College football analyst names the two head coaches with the hottest seats entering the 2024 season
Who has the hottest seat in college football entering the 2024 season?
That's the question that The Athletic's Stewart Mandel was asked this week.
In response, Mandel, a longtime college football reporter/analyst, shared two names (from Power Four conferences) that he thinks have the hottest seats ahead of the 2024 season.
Baylor head coach Dave Aranda and Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman.
From The Athletic: In terms of who’s on the hottest seats entering the season, two names jump to mind: Arkansas’ Sam Pittman and Baylor’s Dave Aranda. Both guys were the toasts of their towns as recently as 2021, with Pittman leading the Razorbacks to nine wins and Aranda’s Bears winning a Big 12 title and the Sugar Bowl. Since then, though, Pittman is 4-12 in the SEC, including 1-7 last season, and like Fisher before him, was desperate enough this offseason to play the Bobby Petrino card. Aranda plummeted from 12-2 to 6-7 to 3-9.
Aranda barely kept his job after going 3-9 last season just two years after going 12-2.
If Aranda is fired after the 2024 season, he'll instantly be one of the most sought-after defensive coordinators in the nation. Aranda was LSU's defensive coordinator during their magical run in 2019. And while the Tigers' offense received most of the headlines in 2019, the defense was more than good enough (LSU had the No. 32 scoring defense in the nation in 2019...in 2016 under Aranda, the Tigers had the No. 5 scoring defense in the nation).
One thing working in Aranda's favor is the fact that Texas and Oklahoma are no longer on Baylor's schedule.
As for Pittman, he's in a tough spot with the Razorbacks. Pittman is a good coach, but it can be tough to win at Arkansas -- especially with programs like Ole Miss and Missouri on the upswing.
Pittman is 23-25 in four seasons at Arkansas. Another losing season could be enough for the Razorbacks to decide that a change is needed.
If Pittman is fired by Arkansas, he'll instantly be an in-demand offensive line coach.
