Steve Addazio and Boston College got blown out at home by Kansas last week. Addazio and others on the hot seat need a win in Week 4.
Coaches on the hot seat are beginning to establish themselves after a quarter of the season. Some who might have escaped it for the beginning of the season has fallen back to a familiar spot, while others have been mainstays in the rotation.
This week, it’s abundantly clear which coaches need a win to avoid disaster and what it’s going to take to get off the hot seat. There are some whose fate could already be set in stone while others simply might need a divorce from their program.
Regardless, it’s time to start winning and these coaches, notably Boston College head coach Steve Addazio can’t afford to lose in Week 4.
Steve Addazio – Boston College
Through two weeks, Steve Addazio was flying under the radar as Boston College to off to a 2-0 start on the season. That start even included a conference win over Virginia Tech, so the Eagles found themselves in good standing.
Then they got blown out at home to Kansas and that’s where Addazio has put himself in a bind. Just ask Charlie Strong about losing to the Jayhawks and how that went over for him with the Longhorns.
While more is expected of Kansas with Les Miles at the helm, this was a bad loss for Boston College no matter which way you slice it up. Give credit to Kansas, but Addazio, who has most likely flirted with the hot seat in the past now has the wrong kind of spotlight on him.
The two worst power five programs a team can lose to right now are probably Kansas and Rutgers. The Eagles have a loss to the Jayhawks and guess who they are going to be paying a visit to on Saturday?
That’s right, Boston College is visiting Rutgers in a game they desperately need to bounce back in. Fortunately for BC, Rutgers isn’t in a spot like Kansas with a new coach and some optimism to follow suit.
They’re still stuck in the Chris Ash era and it looks things are going to remain status quo for a while. Which of course means that if Boston College loses this game, the Addazio probably should get the boot and it might be the most embarrassing two week stretch in the history of the program.
A loss to Rutgers on the heels of losing to Kansas would be all-time futility. The Eagles were set up perfectly after the first two weeks of the season to be in position to go 4-0 through the first four games. That would have given them eight games to scratch off a couple wins to become bowl eligible. Instead, they’re going to have to take a different path there.
Now, if they bounce back this week they’ll still be 3-1 and the Kansas loss might not sting as much but rather exist as a lost opportunity. This is the definition of a must-win for everyone that is involved in the operation from top to bottom. It’s hard enough to live down losing by 24 at home to Kansas, but following it up with a loss to Rutgers would leave everyone in Chestnut Hill speechless.
Lovie Smith – Illinois
Illinois did a lot right the first two weeks of the season beating programs they were supposed to. Then all that goodwill for Lovie Smith went out the window with a loss to Eastern Michigan at home. Is Illinois going to take the next step or flounder around another three-to-five win season? They host Nebraska this week.
Willie Taggart – Florida State
What else is there left to say about Willie Taggart and Florida State at this point? It’s probably not long until they pull the plug and admit they made the wrong hire. For now, they host Louisville and will look to avoid a second-straight conference loss.
Chip Kelly – UCLA Bruins
Chip Kelly probably should have waited for a different program. Then again, that doesn’t excuse the performance of UCLA under him so far. Whatever he’s trying to do isn’t exactly working. A divorce between the two might be not a bad idea. The route of patience might exist here, but they can’t keep getting smoked every single week. There has to be some progress. It only gets tougher for UCLA as they visit Washington State this week.
Clay Helton – USC Trojans
Clay Helton and the USC Trojans suffered their first loss this past week to BYU in overtime. Now, they’re back at home for the biggest game of their season when they host Utah. A win here would be huge for Helton, but a loss would probably have those within the program internally looking to what’s next.