is no realistic way to argue that a Missouri win over North Carolina in the Independence Bowl on Dec. 26 will either make or break Pinkel, but you can certainly assert that a win wouldn’t be a bad thing.

Danny Hope, Purdue

After three seasons on the job, Purdue’s Danny Hope finally has his Boilermakers bowl eligible.

Yes, the last time Purdue played in a bowl game was in 2007, and since then records of 4-8, 5-7 and then 4-8 (the last two were with Hope at the helm) have kept them home watching bowl week on the couch.

So why, after Hope has come up with a 6-6 mark, is he in jeopardy of having a hot seat if he loses the actual bonus game?

Well, there are at least two legitimate answers to that question.

First, if Hope loses, the Boilermakers are 15-22 in his three seasons in West Lafayette, which is a mark that definitely doesn’t scream words like “real progress” and “breakthrough.”

Secondly, Purdue has drawn Western Michigan in the 2011 Little Caesars Bowl—a matchup that may look peachy on the surface (i.e. as an “easy: opponent), but WMU is a 7-5 and played then-No. 24 ranked Illinois to a 23-20 decision back in September.

Yes, Western Michigan is from the MAC, and when you hail from the Big Ten, it’s absolutely crystal clear what you should do to a team from the little conference from the Midwest…regardless of the circumstances.

If Purdue falls to the Broncos (and remember they lost to Rice in Week 2), then Hope’s hope of a long-term gig may be up in the air.

Brian Kelly, Notre Dame

So, just when is it that Brian Kelly is going to save Notre Dame football?

Yes, an 8-5 finish in 2010 and the 8-4 mark this year are nothing to snort at, but this is supposed to be the guy to lead the Irish back into the BCS.

And let’s be honest, Notre Dame didn’t even look, smell or feel like a BCS team in 2011.

Kelly’s career in South Bend is definitely not riding on the outcome of the Champs Sports Bowl versus a good Florida State team, but at some point, the Irish faithful are going to want to get the impression that their program is moving in the right direction.

Kelly is another second-year coach who has fallen short of high (maybe too high) expectations who is coaching in a world that expects more sooner than later.

And these rapid-fire aspirations must be met to avoid permanent consequences that can come thundering down ever so suddenly.

Jeff Tedford, California

Even though we haven’t heard much about Cal in 2011 from a national perspective, the Golden Bears have improved on their 5-7 “blip on the otherwise clear radar” season in 2010 by finishing 7-5 this year.

Yes, Cal played better in ’11, but the Bears still weren’t back to the form they showed in their nine- and 10-win performances earlier in Tedford’s tenure.

Regardless of any drop-off, Jeff Tedford is 79-47 in his 10 seasons at Berkeley, which is impressive and includes a Pac-10 title in 2006. But since then Golden Bear fans have been waiting for their next “breakthrough” season and frankly that goal looks further away each year.

From a job security standpoint, the matchup with Texas in the Holiday Bowl is a good thing for Tedford.

The Longhorns are young and have been riddled with late season injuries, but they are still Texas which carries with it prestige in case of a win and a palpable explanation in case of a loss.

Tedford’s career certainly doesn’t ride on the Holiday Bowl, but at some point, the folks at Cal with have to decide whether there is enough gas for another big run remaining in their coach's tank.

Troy Calhoun, Air Force

As an alumnus of Air Force, Troy Calhoun is simply the right guy for the job, and on top of that, he’s taken a program that was averaging 4-5 games per season to the Falcons of today who average 8-9 victories per annum.

That said Air Force’s high expectations coming into 2011 coupled with their five-year low outcome of 7-5 will at least raise an eyebrow in Colorado Springs.

Yes, football is football and five losses are five losses, which means six defeats is even worse; a fate that can only befall the Airmen if they lose to Toledo in the Military Bowl on Dec. 28.

And that’s the other caveat: Losses to Toledo don’t look good regardless of how good they are and what they’ve done to get there.

With the eminent exit of TCU, Boise State and San Diego State from the MWC, Air Force should be at the head of the conference class in short order, but the “next step” could be comprised with a loss to a high-flying MAC team in its upcoming bowl.

Will Muschamp, Florida

Not to beat a dead horse but second-year coaches who got fired at the end of the 2011 season, like Turner Gill at Kansas and Larry Porter at Memphis, make things scary for guys in their second year who had underwhelming first seasons.

The message is fairly clear: Turn things around in a big hurry or you could be gone before you‘ve even made a couple of years' worth of mortgage payments.

Will Muschamp fits so perfectly into this category that it’s almost eerie.

It’s the perfect storm…an ultra successful program (recently), a very talented but oh so young team, a green coach, a brutal conference and hugely astronomical expectations.

No matter how you slice or dice it, the Gators 6-6 overall and 3-5 finish in the SEC are hard to swallow, and with fans already up and arms about Muschamp, a loss to a struggling 6-6 Ohio State team in the upcoming Gator Bowl will do nothing put fuel on the already blazing fire.

And, now you’ve got nine months to flame, rekindle and grow the flames.

Florida needs to beat Ohio State, badly.