Hot Seat: CBS Sports ranks Big Ten Football head coaches' seats from hottest to coolest

The college football season is rapidly approaching, and success is on the minds of each and every coach in the sport. However, some need to win more than others, and if they don’t, they could find themselves searching for a new gig in short order.

With that in mind, CBS Sports gathered nine of its top college football experts for its annual hot seat rankings. Each analyst ranked a coach’s job security from five (being unsafe) to zero (being safe). The average of each expert’s opinion made up their rankings for 2025.

The higher your average, the hotter your seat. Check out where each Big Ten coach ended up below. CBS Sports believes Luke Fickell of Wisconsin is in the most danger, and there are some surprising names right behind him.

It isn’t hard to see why CBS Sports believes Luke Fickell has to make more of an impact in Madison. The Wisconsin coach still has the top-tier qualities to have success in the Big Ten, but they need to come to the surface in 2025.

Many believe Fickell is still among the better coaches in the entire country, mainly due to his success at Cincinnati. The Bagders’ old school approach for 2025 could prove successful, but if it doesn’t, it’s easy to recognize why the program would look to a different coach to lead them in 2026.

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Lincoln Riley was once lauded as one of the best in all of college football. All told, he’s 81-24 in his career, but just 26-14 during his time at USC. He’s still among the better Big Ten coaches and nationwide, but the pressure is mounting to deliver in a big way.

The first Big Ten season didn’t go that well, and that has him feeling warm in 2025. It included losses to Maryland, Michigan and Minnesota. Riley is also 4-10 against ranked teams with the Trojans, a number that he’s not proud of, for sure.

Mike Locksley is one of the more interesting cases in the Big Ten. He’s had some success, but Maryland is going to have to rebuild going into 2025. Expectations are lower than in previous seasons.

While he led the Terrapins to bowl wins three straight seasons, Locksley went 4-8 last year. 2025 might be no different, but he’s been good enough during his time to get something cooking. But if Maryland is continuously blown out? It’ll be hard to keep him around.

DeShaun Foster’s only coached one season for UCLA. It’s too early to tell how he stacks up against other coaches, but UCLA had some positives last year. Still, it was nothing stellar.

At least he’ll get Nico Iamaleava at quarterback this season. That’ll help bring in a lot of attention, especially after a nice finish to 2024. The Bruins started 1-5, but Foster led them to a 4-2 finish. There’s reason for optimism this fall, but if they falter, there will be cause for concern.

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Sherrone Moore was handpicked to replace Jim Harbaugh. Last season, he showed a lot of moxie when he officially took over as head coach. He captained a ship that was far different from the one that won the national title the previous season.

Still, Michigan won games against USC, Ohio State and Alabama in 2024. That looked good for his resume. However, the expectations are to compete for the Big Ten and the College Football Playoff, and if Moore can’t do it, the Wolverines will find someone who can.

Is it time for the Matt Rhule Year 3 jump at Nebraska? That’s what the college football world is expecting, as he looks to lead the Cornhuskers to sustained success in 2025.

That’s been Rhule’s trajectory at his previous stops in Temple and Baylor. Many believe the stage is set for it to happen again, but this is why we play the games. Rhule doesn’t feel in any real danger, but Nebraska fans are starved for success, and they need their coach to deliver it to them.

Big Ten Hot Seat Rankings Continued:

7. David Braun, Northwestern (2)

8. Jonathan Smith, Michigan State (1.78)

9. PJ Fleck, Minnesota (1.78)

10. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa (1.67)

11. Jedd Fisch, Washington (1.56)

12. Greg Schiano, Rutgers (1.44)

13. James Franklin, Penn State (1.33)

14. Barry Odom, Purdue (1)

15. Ryan Day, Ohio State (0.89)

16. Bret Bielema, Illinois (0.78)

17. Curt Cignetti, Indiana (0.22)

18. Dan Lanning, Oregon (0.22)

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