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Which former Pac-12 football head coaches are in the hot seat and why?

Kenny Dillingham at ASU, Jake Dickert at WSU, and Deion Sanders at Colorado are three head coaches who need to prove their worth to their football programs.

By Sam Fariss

Colorado coach Deion Sanders and Oregon's Dan Lanning meet at midfield after the game at Autzen Stadium.
Colorado coach Deion Sanders and Oregon's Dan Lanning meet at midfield after the game at Autzen Stadium. / Chris Pietsch / USA TODAY NETWORK
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The Pac-12 is no more.

As the former teams from the Conference of Champions head their separate ways, the head coaches are facing various hurdles ahead of them.

However, there are a handful of coaches who need to find success more desperately than others.

Oregon State and Washington State are staying in the Pac-2, for now.

Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington are joining the Big Ten.

Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah are joining the Big 12.

Cal and Stanford are joining the ACC.

Luckily for the Ducks, the Oregon program is in the safest hands possible with Dan Lanning at the reigns.

So, which coaches are in the hot seat as they head to their new conferences, and severely need successful seasons in 2024?

Kenny Dillingham - Arizona State

The former Oregon offensive coordinator, Kenny Dillingham, is heading into his second season with the Arizona State Sun Devils.

In 2023, Dillingham and ASU finished at an abysmal 3-9 with just two conference wins, over unranked UCLA and Washington State.

ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham watches his team during a practice.
ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham watches his team during a practice. / Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY

Now, the Sun Devils will share a conference with powerful programs like Oklahoma State, TCU, and Iowa State.

If Dillingham and Arizona State cannot improve upon their radically disappointing 2023 season, the Sun Devils' head coach

Jake Dickert - Washington State

Overall, the Cougars finished 2023 at 2-7 in the Pac-12, just like the Sun Devils. However, head coach Jake Dickert led Washington State to a slightly more successful 5-7 overall record.

2023 was Dickert's third season as Washington State's head coach, after two seasons of being an assistant coach with the program.

Sep 16, 2023; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars head coach Jake Dickert.
Sep 16, 2023; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars head coach Jake Dickert. / James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

In 2022, Dickert coached the Cougars to a fairly successful 7-5 but a blowout loss to the Fresno State Bulldogs in the LA Bowl to end the season.

Especially with Washington State's decision to stay behind, and not join a Power 4 conference, Dickert desperately needs a winning season in 2024.

Deion Sanders - Colorado

Deion Sanders was the coach with the most amount of hype for the least amount of wins in 2023.

After bringing national attention back to the Colorado Buffaloes, Sanders and his sons (oh, and everyone else on the team) finished last year with one of the most disappointing records in the country: 4-8 overall.

The Buffs went 1-8 in conference play with just one 3-point victory over the Arizona State Sun Devils.

This spring, Sanders has struggled once again as Colorado has fallen well short of success in the transfer portal.

If Colorado flounders in the Big 12, Sanders should be worried about the longevity of his job in Boulder.

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