College football’s hottest seat may have shifted, with Lincoln Riley and Shane Beamer facing more pressure as Mike Norvell’s cools.
Is Florida State Seminoles' head coach Mike Norvell’s reign at the top of college football's hot-seat list finally coming to an end?
After back-to-back disappointing seasons that produced only seven combined wins, Norvell entered this year on the hottest seats in college football. A 2-2 start has only increased the heat under his seat.
But while the season hasn’t gone how anyone in the athletic department wants, Norvell’s stock seems to be dropping on the hot-seat scale. After Week 4, Norvell’s name is not on USA Today’s list of college coaches who could lose their jobs first. And as the coaching carousel starts rolling, don’t be surprised if Norvell doesn’t get on for the ride.
Norvell deserves credit for remaining focused and being committed to improving despite the negative noise surrounding his program. The passing game could be taking a step forward after putting up 377 yards through the air against Alabama and 238 against Central Arkansas.
Texas transfer running back Quintrevion Wisner, after not getting a carry against SMU and receiving just one against Alabama, had his most productive game in Week 4. As his confidence grows, he could prove Norvell was right to use resources to bring him in.
And now, with Saturday’s game against Virginia appearing more winnable than a few weeks ago, oddsmakers listing Florida State as a 2.5-to-3.5-point underdog, a 7-or-8-win season could very well be possible. Seven is reportedly the number Florida State needs to retain Norvell for another season.
Norvell’s name is no longer atop the hot-seat list. The struggles of a few other coaches have overshadowed Norvell’s situation to the point that one program is even considering paying an approximate $70 million buyout to move on.
Riley Looks to Take Norvell’s Top Spot
USC’s Lincoln Riley is sitting on one of, if not the hottest seats in America. Even the one thing Riley could once hang his hat on, an explosive offense, is something they “don’t even want to hear about anymore,” as Urban Meyer put it.
The reason for the frustration is simple: Riley hasn’t beaten Notre Dame since his first season in Los Angeles, holds a 5-15 record against top-25 teams, and is 2-6 against ranked Big Ten teams. Norvell’s last two seasons have been a disappointment, but at least he gave Seminole fans a conference championship. What has Riley given USC fans besides false hope and failed expectations?
The answer: nothing, and that’s certainly not what USC pays Riley roughly $11.8 million a year for. Now, after his latest failure, a 41-27 loss to Oregon, the Trojans may be considering paying him to stay home.
“Despite a buyout believed to be around $70 million,” Matt Zenitz wrote. “Industry sources have told CBS Sports that the Trojans could part ways with Riley depending on how the rest of the season unfolds.”
Beamer Passes Norvell After Brutal SEC Start
Winning is not easy, and South Carolina’s Shane Beamer is proving it. South Carolina sits 2-2 on the year, coming off a loss to Alabama where it was seemingly over by halftime, with the Gamecocks trailing 34-10. The game would end 49-18, and while a loss is a loss, at least Mike Norvell’s team made it competitive in Tuscaloosa.
The embarrassing loss to the Crimson Tide came a week after a 41-34 loss to Mississippi State. It’s the first time in 28 years the Bulldogs defeated the Gamecocks. Unlike the Alabama game, Beamer’s team held a 23-14 halftime lead before being outscored 27-11 in the second half.
Entering the season sitting on one of, if not the hottest seats in the SEC, losing their first two SEC games in the fashion South Carolina did is not the kind of result Beamer can afford.
Following the loss to Mississippi State and Alabama, the Gamecocks are 9-15 in SEC play since the start of the 2023 season and 20-21 overall. Of those 21 losses, 57.1 percent came by 10 or more points, and nearly a quarter, 23.8 percent, came by 20 or more.
They are also 3-14 against top-25 teams in that same time. Their last win came on Nov. 30, 2024, against No. 12 Clemson, 17-14.
The question is becoming less about whether South Carolina will fire him and more about whether the school will pay $27.9 million to do it before the end of the year or wait until Jan. 1 and pay $22.1 million.
Norvell’s seat isn’t getting any cooler, and he still is under pressure to win. For now, though, the spotlight has shifted toward Riley and Beamer and their mounting problems.
At least for the moment, college football’s hottest seat appears to belong somewhere other than Tallahassee. However, a disappointing performance against Virginia could quickly put the spotlight back squarely on Norvell.
