Luke Fickell has to know his seat is super hot, especially when the one guy keeping him afloat after three years of bad football is now gone. Former Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh has taken a job with the Big Ten offices, and Fickell now is in a "prove-it" year unlike any other he's ever been in. If he doesn't find a way to win this year, the new AD can't allow it to continue.
Now, Brooks Austin and his crew at The Film Guy Network have new rankings for the coaches with the hottest seats heading into the season. The group of three podcasters determined Mike Norvell is already "fried" and Shane Beamer is an easy No. 1 on the list. Then the debate began, which centered on Luke Fickell and Lincoln Riley and the two types of hot seats.
Here's the final rankings that was determined:
TOP-10 HOTTEST SEATS IN CFB 🏈
— Brooks Austin (@BrooksAustinBA) June 2, 2026
🔗: https://t.co/aEIikbvAND pic.twitter.com/B272SCxMO1
Wisconsin's Luke Fickell has to win in 2026 or he won't continue to have a job
Related: All signs are pointing to Luke Fickell landing a statement 4-star Wisconsin commit
As you will see in the graphic, Fickell came in at No. 2 while Riley came in at No. 6, and yet the debate between the three Film Guy Network was between these two. They had to determine two categories of hot seats. In their minds, Fickell is in a different hot seat than Riley. For Fickell, he just has to find a way to get into a bowl game and win a decent number of Big Ten games. For Riley, he has to not only get into the College Football Playoff, but he also has to propel USC to a deep run.
This is why once they figured out that Fickell's pressure is simply to win a handful of games, he became No. 2. And that unlocked the Dave Aranda of Baylor, Bill O'Brien of Boston College, and Mike Locksley of Maryland as the ones that followed Fickell.
You can watch the full debate below in The Film Guy Network YouTube video; the debate happens around the seven-minute mark.
This is actually a fair argument, and the trio seems to have a good feel for Fickell's pressure vs. Riley's. While Fickell has the easiest schedule he's had since being here, Wisconsin has proven it can lose to inferior opponents under Fickell. So, there's no guarantee, but the schedule sets up well for at least a bowl game, if not a surprise eight-win season.
At the end of the day, Fickell has to find wins and has to find them in 2026.
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