Dennis Dodd is out with his latest coach hot seat ratings. These aren’t in any way definitive, of course, but they are informative at least as to perception and budding narrative. Here’s how he sets his ratings:
Rating What it means Coaches 5 Win or be fired 6 4 Start improving now 10 3 Pressure is mounting 19 2 All good … for now 42 1 Safe and secure 41 0 Untouchable 11
And here’s how he rates the status of every SEC head coach, along with my one-sentence reactions:
- Nick Saban: 0 (only because Dodd doesn’t use negative numbers)
- Chad Morris: 2 (it’s early, right?)
- Gus Malzahn: 2 (you’d think a 7-year, $49 million contract would rate a 1)
- Dan Mullen: 1 (it’ll be interesting to see this number in three years)
- Kirby Smart: 0 (after only two years on the job!)
- Mark Stoops: 4 (how much better could UK do?)
- Ed Orgeron: 4 (what are the odds this goes to five before season’s end?)
- Joe Moorhead: 1 (you can make the argument that he’s in the best place of any of the SEC’s new coaches)
- Barry Odom: 3 (okay, but SOD is a 4, right?)
- Matt Luke: 2 (thanks, Hugh!)
- Will Muschamp: 2 (that looks about right)
- Jeremy Pruitt: 2 (it’ll be interesting to see this number in
three yearsone yearsix months) - Jimbo Fisher: 1 (don’t know if that says more about Fisher or TAMU)
- Derek Mason: 3 (that’s actually not bad for a Vandy coach after four seasons)
Your thoughts?
Get The Picture 
A good list overall, but my interpretation of 0 would be that once you reach that level you’re never leaving no matter what. Like the Spurrier, Bowden, Dooley level. And I don’t think Kirby’s there.
As much as I believe we have the right guy, give him 3 losses this year or fail to win the east and the grumblings will come. They’ll be pointing to one hell of a flash in the pan sandwiched between two disappointing seasons and a failure to win at the highest level with highest level talent.
I’d also move Stoops to 3 and Muschamp to 1. I think Stoops has managed to give the impression that he’s winning more than he really is, or at least that the team is better than its record has shown and is improving, and that Muschamp has really endeared himself to Carolina fans. They’re believers over there and their standards aren’t to the level of the top teams in the league. .
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Gus may be a 2 today, but he’s one bad loss from being a 5. Ask the Chiz how fast Barners can turn on a coach. The new AD isn’t invested in Gus, not even a little bit. AU would toss him overboard faster than Pat Dye’s old pants.
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That I totally agree with … Anyone got data for Chizik the year he was fired? He couldn’t have been higher than a 1.
One thing that does favor a good Auburn season? He faces 3 first year HC in conference.
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I think Gus would have been fired last year if he’d lost to Georgia and Alabama again. One hot month later, he gets an insane extension that they’ll be buying out in two or three years…probably.
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I kind had hoped they would have fired him even with UGA recent success against him. I prefer an in turmoil Auburn. Even with the extension, if the bottom drops out on him and Auburn loses early to UW and LSU, he will be on the hot seat before September is over.
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There are about 42,000,000 good reasons Malzahn isn’t going anywhere even for an insane group like Barners. That buyout is the fire extinguisher that puts out any hot seat talk at this point. I just can’t see a scenario where he’s out involuntarily in the next 2 years unless he does something Sharkhumper kind of stupid.
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Agreed. Methinks Gus should hire personal handlers. The big buyout can be avoided if they frame him for something or maybe they already have dirt on him for when they want to use it.
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Tubbs and Chizik both proved a buy out will not keep a coach. However, Tubbs relied on his assistants for just about everything, and Chizik went winless after his transition from the spread to a pro style offense. I don’t see Gus falling as far but you never know.
Jimbo better build a deeper/more physical OL than he did at FSU or he will be out in 3-4. Richt proved you can’t out talent your way to success with skill players in the SEC especially with Saban on the schedule and now Smart taking the same basic recipe.
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I think Odom is really a four.
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He’ll hit five this year if their offense tanks under Dooley as I expect it to.
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I would give Mullen a 2, Kirby a 1, and Stoops a 2.
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The South Carolina faithful seem to have really bought into Will, and I’m happy for him. He didn’t do a good job of selecting coaches to run his offense at Florida, and I’m very happy he isn’t a Gator anymore. I’m not a fan of how he has publicly renounced his membership in the Bulldog nation, but I still believe once a Dawg, always a Dawg (as long as you’re not working for the Gators, Yellow Jackets, or War Tiger Eagles). I hope he finishes one spot behind Georgia in perpetuity and otherwise has a good time up there.
Small sample size, but my read on the Vanderbilt fans that I know has Derek Mason at a 2 at the hottest, and possibly more like a 1. I don’t think that there are that many Commodore fans who actually think that Vandy should be making reservations for New Year’s Day bowls and SECCG appearances.
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Boom is like Pat Dye. He’s dead to me.
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Boom far surpassed Dye. Dye may have called UGA out against Bama but it was in such a way as he move have been doing it to give UGA locker room material. Boom was/is an out and out jerk to put it very mildly.
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*may have
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Boom is a jackass. I renounced him as a Bulldog the day he stepped foot in Gainesville and talked about how he wasn’t smart enough to walk on at Florida.
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Having a two game winning streak going against the punkin patch kids is great for Mason.
Carry on CDM, and keep up the good work.
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Mullen should have a #2 or #3 rating, based on the grumbling that is already occuring over their horrid start in recruiting. UF has a major talent problem on their hands, the likes of which they haven’t experienced since the late 80’s.
Coach O is a solid 5+.
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I think Mullen and Pruitt have both fan bases expecting too much first year. If they both fall flat in that first year, the fireworks will start early at both programs.
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Jeremy Pruitt: 2 (it’ll be interesting to see this number in t̶h̶r̶e̶e̶ ̶y̶e̶a̶r̶s̶ ̶o̶n̶e̶ ̶y̶e̶a̶r̶ six months)
Exquisitely done, sir.
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probably should have done one more overstrike and ended up with “Labor Day weekend.”
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LOL
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I agree..that bought a laugh!
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Perception wise, Smart will be in GA for life.
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