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Hot seat watch, Week 1: 5 coaches feeling the heat

By Charles Rahrig V

ORLANDO, FL - JANUARY 01: Head coach Ed Orgeron of the LSU Tigers looks on against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the Citrus Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Orlando, Florida. Notre Dame won 21-17. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL - JANUARY 01: Head coach Ed Orgeron of the LSU Tigers looks on against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the Citrus Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Orlando, Florida. Notre Dame won 21-17. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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CHAPEL HILL, NC – NOVEMBER 18: Head coach Larry Fedora of the North Carolina Tar Heels looks on during warm-ups prior to their game against the Western Carolina Catamounts at Kenan Stadium on November 18, 2017 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. UNC won 65-10. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

College football is officially back. These five head coaches don’t want a loss in Week 1 to begin their season on the hot seat.

There is excitement abound as the 2018 college football season officially kicks off. Week 1 has arrived and now it gets real as the chase to the College Football Playoff officially begins. It’s also time for programs in need of turning things around to step up and make it happen. If they don’t, the coaches of those programs will land squarely on the hot seat.

Entering the season, there are always coaches that are on the hot seat even if it’s not on fire yet. It typically means a coach is on his last chance to get things going or he won’t be having a job for that much longer.

Change is inevitable in college football each season and there will be plenty of coaches on the hot seat in 2018. There might even be a few big name coaches that are in line to get the axe from their program if they don’t get the job done.

Week 1 is as important as any week to start winning games, as coaches don’t want their program to get off to a slow start and to have to make up ground. Here are five coaches that need a win in the first week of the season.

5. Love Smith – Illinois

The transition from the NFL to the NCAA has not been a kind one for Illinois head coach Lovie Smith. In fact, his two seasons with the program have been a giant dud and far from inspiring.

Life isn’t easy in the Big Ten with several great programs but Smith should be doing a lot better than 5-19 in his first two seasons. Illinois has stuck with him and has decided to give him more than just two seasons to get going, and that’s the right call as it was a big rebuilding effort he inherited.

Illinois kicks off their season against Kent State from the MAC. Starting off with a loss to a program from a smaller conference would put the Fighting Illini behind immediately and could spell doom for Smith.

The program has a non-conference schedule that should see them at least pick up a couple of wins to begin the season.

Smith isn’t in danger of being fired immediately, or perhaps, even this season, but he has to show significant improvements in Year 3.

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