Of the ten retiring Pac-12 schools, are any coaches on the recent seat? Or do they get a free pass for the reason that programs not named Oregon, USC and Utah are broke? — @bdgiddens6
Interesting query – and something we hadn’t thought much about before.
As you said, it’s relevant for competitive and financial reasons. Most of the ten schools should not in a great position to just accept significant acquisitions if the top coach fails next season.
And because you didn't specify the game, we'll cover each football and men's basketball here.
On the football front…
None of the buses that travel to the Big 12 have hot and even warm seats.
Deion Sanders is running the show in Boulder, Kenny Dillingham is crawling out of a college mess in Tempe, Brent Brennan is starting his first season in Tucson and Kyle Whittingham is the crown prince of Salt Lake City.
We can also't imagine any hot-seat situations for the ACC-bound schools. Troy Taylor is starting his second season at Stanford and Justin Wilcox just took Cal to a bowl game.
The quartet of colleges joining the Big Ten includes newcomers Seattle (Jedd Fisch) and Westwood (DeShaun Foster). There is not any danger to them. Oregon's Dan Lanning might get somewhat heated if he loses to Washington again, but his job isn't in jeopardy.
The hottest football seat by far belongs to USC's Lincoln Riley.
The Trojans had a deeply disappointing season, largely due to their inept defense. A mediocre first 12 months within the Big Ten — six or seven wins, for instance — will undoubtedly result in calls for Riley's ouster.
And he works for a brand new boss, athletic director Jen Cohen, who was hired last summer.
Unless the Trojans have a sub-.500 season, a training change seems unlikely. But in comparison with his nine classmates at outbound schools, Riley's spot is undoubtedly the most popular.
On the basketball front…
Washington, Stanford, Cal and USC can have first- or second-year coaches next season.
Tad Boyle of Colorado and Dana Altman of Oregon will exit on their very own terms. Arizona's Tommy Lloyd just signed a contract extension through 2029, and UCLA's Mick Cronin could use a solid season but isn’t at risk of leaving.
That leaves two: Utah's Craig Smith, who can be under above-average pressure to succeed in the NCAAs in his fourth 12 months, and ASU's Bobby Hurley, who sits in the most popular spot of the 20 coaches rated here.
Yes, Hurley's seat is hotter than Riley's.
ASU finished slightly below 8-12 in conference play, missing the NCAAs for the third time in 4 years.
If the Sun Devils don't make the sphere of 68 in March 2025, search for a move to Tempe — even when Hurley's program hasn't received the resources needed for sustained success.
If Washington State and Oregon State were free to decide on schools, what would their ideal Pac-8/10/12 seem like? — @MarcSheehan006
The key word isn’t “select,” but fairly selective. The “Pac-2” schools must develop a technique that gives short-term stability starting within the 2026 season while paving a path to long-term prosperity.
A full reverse merger with the Mountain West's 12 schools to form the Pac-14 wouldn’t meet the latter requirement. Why? Because too lots of the 14 members would offer below-average media and competition value.
If the Hotline were advising WSU and OSU, our focus can be on attracting the highest schools within the Mountain West (San Diego State, Boise State, Fresno State and Colorado State, in addition to UNLV) and a few schools from other time zones.
Expand the footprint. Expand the market. Add members who’ve the potential to grow.
That means examining the viability of colleges within the WAC, Conference USA and the American Athletic Conference.
Officials in Pullman and Corvallis have remained consistent of their approach: Nothing is off the table on the subject of rebuilding the Pac-12. And that’s the only logical tact. If you're floating in open water, any lifeboat will do.
But before the Pac-2 schools begin the expansion process, they have to remain flexible and keep watch over the ACC's situation.
If the conference fails because of Florida State and Clemson's lawsuits, the equation could change for WSU and OSU.
How do Stanford and Cal balance their carbon footprint with all of the air miles within the ACC? — @olympiccard1
They don't do this. You can't.
The Hotline asked about this very issue on Sept. 1, when the colleges announced they’d be joining the ACC, and the reply was essentially: That was out of the query.
Instead, the Cardinals and Bears focused on finding the very best situation for his or her athletes.
The ethical and moral merits of their decision to attend a conference on the Atlantic Coast can and can undoubtedly be debated on each campuses, particularly in faculty offices.
In your assessment of the NFL Draft on Thursday night, you indicate what a recruiting wave Chris Petersen had with Washington in 2019. How do you think that things would have turned out if Petersen had stayed on as head coach? — @Cargoman0363
We love diving into hypotheticals and alternate history, but this discussion has little to chew on.
Why? Because if Petersen hadn't resigned in December 2019, just before the pandemic, he would have resigned within the 2021-22 window. He couldn't have reconciled his approach to coaching and team constructing within the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
In our view, Petersen would have coached through the whole COVID season and one other 12 months – not enough time to chart a special path for the Huskies.
However, it’s interesting to think concerning the Pac-12 media rights negotiations had Petersen continued to be in charge. Kalen DeBoer's concerns about an all-streaming media deal were one in all the predominant reasons Washington headed to the Big Ten on the morning of August 4th.
Would Petersen have felt the identical way?
Or would his priority have been to remain at a conference on the West Coast?
The Olympic Games are only across the corner. Who are some Pac-12 athletes competing in Olympic sports this 12 months that we don't all the time hear about? — @SirCharles_OG
In probably the most high-profile sport, the list includes former Arizona guard Steve Kerr, who will coach a USA basketball team that also includes former UCLA guard Jrue Holiday.
Then there's Katie Ledecky, the previous Stanford swimmer and one of the vital decorated Olympians in U.S. history.
Another former Pac-12 athlete to keep watch over: Devon Allen. The former Oregon soccer player is an elite hurdler but must qualify for Paris at this summer's Olympics.
Of the present Pac-12 athletes, Jade Carey, the Oregon State gymnast and 2020 Olympic gold medalist (floor exercise), is at the highest of the must-watch list.
The Hotline can have more coverage of Pac-12 athletes in Paris once trials are complete and teams are announced.
Given the Pac-12's demise, will you be posting a “Best Of…” or your favorite stories concerning the Pac-12 this offseason? — @kmasterman
In fact we’ll do this. Look for it in June and perhaps July too.
The 10 schools is not going to officially leave the Pac-12 until August 2, although their transitions to recent leagues will effectively be complete at that time.
Over the following three months, the Hotline will address issues affecting the Pac-12 because it stands, the Pac-12 as it’s going to look starting August 2, and naturally the problems affecting the ten outbound Schools are essential.
Any developments within the ACC, Big 12 or Big Ten that impact the departing members can be reported and analyzed here.
Our coverage area isn’t decreasing. It's expanding.
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