College basketball coaches on the hot seat in 2015-2016
— -- A year ago, we called this list " coaches who need to make a run," but we're going back to what it truly is: A list of coaches on the dreaded hot seat.
Getting off this list isn't easy. Just ask Oliver Purnell, Steve Lavin and Anthony Grant. They were all on it a year ago and are no longer at DePaul, St. John's and Alabama.
But it can be done, commonly via two avenues: Win games or succeed on the recruiting trail. Look at Maryland's Mark Turgeon, Purdue's Matt Painter and Texas A&M's Billy Kennedy. They were on it a year ago and are now breathing easy. (OK, maybe "easier.")
Tom Crean, Indiana Hoosiers
This isn't exactly earth-shattering news. Crean was on the list a year ago and wound up getting to the NCAA tournament. But this is a big year for Indiana, due to the lofty expectations. Also, Crean's buyout dips down from $7.5 million to $4 million on July 1. There's even a web site devoted to the buyout.
On the bright side, Indiana has plenty of experience, talent and balance to finish in the top three of the Big Ten and advance deep in the tourney. But if Crean and IU don't get out of the first weekend come March, the buyout is far more reasonable, and this could be it for his time in Bloomington.
Rick Pitino, Louisville Cardinals
There are always one or two guys on this list for reasons that go beyond solely wins and losses. Some survive (such as Oregon's Dana Altman) and some do not (Tennessee's Donnie Tyndall). Louisville is in the midst of an investigation involving a former staff member paying escorts on behalf of players. There is no evidence Pitino knew about any of it, but he's still on shaky ground pending the findings of the investigation. His seat is certainly warm until this all wraps up.
Travis Ford, Oklahoma State Cowboys
Ford is another coach who may have been saved due to an ill-advised long-term extension. Athletic director Mike Holder handed Ford a 10-year contract back in 2009, after his first season. That was also the last time Ford won an NCAA tournament game. Sure, the Cowboys have gone to three consecutive NCAA tourneys, but they have come up empty in a run that includes two losses with NBA lottery pick Marcus Smart. Oklahoma State doesn't look like a tourney team this season, but Ford's buyout of more than $7 million might still be too high, especially since notable booster T. Boone Pickens doesn't seem to want to open his wallet for this one.
Dave Rice, UNLV Rebels
Rice is an alumnus who was a reserve on the national title team in 1990. He took the Rebels to the NCAA tourney in each of his first two seasons at the helm. However, the last two have culminated without postseason appearances. Rice received a two-year extension through 2019 when he spurned a six-year deal to go to South Florida in 2014, and his buyout stands at $1 million (it decreases by $25,000 each month). UNLV has no shortage of talent to get back to the NCAA tournament this season, and it will likely need to do so for Rice to move forward. UNLV inked Rice's assistants to two-year contracts following last season, an abnormality in college hoops and a detail that could work in Rice's favor.
Lorenzo Romar, Washington Huskies
Romar had the program rolling with three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances from 2009 to 2011, but the Huskies haven't been there in the past four years. He has enough young talent to be in the mix this season, and he will add a likely McDonald's All American in Markelle Fultz next year. Romar also is extremely well liked and will be owed nearly $3 million after the coming season as a result of a 10-year deal that was signed back in 2010.
Josh Pastner, Memphis Tigers
At Memphis, it's all about expectations and having to follow John Calipari. The crazy aspect is that the records for Pastner and Calipari are almost identical through their first six seasons with the Tigers program (Pastner is 148-58; Calipari had 59 losses). But Pastner is coming off a season in which Memphis didn't make the postseason, and then in the summer he lost his top player, Austin Nichols, who transferred to Virginia. Pastner cannot afford to have another 18-14 campaign in 2015-16, but he's also owed plenty of money.
Brian Gregory, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Gregory has compiled a 55-71 mark in four years, but it is the ACC record (19-51) and lack of an NCAA tournament appearance that's troubling. Athletic director Mike Bobinski gave Gregory another year, but it may have been because the school is still paying former coach Paul Hewitt and was on the hook for $2.4 million with Gregory. The Yellow Jackets should be improved from a year ago, when they were 12-19 and 3-15 in the league, but they probably need to get to the NIT and maybe the NCAA tourney.
Kevin Willard, Seton Hall Pirates
Willard has put together a five-year record of 82-80 overall, but he has lost twice as many league games as he's won (30-60) and has yet to take the program to the NCAA tournament. He also has lost some quality players via transfer lately, including Sterling Gibbs, who left for UConn. The question now becomes whether Willard's Pirates -- with a roster that includes Isaiah Whitehead, Angel Delgado and grad transfers Derrick Gordon and Braeden Anderson -- can play their way into the NCAA tourney (or at least the NIT).
Andy Enfield, USC Trojans
USC athletic director Pat Haden brought Enfield on board after a magical Sweet 16 run with Florida Gulf Coast. And while Enfield didn't inherit much, he will need to make progress this season. His first two years out of the Galen Center have been dismal, with a 23-41 overall mark and a 5-31 Pac-12 record. Enfield will still have three years left on his deal after this season; combine that with enough quality young talent, and it should be enough to net him at least a fourth season on the sidelines. But he can ill afford another two- or three-win conference campaign.
Bruce Weber, Kansas State Wildcats
Weber was 47-21 and went to the NCAA his first two years in Manhattan, but last year was a disaster. The team went 15-17 overall and 8-10 in Big 12 play. Then Weber's best player, Marcus Foster, transferred to Creighton. Weber's contract runs through 2019, and he has a significant buyout, but the Wildcats will be young and could struggle again this season.