Which college football coaches are on the hottest seats at the end of September?

We're only a few days into October, and already, the 2025 coaching carousel cycle is in full swing.

As things currently stand, four Power Four jobs have already opened. First, it was UCLA and Virginia Tech, which fired coaches DeShaun Foster and Brent Pry after 0-3 starts. The Bruins were in just their second season under Foster, who was hired in February 2024 under less-than-ideal circumstances, while Pry struggled to get things rolling in Blacksburg before face-planting to begin Year 4.

Elsewhere, Oklahoma State parted ways with longtime coach Mike Gundy after an embarrassing loss to Tulsa, while Arkansas pulled the plug on Sam Pittman after a loss to Memphis before an embarrassing 56-13 rout at the hands of Notre Dame.

Those coaching searches have already begun, but they almost certainly won't be the only ones undertaken in the cycle. Here are several more coaches who find themselves occupying rapidly warming seats at the end of September.

Billy Napier, Florida

Napier entered the 2024 season on one of the hottest seats in America, and it looked like he was toast after a 4-5 start to the year. However, he managed to save his job as the Gators finished the year 8-5 after reeling off four-straight wins, including ranked victories over Ole Miss and LSU.

Now, it's pretty apparent that streak was a mirage. Florida is 1-3 for the first time since 1986, and Napier sits at 20-22 overall in his tenure in Gainesville as things stand in Year 4. Former five-star quarterback DJ Lagway was tabbed as the savior for this program, but he's struggling mightily early in the season after an injury-plagued offseason.

It's hard to imagine Napier can pull off a similar rally the rest of the way to save his job. Florida's next two games come against top-10 opponents in Texas and Texas A&M, and the Gators still have matchups against Georgia, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Florida State on the docket later this season.

This job will open. It's now just a question of when.

Hugh Freeze, Auburn

Freeze's seat isn't quite as hot as Napier's, especially given that he's only in Year 3. Still, the success is yet to materialize on the plains for Freeze. After finishing 6-7 in Year 1, the Tigers missed a bowl game last season. They seemed to have taken a step forward with quarterback addition Jackson Arnold, but after a 3-0 start, they've dropped two in a row to begin SEC play.

Auburn still has games against Georgia, Missouri and Alabama. While a seven or eight-win season would probably be enough to buy Freeze another season, losses in all three of those games could put him in a tight spot as he currently sits at 14-16 overall with a 5-13 record in SEC play.

Dave Doeren, NC State

Doeren deserves a lot of credit for the stability he has brought to the Wolfpack program. Excluding his first season in 2013, he's finished below .500 just twice and has four nine-win seasons. However, one of those sub-.500 finishes came last fall, when NC State fell to a disappointing 6-7.

Things aren't trending great for Doeren this year, either. The Wolfpack are 3-2 and have dropped two straight ACC contests, first against Duke and then against a Virginia Tech team led by an interim coach.

Doeren is 90-67 in this job, and there may not be a lot of momentum to make a change right now. Still, watching conference foe Virginia Tech fire a coach and immediately invest a massive amount of money into its athletics department may plant some ideas in the heads of the NC State boosters and administration.

David Braun, Northwestern

Braun took over this job under difficult circumstances as he was promoted as an interim in July 2023 after Pat Fitzgerald was fired amid allegations of hazing in the football program. Suprisingly, the Wildcats went 8-5 in 2023 as Braun was given the full-time position.

Unfortunately, the situation has deteriorated since then. The Wildcats finished 4-8 in 2024, and they're 2-2 to start 2025 with a Group of Five loss to Tulane on the resume. If Braun can improve upon last year's finish, he may be safe. Still, Northwestern could be looking to make a change, given it didn't get to conduct a full search last time.

Luke Fickell, Wisconsin

When the Badgers stole Fickell away from Cincinnati, it looked like an absolute home run hire. Fickell led the Bearcats to a College Football Playoff appearance, and his extensive experience coaching within the Big Ten footprint made him look like a hire who could raise the ceiling at Wisconsin.

Instead, the floor has been lowered significantly. Some of Fickell's gambles — notably, his decision to hire an air raid coordinator in Phil Longo — have backfired. Longo was fired after 2024 as Fickell looked to backtrack, but things haven't gotten any better this fall.

He's just 15-15 overall in Madison and is coming off a 5-7 season. The Badgers have looked pretty lifeless this season amid a 2-2 start, and while his buyout is quite chunky (it currently sits around $25 million), it's hard to imagine he gets another season here if he doesn't turn things around quickly.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: College Football Hot Seat: 5 coaches in danger after September