The 2026-27 college football season will be here sooner than expected and the season's kickoff is going to put the microscope on some coaches in the hot seat.
Among them, Florida State head football coach Mike Norvell is said to have the hottest. After failing to lead his ACC club to bowl eligibility for two consecutive seasons, the luster of a strong 2023 Orange Bowl run has quickly rubbed off and now, he's among the coaches with the most tenuous outlooks heading into the new season.
For more on the Seminoles' Norvell-led disappointments, Michael Germanese has an in-depth look over at NolesRoundtable.
Norvell isn't alone on his hot seat, however. Two other notable coaches will begin the football season in September with little to no long-term security in place.
Baylor's Dave Aranda
Like Norvell, Aranda has not been able to reproduce early success. After leading a 2-7 campaign in 2020, his first year as the Baylor Bears' head coach, he helped the team reach its first ever 12-win season in 2021.
Since then, Baylor has gone 22-28 under Aranda's wing and has missed bowl games in two of its four seasons.
After a 5-7 record last year, there's little to no doubt that the six-year head coach is under fire going into the 2026 season.
Wisconsin's Luke Fickell
The former Cincinnati Bearcats head coach was expected to bring success from the AAC to the Big Ten when he was hired to take over the Wisconsin Badgers' football program. Instead, the coach has failed to deliver.
Fickell, 16-21 as the Badgers' figurehead, has had just one winning season in Madison.
With three consecutive years of seven or fewer wins and only one bowl game appearance, 2026 could be the swan song for Fickell unless he manages to turn things around.