Between Kirby Smart, Steve Sarkisian, and others, there is no denying that the SEC lays claim to some of the best head coaches in the country. However, the conference also has coaches sitting in some of the nation's hottest seats.
No, Sarkisian, Smart, Lane Kiffin, and other predominant coaches in the conference are not on the hot seat. However, Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde wouldn't be all that surprised if these eight coaches were clinging to their jobs by the end of the year:
Multiple SEC coaches enter do-or-die territory as pressure mounts
Oh, boy. Things already weren't looking great for Brent Venables after falling short of ever claiming a Big 12 title before the Oklahoma Sooners joined their new conference. Then, he led OU to a 2-6 record against SEC opponents and a loss to Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl.
The Sooners are one of the winningest college football programs in history, and while Venables has greatly improved their defense, the lack of wins is a major red flag in Norman.
Honestly, other than a jaw-dropping upset over the Tennessee Volunteers, there is no clear reason Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman kept his job after last year. The Razorbacks finished with a 7-6 overall record and a 3-5 record against the SEC.
Pittman has repeatedly failed (over five seasons) to figure out how to win against conference opponents. While Razorback fans have an inexplicable soft spot for their coach, Pittman is on the edge of losing the fan base and being fed to the wolves.
Hugh Freeze brought in a surprisingly impressive transfer portal class, including former Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold. That is one of the very few reasons he remains the Auburn Tigers' head coach.
Over two seasons with the Tigers, Freeze has won just 11 total games and only five matchups against SEC opponents. For a team that was only 12 years removed from a National Championship, Auburn simply expects more from its head coaches and has fired HCs for less.
Last year, Billy Napier's seat was on fire (as in, the chair itself, the room it was in, the building that room resided within, and the entire city were all up in flames). Then, he led the Florida Gators to wins over LSU and Ole Miss to cap off their SEC season.
While he may have salvaged his job for one more year, a lot of eyes are going to be on Napier as the pressure has grown once again.
Brian Kelly took over a program that was relatively fresh off a National Championship campaign. The LSU Tigers, then led by Joe Burrow and Ed Orgeron, won the title in 2019, and Kelly took hold of the reins in 2022.
Since taking over, he has eked out a winning record in conference play every year and has fallen to some of the less-threatening programs in the SEC (i.e., Florida in 2024). While Kelly has led the Tigers to three bowl game victories in three seasons, LSU expects more from its head coach.
At just about any other football program (in the entire world), a 9-4 first season with the team would be acceptable, if not good. However, at the University of Alabama, a 9-4 overall record and a 5-3 record in the SEC are far from good enough.
Kalen DeBoer is having to fill really big shoes, taking over the Crimson Tide after the retirement of Nick Saban, a.k.a. the G.O.A.T. If DeBoer can't find his footing in the conference, his tenure at 'Bama will be on the rocks.
When you look at Mark Stoops' overall record since taking over the Kentucky Wildcats, it isn't all that bad. However, when you let your glance slide over to his record in the SEC... well, things couldn't get much worse.
Stoops has won just 31.1 percent of his conference matchups with the Wildcats, and the only thing really holding out hope for his job at Kentucky is the fact that his buyout is unbelievably expensive (roughly $44 million).
Similarly to DeBoer, Jeff Lebby just wrapped up his first season as an SEC head coach, and while he doesn't have the same pressure looming overhead, there are still expectations at Mississippi State for him to win at least one SEC game with the Bulldogs.
Last year, Lebby led the team to an abysmal 2-10 finish and a 0-8 overall record in the conference. To put it lightly, it wasn't acceptable, and if he doesn't improve, people are going to start calling for his head.