The Halfcourt Trap Vol. II, No. 2

With all the talk about the temperature of coaching seats in East Tennessee this week, I though I’d look at the coach under the most duress in each of the major conferences. Here we go.

1. Big East. Norm Roberts, St. John’s. The hottest seat in the nation. Nothing short of a miracle will keep the former Bill Self assistant in his Carnesecca Hall office. Look for the Red Storm powers that be to log several late March/early April phone calls to the 865 and 901 area codes.
2. ACC. Leonard Hamilton, Florida State. Sooner or later, a coach has to deliver on the promise that arrives with highly rated recruiting classes. Hamilton needs to make the NCAA Tournament to keep the wolves at bay.
3. Big Ten. Ed DeChellis, Penn State. Bruce Weber and Bill Carmody are also feeling the heat, but the warmest seating area is in State College. The former ETSU mentor needs to at least show signs of substantial progress to continue his tenure with the Nittany Lions.
4. SEC. Jeff Lebo, Auburn. Second only to Roberts in posterior temperature. Bad luck, injuries, and lack of discipline have resulted in an ugly resume for the Tiger head coach. Mark Gottfried probably shouldn’t get too comfortable, either.
5. Big Twelve. Mike Anderson, Missouri. No coach in this league appears to be in imminent danger of termination. However, off floor problems and no appearances in the NCAAs during his tenure with Tigers make it imperative for Anderson’s future employment that he convince the Mizzou faithful he’s the right man for the job.
6. PAC 10. Lute Olson, Arizona. Will he be fired? No. However, if his offseason staff shakeup backfires, a subtle but firm suggestion that he retire will likely be forthcoming.

Until next week, stay classy, Volnation.