CFB Coaching Pressure Index: Which Top Coaches Need To Have Success In 2026?

The 2026 college football season doesn't start for another month, but for some head coaches, the pressure is already on. 

FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt examined how much pressure some of the top head coaches in the sport are dealing with ahead of the 2026 season in the most recent episode of the "Joel Klatt Show." Which coaches are on the hot seat? Which coaches could be on the hot seat?

Klatt placed the coaches dealing with some sort of pressure into five categories: Just Happy You're Here; We Like You, But …; Just Trying To Be Patient; Is This Going To Work and It's Time. 

So, here's Klatt's pressure index for 10 of the top coaches ahead of the 2026 season. 

Just Happy You're Here

Klatt: "All in LSU has gone — not only on the roster, but with Lane. I know they’re in a honeymoon phase after Brian Kelly. LSU always has high expectations. They spent plenty of money right away. I don’t think there’s a pressure point right now. I think they’re just happy he’s there. 

"I think that is a realization of what LSU has been recently. LSU has only finished in the top 25 two times since they’ve won a national championship in 2019. That was their only College Football Playoff appearance. Lane’s going to be under pressure Nov. 7 against Alabama. Not an easy schedule. I do have this sneaky feeling that Lane and LSU are going to roll out against Clemson, and we’re all going to open our eyes and go, ‘Oh, that’s one of the best rosters in all of college football.’ They’ve certainly spent enough money on it. … They might just be really, really good."

How much pressure is on Lane Kiffin in his first year at LSU? 👀 Joel Klatt Show

Klatt: "Kyle’s one of the best head coaches in the entire sport, and you're just happy he’s there. The way that things ended with Sherrone Moore, things could have gone south in a hurry for Michigan, particularly with the timing of everything that happened. Then they get Kyle Whittingham. Instead, they bring in, I think, one of the best coaches in America. 

"Michigan got a full offseason with Whittingham, so they should be in pretty good shape. By the way, that was a nine-win team. In the middle of all that dysfunction, they still won nine games with a true freshman quarterback. Now, the pressure point game for Michigan, I think, is a home game against Penn State [on] Oct. 17. Ohio State is always a huge one. Oklahoma is going to be a monster one."

We Like You, But …

Klatt: "Didn’t go well last year. They started No. 4. Finished 7-6. Clemson has not finished in the top 10 since Trevor Lawrence; that was five seasons ago. Dabo’s in his 18th full year at Clemson. He’s been heavily criticized for not adapting to the new world of college football. He has slowly come around. 

"I think Clemson fans at this point are saying to themselves, ‘We like you, but …' there’s a huge pressure point for Dabo: Miami in their fifth game. Could be LSU, but Miami is in conference. Clemson has run the ACC. They have dominated the ACC. Now it seems like Miami's conference. Then you wonder, what's the gap? Is Miami head and shoulders above Clemson? They were a year ago. Miami is going to be loaded again."

Just Trying To Be Patient

Klatt: "They made the SEC Championship Game. They won a playoff game. But they did get hammered by Georgia in the championship game, and they got absolutely crushed by Indiana. I think Kalen DeBoer took the hardest job in America, at, maybe, the most difficult time ever. Following Nick Saban, he did get a two-year extension in April through the 2032 season, and he’s gone 20-8. I actually really like Kalen DeBoer; 20-8 in his first two seasons is not terrible, but four losses in each season — we haven’t seen four losses from Alabama since Saban’s first year in 2007. Going into this season, I think the pressure’s on him. 

"With a quarterback who hasn’t started a game in his career, whether it’s Austin Mack or Keelon Russell. The schedule’s not terrible, but their first five games are very winnable. Then they’ve got this critical four-game stretch in the middle of the season … right now, this fan base is trying to be patient."

Is This Going To Work?

Matt Rhule enters his fourth season as Nebraska's coach with a 19-19 overall record. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

Klatt: "Let me just start with this. Let’s put him in the category right away: Is this going to work? Year 3 for Rhule and his history has always been a huge bump. Temple and Baylor. Last year was Year 3 and this year is Year 4. He’s gone 19-19; he’s .500. Rhule was known for that Year 3 pop. And they did win seven in the regular season. That was the first time they won seven in the regular season since 2016. You can say it was a step forward. But the way that they finished doesn’t feel like that. 

"He did get a two-year contract extension through 2032. They lost four of their last five. To be fair, they lost their quarterback; [Dylan] Raiola got hurt. It wasn't the same after he got hurt. They are moving forward, but there is a question for this fanbase: ‘Is it going to work?’ The schedule sets up for a hot start. Really good shot at being 5-0 for the Cornhuskers. Nobody is expecting them to beat Indiana or Oregon. The Washington game on Oct. 31st, that’s the game that could send the entire season in a different direction."

Klatt: "Belichick going to North Carolina was one of the biggest surprises I had on my bingo board, and that we’ve seen in recent years. First year, 4-8. Those four wins were against Charlotte, Richmond, Syracuse, who was terrible, and Stanford. We didn’t see a buttoned-up, fundamentally sound team that we are accustomed to seeing from Belichick. That’s a big adjustment to coaching the pros, and men, to 19-year-olds. 

"Belichick made one major change in the offseason. He did not bring back Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator, and Bobby’s a very good offensive coach. I think the pressure point is right out of the gate, Week 0, TCU in Dublin. I mean, TCU hammered them last year, hammered them. That wasn’t even close. After TCU, they’ll face Clemson in the third game, Notre Dame in the fourth game. Again, those aren’t measuring sticks for me for North Carolina." 

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Klatt: "Year 6 for Beamer at South Carolina. He’s 33-30. I think they wanted more out of Beamer. They gave him an extension after that 2024 season. They finished with nine wins. He had more wins than any other South Carolina coach in four years. But then last year went really poorly. Really poorly. Last year they started in the top 15, and got all the way up to 10 before the wheels absolutely came off. They finished 4-8. He needs to get things stabilized; otherwise, things could get uncomfortable for him. They do have LaNorris Sellers. They do have Dylan Stewart—cornerstones to build around for this roster. There's no doubt. 

"Their schedule does not do Beamer any favors. The fans are looking around and asking themselves ‘Is this going to work?’ I think the pressure point is Tennessee at home on Oct. 24. Lose that one and, yikes. They’re going to have at Oklahoma, Texas A&M, at Arkansas, Georgia and at Clemson. Things could go south in a hurry."

It's Time

Klatt: "I think there’s some pressure there. I’m a big fan of this USC team. This is Year 5 of Lincoln at USC. I think Trojan fans expected a start that they got, when they almost made it to the playoffs, and then sustaining that. And they obviously took a couple of steps back in their next couple of years. 27 teams have made the College Football Playoff, and USC is not one of them. They should be better than this and we know that. 

"I think the mood of Trojan fans about Lincoln Riley is that it’s time. There’s a real opportunity to make a mark with this team. This is a team that went 9-3 last year in the regular season; this is a team that beat Michigan physically on their home field. … The pressure point is not Oregon at home …they go to Penn State. That’s the pressure point. That’s likely going to be a whiteout, Oct. 10. This would be a monumental win for USC. If they win that game, they might just go to the playoff."

Klatt: "Year 6 in Austin for Sark. They’ve been to the semifinals twice. Texas opened as the No. 1 team in the country, and then missed the playoff. He does have three straight 10-win seasons, but he’s got Arch Manning. And they just spent a lot of money, he’s been doing some talking in the offseason. 

"They loaded up with weapons around, they’ve got that huge game against Ohio State and a really difficult schedule. One of the most difficult schedules in the country. And yet, don’t you get the sense that after those two semifinals appearances, and last year maybe an underwhelming performance from the Texas Longhorns, I think it’s time. I think that this fanbase looks at Sark and looks at Texas and says ‘Alright, it’s time. It’s time to win the SEC. It’s time to really play for that national championship.’" 

Klatt: "I think he’s one of the best coaches in America. Every single year, Oregon has taken a step forward under Dan Lanning. They were good his first year. Then, in his second year, they won the Big Ten. They were the No. 1 seed and got beat by the eventual national champion, the Ohio State Buckeyes. Then, he goes to the semifinal, so he wins a playoff game. They beat up on Texas Tech. And then Indiana housed them, and scored over 50 points. 

"He’s averaged 12 wins per year in his first four years as a head coach. Lanning has a group that is built to win it all. Stud experienced quarterback, talented defensive line, also experienced, could’ve gone to the National Football League but came back. They’ve got a ton of talent at wide receiver, running back. At 40 years old, he’d be the youngest to win a title since Bob Stoops did in 2000 at Oklahoma. 

"But I get the sense that Oregon fans are thinking to themselves … ‘It’s our time.’ Their toughest game is going to be going to USC … going to Ohio State … Michigan at home, Washington at home. Those are all decently difficult games. The pressure index really heats up for Dan Lanning once they’re in the CFP."

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