Bret Bielema’s gone from SEC dark horse to the Hot Seat Watch in only 2 weeks

Kyle Flood, Rutgers

Fourth season, 24-18 overall, 1-2 2015

In the last 24 months, Flood had 12 recruits decommit from his 2014 recruiting class, had an assistant accused of bullying, fired that assistant and two others after losing six of 2013’s final eight games, lost four Big Ten games by a combined 136 points in 2014, had seven players arrested in the month before the 2015 season opened, then was suspended for three games for inappropriate contact with a professor for purposes of improving the grades of one of the soon-to-be-arrested players.

Flood should have been fired three disasters ago.

Paul Rhoads, Iowa State

Seventh season, 30-48 overall, 1-2 2015

In late 2012, it looked like Rhoads was about to finally challenge the top programs of the Big 12. He had gone a respectable 24-27 in his first four seasons, made it to three bowl games and had his own recruits in the program.

Since then, Rhoads is 6-21. He was winless in the conference last season, he’s 1-2 against FCS opponents and he just recorded a gut-punch loss to Toledo. The question is no longer if Rhoads will be fired, but when.

Eleventh season, 85-47 overall, 1-2 2015

Twelfth season, 81-63 overall, 0-3 2015

South Carolina welcomes UCF Saturday in a game that could kill the already-dying bowl hopes of at least one team. Things are not good at South Carolina, and they’re only getting worse. Spurrier’s squad has lost two SEC games already, including a 32-point shellacking from Georgia. Recruiting has nosedived, and Spurrier’s hammer lock on the Clemson series was broken last year. Last season’s 7-6 record is looking less like an anomaly and more like the window slamming shut.

As for UCF, a program that won a division or conference title in four of the last five seasons, just dropped a home game to Furman and is in danger of its first winless September since O’Leary’s first season. O’Leary is likely not in as much trouble as Spurrier -- he has lower expectations and a successful 2014 in his corner -- but he’s already been talking about his post-coaching career anyway.

Fifth season, 31-22 overall, 3-0 2015

Miami’s off to a hot start, winning its first three games and salvaging a near-implosion against Nebraska. But September wins aren’t going to save Golden, who lost the final four games of last season and four of the final six games in 2013. And September wins aren’t going to stop the banners, which might fly again when the Canes return home in mid-October.

Third season, 11-17 overall, 1-2 2015

Beware the curse of high expectations. After a surprising 7-6 season that included wins over LSU and Ole Miss and a “borderline erotic” bowl blowout of Texas, Arkansas was considered a contender for the SEC West. And then the Hogs lost to Toledo and Texas Tech before the season really started, and Bielema was mocked by a victorious Kliff Kingsbury.

The Hogs could end up being favored only once or twice for the rest of the season. The line between success and failure in the SEC West is razor thin, and the axe can fall quickly, especially when Arkansas fans are tired of your mouth.

Second season, 7-9 overall, 1-2 2015

Texas has lost a boatload of players since Strong accepted the job, got embarrassed by TCU and Arkansas at the end of 2014, lost big at Notre Dame, replaced its offensive playcaller one game into 2015, and just had a three-touchdown comeback nullified by a missed extra point.

If you want to see just how little patience Texas has for mediocrity, look no further than Strong’s former boss. With Steve Patterson out as athletic director and no guarantee his replacement will be in Strong’s corner (not that Patterson was, either), the Longhorns’ scheduled return to prominence might have to be accelerated. But with the stunning amount of youth in important spots on the depth chart, that might not be realistic.

First season, 1-2 2015

The last Nebraska head coach to start 1-2: Bill Jennings, who lasted five seasons in a pre-Bob Devaney Lincoln, before leaving with a 15-34-1 record. But Riley’s pro-style makeover could call to mind Bill Callahan, the last former NFL head coach to attempt the same conversion, if things go poorly.

Some perspective, though: both of Nebraska’s losses came down to the last play, and the last Husker season to start 1-2 finished in the Orange Bowl.

Second season, 11-5 overall, 2-1 2015

In the last month, Sarkisian has embarrassed the university with an expletive-heavy (and apparently drunken) performance for donors and followed it with an upset loss to Stanford. With the Pac-12 South loaded, crosstown rival UCLA undefeated and the USC defense looking as inept as ever, Sarkisian could end up going the way of Lane Kiffin.

Third season, 5-22 overall, 1-2 2015

Hazell’s record does not sum up how bad it’s been. Three of his five victories have come against FCS opponents. He has yet to win a Big Ten home game. His defense is allowing well in excess of 30 points per game over the past two seasons. It looked like Purdue had turned a corner last October, when a win at Illinois was followed by close losses to Michigan State and Minnesota. But apparently not.

Fourth season, 14-26 overall, 2-1 2015

Leach has quelled some of the fan outrage from his season-opening loss to Portland State by winning at Rutgers and against Wyoming. However, his squad is unlikely to be favored in any Pac-12 game not against Oregon State or Colorado, and another sub-.500 campaign looks both inevitable and unacceptable.

Second season, 4-11 overall, 1-2 2015

It’s still early and Vanderbilt understands its position in the SEC, but it’s not as if Mason inherited an empty cupboard. James Franklin left Nashville ranked in the top 25 with a bowl win over Houston. Since then, Vandy has yet to beat a Power Five opponent. A trip to Oxford is next, but the games that follow -- Middle Tennessee and South Carolina -- are Mason’s best change to stop the fall.

Sixth season, 24-40 overall, 1-2 2015

And now for a lifetime achievement award: London, who has been in every Hot Seat Watch anywhere since 2012. London has managed just one winning record at Virginia, and the Cavaliers’ brutal schedule is hardly helping. Virginia has lost to Notre Dame and UCLA and hosts Boise State before opening ACC play. Finding five more wins in this slate is hard, which means London should again be on this list in 2016.