Hot Seat Watch: 10 college football coaches feeling the heat in 2019

7. Lovie Smith, Illinois

The move for a big-name head coach has not worked out thus far in Champaign, as the Illini are 9-27 in three seasons under Smith. A 4-8 record last year, which was an improvement from a 2-10 mark in 2017, was enough to get the former Chicago Bears’ head coach a two-year contract extension.

No one realistically expects 10-win seasons at Illinois. But competing in the weaker Big Ten West makes a 4-23 record in conference play under Smith a disappointment, while also creating the idea the Illini can rise up quickly and compete for a spot in the conference title game.

Athletic director Josh Whitman’s first big decision on the job was hiring Smith, in a transparent pursuit of publicity and NFL acumen. Smith was the 13th-highest paid coach in college football last year, under his original six-year, $21 million contract, and as the Chicago Tribune laid out after it was announced the only move for Illinois may have been to extend him with a $12 million buyout if he was fired after last season.

Losing coordinator Hardy Nickerson to a midseason resignation for health reasons was not ideal, but defense is supposed to be Smith’s things and Illinois allowed 63 points three times last season. A marked improvement on that side of the ball next season feels mandatory.

Smith’s original contract calls for a slight decline in his total buyout if he were fired in-season next season. As long as the extension doesn’t carry a huge buyout, a move to fire him after next season has to be on the radar if the team falls short again. No matter what, leaving the extension aside, Smith should have to reach bowl eligibility to secure his future at Illinois beyond next season.