SEC Coaching Hot Seats & Buyout Numbers Heading into ’24 Season

By Chris Marler

Coaching turnover is becoming the norm in college football every offseason. It’s one of the reasons why only two teams in the entire SEC enter this season with the same head coach and coordinators from last year (Hat Tip South Carolina and Tennessee). Leashes are shorter, pressure is higher, and in some cases it’s not only just “win now or else”, it’s “win now or…our boosters will make up a fake extramarital affair to try and get you fired while you’re on vacation.”

Looking at you, Auburn.

Without further adieu, here are the current buyouts for SEC coaches on the hot seat.

Billy Napier – Florida ($25.5 Million)

It feels like Napier has been on the hotseat in Gainesville since he got off the plane. He’s only entering year three as the Gators Head Coach, and he’s facing the toughest schedule in the country this season–and possibly in program history. Regardless, if he doesn’t get to five or six wins this season he will most likely be gone, and UF will be on the hook for 85% of his remaining contract.

Sam Pittman – Arkansas ($15 million)

Pittman is entering year five in Fayetteville, and following a 4-8 season in 2023, the seat for the Boss Hog has finally heated up. Despite having success early in his tenure, Pittman’s career record at Arkansas is still 23-25. He is committed to the job, and there is quite literally no bigger indicator of that than him hiring disgraced former Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino as his new offensive coordinator. It will be interesting to see what the administration does if he underperforms again. Fifteen million dollars is nothing to sneeze at, but they did save themselves around $20 million in total costs by not firing him a year ago.

Seats are heating up – Shane Beamer and Clark Lea

There has been a lot of smoke without the fire about these two head coaches and their respective hot seats this offseason. Lea is coming off a 2-10 season, which even for Vandy’s standards is unacceptable. Beamer and South Carolina finished 5-7 in 2023. However, remember that not only did he sign a $33 million extension in January 2023, but South Carolina is also still paying off the remainder of Will Muschamp’s $13 million buyout through December of this year.