What was initially expected to be a slow college football coaching cycle began to pick up steam over the weekend with NC State and Baylor firing their longtime head coaches on back-to-back days. That makes three FBS openings heading into Halloween weekend, and there are several other jobs worth watching as the season enters the stretch run. This is the latest we're hearing at CBS Sports on the open jobs, the status of coaches on the hot seat and even a job that could cause an earthquake in the 2026 carousel.
There is not a situation that elicits more intrigue or industry questions than what will happen between Lincoln Riley and USC. The heat was turned up on Riley after the Trojans lost to Oregon a month ago, and the simmer turned into a near-boil with a disastrous 24-7 loss to Wisconsin last week. Does Riley, a Texas native, look for an exit ramp and pursue the just-vacated Baylor job to restart his clock?
Is there another job in Texas that could open that could present a similar opportunity? In that scenario, it would help USC get out from what is believed to be an onerous $70 million buyout if it were to fire Riley outright. Either way, industry sources believe it's increasingly likely the Trojans will have a different head coach in 2027.
Of note, USC athletic director Jen Cohen did not hire Riley. In what was originally expected to be a quieter coaching carousel, USC's opening has the potential to create a significant domino effect throughout the college football ecosystem. For what it's worth, Riley said he was committed to remaining at USC.
"I love it here," he said on Tuesday. "I've told you guys many times. There's not many people in college football history who gave up what I gave up to come here." Entering the season, CBS Sports tabbed four coaches as being on the hottest seat.
Through late October, two have been fired. One is playing himself off the hot seat (Wisconsin's Luke Fickell). Then there is Florida State's Mike Norvell.
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